Exciting fun!

Big first in Southern Africa!

This week we received the first Flyboard in Mozambique.

After some delays due to bureaucratic hassles, Tor finally arrived in Bilene yesterday. We were both so impatient to try the board that we skipped breakfast. A cup of coffee and one of Earl Grey later, we were both on the beach, battling with pipes and fittings. Everything was delivered in kit form, and we had to figure out how to connect the assembly to the jet ski.
Although this is typical rocket propulsion material, the assembly itself is not actual rocket science  ;-) so we finally got in the water, and I was the first guinea pig. Getting the boots on was a struggle. They are supposed to adjust to all feet sizes but being new it was a tight fit.
Lying with feet strapped on the board, and hands clenghed on the controls, with no possibility of swimming, I was a bit anxious at first. When Tor put a bit of power on the engine, I struggled to figure out how to contort myself to get the jet in the right direction so I would head out to deeper waters, pulling the jet ski behind me.
The short time it took to get there gave me an opportunity to get familiar with the board, the feeling of the jet under my feet and the action of my arms.
Those that have visited Bilene know how far the shallow beach extends, at last we got to the channel in the center of the lagoon, and Tor started applying power. The first couple of attempt ended hilariously with me slipping sideways, falling ungracefully in the water, but then I found my balance, and was soon in the air.
The feeling is indescribable.
There was still much more laughter in store, as there are many ways to fall, some quite spectacular. I was winded a few times, falling from quite a height, but it's only water.
The other thrill in store was the dive, and flying under water felt actually easier than in the air. First of all, there is none of the fear of falling, and the drag on the body means it's possible to control the trajectory by just bending one way or the other. And emerging out of the water to leap forward, catch a breath and dive down again, like a dolphin, is the main reason why I want to get proficient with the Flyboard.
After one day, I'm far from being as graceful as these beautiful animals, but I have high hopes that all it requires is just a little more practice...

Speak to you soon, don't hold your breath!

--- Added a few days later ---

Well, it seems getting on the board is not that hard really. Most people that have tried manage to get flying within a fairly short time. Of course, we were put to shame by youngsters that grew up with roller-boards, wake boards and I'm sure surfers would easily top our meager performance, but that  does in no way diminish the thrill I feel when I'm flying a few meters above the water...

More photos here...

--- Added even later ---

I finally managed to upload the video during a visit to South Africa (thumbs down to TDM, providers of expensive crappy connections to the Internet in Mozambique) and the whole world can now watch it: