These Things I Know

Bruna Kajiya




ONE Trying to be the best at something is a battle with yourself, not others.

TWO My family always comes first.

THREE Being Brazilian changes everything. From the perception you have on the world after living in such a unique and crazy country, to how differently people treat you when they find out you are from Brazil.



FOUR Travel, airport, hotels, excess luggage… these things I know all too well.

FIVE Love is the key to anything in life. If you have that, the rest will come.

SIX Dedication and hard work isn’t always enough; there are things in life that you can’t control.

SEVEN After working hard all year, the first thing you think when you finally win the world title is 'Now what?'

EIGHT Move forward or drop dead is something I keep in mind.

NINE When you are having a bad session trying and trying a trick, it's best to stop and try it again another day. Being stubborn and banging your head against the wall just makes it worse, and not only with kiting. I learnt this the hard way.

TEN Competing in zero degree air temperature with gusty conditions, from 15 to 50 knots, changes one's concept of bad conditions. Even a rainy day in a 4/3mm wetsuit suit seems like paradise after that.

ELEVEN People should stop socialising so much through a computer and get out of the house and see real people!

TWELVE Twitter shouldn't be allowed. It’s strange to know what everyone is doing all the time and crazier to waste time letting people know you just had a shower or ate a muffin.

THIRTEEN There are things that time won’t heal.

FOURTEEN I wouldn’t trade a good smoothie for any other drink or food in the world.

FIFTEEN Being on tour and doing your best to win is an intense experience that gives you a hangover when it’s done. You need at least a month to detox, feel refreshed and get back to it all over again.

SIXTEEN A broken finger does not hurt as much when you are in a final.

Bruna Kajiya is the 2009 women's PKRA freestyle champion and spends most of the year travelling around the world on tour. When not on the road she spends most of her time between Tarifa and Barcelona in Spain. She is 23-years-old and will aim to retain her title in 2010, starting at the first event in Thailand on 15th March and is sponsored by Mystic, Flexifoil and Red Bull

This feature is in Issue 44