Unhooked self-launch for safety

[sarc]

Cross-posted to the safety topic thread

Following this thread "First fatal accident in our local beginner Bay Area beach" and Launch Unhooked!", I thought I'd share my way of launching unhooked.
Someone in the thread suggested the term "pre-launch unhooked" which is also a good name for this.

Anyway here is the video, this definitely works for me... if you don't think it will work for you, that's fine too...
https://youtu.be/2QD3CzoojYI

[jakemoore]

yesss

[dylan*]

please not another thread about this kook shit

[alexeyga]

There might be some wisdom behind it, but I'd love to see anybody using this method when:
-Launching on spots other than beaches with unlimited space
-Launching in gusty conditions where kite demands some serous input right after launching

As a side note, these spoiled by beaches with unlimited space - how hard it is to roll your lines when out of the water?

[Bushflyr]

please not another thread about this kook shit

Ditto. This is kook shit that you can get away with because you have a mile of uncluttered wide open beach. It doesn't matter where your kite goes because there's nothing to hit. That definitely doesn't mean it's safer. Try this where I kite, we launch standing under trees some days, and everyone will look at you like you've lost your mind.

[TommyDuotone]

With all that room, why don't you launch from the water's edge and go directly out. No need to go to zenith while you are still on the beach.

[tautologies]

That looks perfectly fine and controllable to me. Seriously, guys, there is no need to give people shit when you can see that this will work in many many locations. I mean I self-launch on a regular basis. I've never found the need to do it unhooked, but this looks like something I could imagine doing.

One thing. What is the wind like in the vid? Can you do this in nuking conditions? I mean when I self-launch it seems to pull a lot more than that even if I am fully depowered.

[Beardytello]

I'm only new to this, been kiting in earnest since October last year so I probably have no place to comment, but as a noob this looks a horrible way to launch (for me personally).

I self launch hooked in, it gives me a level control of the kite without even using my hands that I like, I can check the lines for a final time when the canopy catches wind, when I'm ready I slowly steer it up to 45 degrees and go.

I understand the risks of launching hooked in, and I like to think I'm prepared for those, I've been well drilled to hit the safety if something looks like it's about to go wrong, something I've done in practise when I had a problem (not with launching)

I may live to regret this but I can't see anything I like about unhooked launching, and definitely won't be trying it.

[andylc]

Looks like pretty light wind and still gets pulled a fair bit downwind. Overpowered and gusty = disaster I would think!

[badgb21]

Self launch hooked-in with one hand on the QR I get, but unhooked like the vid, not sure it's for me.