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Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 12:15 pm
by NYKiter
Happens, could be easily deadly.

Been here a few times now and lucky after acting fast to remove it.

Interested in hearing folks ways of dealing with it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX1W6kED4sE

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 12:48 pm
by ELI
Don't be defensive or argue with the bartender and the bouncers .Leave quietly.

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 1:21 pm
by Jyoder
Happened to me twice early on and quickly became the most scary dreaded event foiling. I use a low volume board, too. However, hasn’t happened again and I feel pretty safe from it. Now, when I crash, I somehow always end up with the board safely under the water where it can’t jump up and bite. I guess I learned to keep driving the board with my front foot even as I’m falling off so that it pearls under on purpose.

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 1:28 pm
by Horst Sergio
Good point NYKiter,

even if in other context discussed a few times seen here, maybe someone finds the topics. Foil in lines is one of the points which makes me thinking foiling should stay an "experienced only" kite sport, even if the new foils are getting easier and easier to ride, otherwise I fear we will see somebody drown in the next time fixed to its foil by kite lines.

Most important reaction for me is:
1. Try to understand situation in the first secound as far as possible and emediately act in the secound
2. Action most time will be kill kite power, but not by quickrelease which most time won't work, but most time by pulling in one or both stearing lines to cut the flow from kite profile.

Also had foil maybe 6 times in the lines and last one a few days ago. Don't remember, but could have been a to high backflip where the foil ended in between the pretty low Y of front lines. As in this case first check showend kite still in normal flight at 12 and bar free, I decided and was able to pull the foilwing out of lines during flight. But happily it was just a monofoil.

But found a slight damage in the lines at this point, so will have to shorten and everybody should check well after crashes. Also a smove foil trailing edge is also important for that, if you have unthreated dings in your trailing edge they can act like a serrated knife at your lines and your body! :o

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 2:06 pm
by AGK
Following on Horst's point, someone had a line break under load a few minutes after having it caught in the foil at our spot this week. Fortunately no major damage or injury this time. If you get your lines caught, make sure you check them for abrasion!

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 3:08 pm
by jakemoore
The first time it happened to me I ejected the chicken loop and the foil cut the safety line, releasing the whole ensemble to blow down wind. I think the kite was probably looping and I had to let go before a bind? The carbon trailing edge of the mast was not a serrated knife but razor sharp on its whole length.

I suppose the other issue is awareness about this possibility of cutting lines in the foil and losing kite and foil is to avoiding conditions to endanger others by not sailing upwind of crowds.

I think ELI has the right idea.

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 3:17 pm
by matth
One of several reason I have lost my desire to foil....

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 3:20 pm
by Kitetwin-1
This has happened to me multiple times. The best answer is to not let it happen. When you fall be sure to keep the bar high overhead so as to not allow the foil to slide thru the lines.

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 5:54 pm
by Foil
Its happened to me now about 5 times and I have now learned how to avoid it, but you do need lots of hours under your belt to build the skills needed to make those last second avoidance moves that are quite impossible when your low on experience, now when I can see I am approaching a situation where it might happen then I now take early action to avoid the problem,
and calling it a problem is like calling a head on car crash a minor inconvenience, it's ruddy scary and hard to get out of.
One thing that helps with experience is the ability to use very small kites typically half the size of the Ttip guys, and my 6 mtr kite is now my go to kite for most conditions over 13knts, as long as I can get up with a few loops the 6 will be fantastic.and of course if I find myself about to run through my lines then a little kite is so fast you can whip it through the air to pull over to the side, where a big lazy kite will need an Email before it starts to move. and the pull from a small kite is way less, and as previous poster above, you are more able to pull one steering line in to prevent a looping kite.
It is a concern of mine that all new foilers will go through this horrible experience, and if this was my wife, I know she would be properly freaked out by such an experience, it makes me wonder how some newbies might deal with this, some not as well as others.
I now always carry a proper marine knife up near my shoulder, as this is where I feel it is needed, as on my previous bar and body wraps around the mast and wings my upper torso was more or less unwrapped, but lower body was jammed tight against the nasty bits, so a harness knife would have not been an option, try and find yours next time your wrapped.
And just like the experience of being wrapped up in your gear you don't know, what you don't know.

Re: Dealing with Foil Caught in Bar

Posted: Tue May 01, 2018 6:26 pm
by foilonfoil
It happened a few times when I first started to foil but not in the last two years. Overall experience I believe.