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No more board leash for kiteboarding

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xtremewinds
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No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby xtremewinds » Wed Aug 27, 2008 6:32 pm

Hello guys, please dont use board leash when you are kiteboarding, this is extremly dangerous, if you re begginer and dont want to loose your board, practice body dragg upwind to recober your board, and when you master this technique, then go to the water with the board, remember this you have all your life to enjoy kiteboarding and 10 seconds to loose your life or end in a wheel chair for the rest of your life.
If you re experience kiteboarder help the begginer who want to use a leash and dont let then do it.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby MehYam » Wed Aug 27, 2008 6:44 pm

Get rid of that leash! Bodydragging's great for the abs, will help when you start jumping. ;)

Don Monnot
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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby Don Monnot » Thu Aug 28, 2008 3:30 am

Hey guys, I happen to love my board leash. It's a retractable type, and I use it when the conditions may drop to the point that I can't keep my kite in the air. Ever try to get upwind to your board when your kite's on the water? If you lose your board when your kite comes down because there's not enough wind to keep it in the air, there's a good chance you'll lose your board permanently. At the slow speeds you ride in those conditions, I don't think a board leash (retractable type) is significantly dangerous. Sure, it's possible to get hurt from using it, but not very likely. I always wear a helmet (with or without the leash) and a PFD, and I never jump while using the leash. If the wind picks up, I just unclip the leash from the board. Leashes have their place, just not on a beginner.

Don

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Tom183
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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby Tom183 » Thu Aug 28, 2008 4:40 am

Board leashes have NO place - they have injured and killed too many riders already, including experienced riders wearing helmets. The risk isn't as small as you think it is, and it's a lot easier to replace a board than recover from a brain injury.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby Experimental player » Thu Aug 28, 2008 4:57 am

If you are riding a kite with bridles it is ok to use a board leash.

Apparently bridles give 100% "depower on demand" so there is no problem. :roll:

Believe it dumbow.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby Don Monnot » Fri Aug 29, 2008 3:28 am

I've read lots of pontification on this topic, but no documentation based on analysis of the accidents. What were the conditions, how frequent are the accidents, what was the chain of events that caused the accident/incident, and what type of equipment were they using? Anybody have any statistics or accident/incident analysis to back up your opinion?

Don the Dumbow (and proud of it), who also flies C's and trainer kites.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby xtremewinds » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:50 pm

Hello guys, the board leash is dangerous whatever tipe of kite you use even if you wear helmet, dont you think is enough with one accident to prevent another ones? we dont need statics about how many accident ocurs with the board leash, USE THE BOARD LEASH IS UNSAFE, even the retractil ones, because when the retractil is activate a long line is under the water and another kiter cant see it, so in this case is unsafe for another riders too, and dont forget could not work good and the board come directly for your dorsal spine. I know the boards are expensive and no one want to losse it si if not enough wind dont kite, and is better to loose 700 uss than loose your life. Please understand we try to do kiteboard safer.
Good winds.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby kiter147 » Tue Sep 09, 2008 1:48 am

even though you have 100% depower dont use a board leash
Experimental player wrote:If you are riding a kite with bridles it is ok to use a board leash.

Apparently bridles give 100% "depower on demand" so there is no problem. :roll:

Believe it dumbow.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby Tom183 » Tue Sep 09, 2008 3:32 am

Don Monnot wrote:I've read lots of pontification on this topic, but no documentation based on analysis of the accidents. What were the conditions, how frequent are the accidents, what was the chain of events that caused the accident/incident, and what type of equipment were they using? Anybody have any statistics or accident/incident analysis to back up your opinion?
November 11, 2002:
A new kiteboarder but long time windsurfer was out in an new area in side shore winds shifting
between 14-22 knots much of the day but at the time of the accident it was only 12-16 knots late
in the afternoon. Apparently the rider had been advised to take lessons but as there was a waiting
list he decided to try to learn on his own. The water temperature was quite cold at 9-12 degrees
Celsius. There were about 20 kiteboarders out in the area at this time. There is a large harbor
wall bordering the launch that was paralleled by a strong current on this day. The rider was using
an Aero 10 or 12 without a shackle or Quick Release but was wearing a helmet, impact vest,
gloves, knife and whistle. He was using a Wipika 175 cm board with a board leash. The actual
details of the accident are unknown at this time. His kite was seen to be on the water then flying
then back on the water in a relatively short interval. He was later dragged ashore by his kite near
the harbor wall and found unconscious and without a pulse. Other kiteboarders responded
immediately with first aid. He was in a deep coma but some evidence of brain activity was
present for several days. He eventually passed away in hospital. He was found to have a bruise
around his right ankle the attachment point of the board leash and a small cerebral hematoma
under the occuput (a small blood clot in the brain at the back of the head, above the neck).
The kiteboarder was a physician as is a friend of his who also kiteboards. The other physician
proposed the following sequence of events. The kiteboarder lost his board, dragged underwater
and recoiled striking the rider at the back of the neck and beneath his helmet. The hematoma
and the bruising in the area of the kite leash support this conclusion. The rider was knocked
unconscious and was apparently lying face down in the water and drowned.


Also November 2002:
An experienced rider was out in gusty conditions with a board leash. At one point he was dragged at speed and
the board slingshotted into his face. The fin lacerated the riders throat. Also he had several teeth broken and was
bleeding profusely. He was rushed to the hospital by bystanders. He was in poor condition due to blood loss and
related trauma at the emergency room. He was treated and is in the process of healing.


July 2002:
A kiteboarder was out in variable side offshore winds estimated at 14-15 knot with
gusts to 17-18 knots and lulls to 11 knots in relatively calm water and at low tide. The rider was
out with an unidentified kite about 15-18m2. The rider made a jump near the shore but fell upon
landing. The leash hurled the board against the rider's head, who then immediately lost
consciousness. Fortunately two other riders saw the incident and rescued the injured person. He
regained consciousness at the beach and was flown by rescue helicopter to the hospital in
Rotterdam. The rider was not wearing a helmet or impact pfd.


That's just from the 2nd half of 2002. Do a search and you'll find plenty of firsthand stories from people who have had near-misses and/or near hits.

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Re: No more board leash for kiteboarding

Postby marlboroughman » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:36 pm

I thought this one was resolved long time ago. Doesn't matter what kite or type of leash just don't do it. Kite pulls one way the board goes under the water creating resistance thus you drown. If the board happens to float ahead of you and the leash grabs on end of a bar you are going to go for a hell of a ride before you die. Bow kites provide even deadlier spiral so you might not suffer long.


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