Death At Washoe Lake

[ed257]

getting a second chance...

Any kiter with a few years of experience is well past 4 or 5 'second chances'... we just didn't realize it because we survived without serious injury...

I've had my 4-5 survival experiences and have learned from them - that's for sure. I have not repeated past mistakes and try to learn from others'. But, you never know when your next lesson is about to be served up, so don't get compacent about safety.

Ed

[FredBGG]

Safety works better when it's habitual instead of judgement call...

Kiters tend to get lull into a false sense of safety if they see other kiters 'taking the same risks'...

If good kiters avoid bad launch spots... the herd will follow...

These words should be carved onto marble and posted at every kiting beach

Yesterday for the first time ever I rode without a helmet. Yea the wind was only 8mph and all I wanted to do was practice riding and getting up on a surfboard. Well the wind picked up to about 12mph with occasional gusts to maybe 15mph. Keep in mind I'm 225 lbs so that is very little wind for me. The beach was a very safe location, no obstacles, masses of room to launch and land. Anyway 15 minutes after I landed the wind picked up with a few gusts over 20 mph even though the conditions and forcast did not predict anything above 10/12mph. So if it picked up to 20mph it could have picked up more. I did not have any trouble at all, but who knows.

"Safety works better when it's habitual instead of judgement call... "

From now on if the kite comes out of the bag, my helmet goes on first

Cheers

Fred

PS Thinking back to yesterday it really didn't feel any better riding without a helmet. When I wear a helmet "always exept for yesterday" I forget it is even on. I've even driven from one beach to another with my helmet and wetsuit still on.... must of looked like a total nut.

[Roman181]

Unfortunately at Washoe Lake Nevada (Near Reno) there was a fatality today. I know the details although I did not witness it (I was on the water when it happened but was there after the paramedics arrived). I don't usually post but eventually the information will make it to this board. I want to be respectful to the deceased and family, but am torn with revealing what should probably be said.....how about if I give you what I know second hand from the incident, and at this time I will withhold my opinion of the incident. It was blowing very hard. I was wound out on my 10m Raven2 (first time out on new kite)Someone post the max winds today from Ikitesurf because I dont have an account to access it. The launcher and the deceased were warned (twice) about launching the direction in which they launched which was opposite of everyone else...the kite was in the power window not at the edge and when the person launched the deceased brought the kite up quick and flew by some accounts 75 feet distance and 30 feet into the air and struck a parked truck with his face and his head and was bleeding profusley at those points. Most think the impact pretty much killed him at that point. There was no known malfuntion of the kite. Washoe used to be the one of the safest spot around but with a good winter the water is full so the beach is pretty much one strip of 20 feet of sand lined with big rocks and parking lot next door.... so you do not get a second chance unless you walk 1/4 mile down the beach of which I think next time it blows like that I am gonna do the walk! I really feel sorry for the guy that launched him, although he did not listen to the warnings The deceased was his friend and he obviously was hurting from the incident, and is going to have a rough go of it for a while. I dont know if the deceased had a family or not.

What was the size of the kite?
Which Brand?

[Tom183]

I've had my 4-5 survival experiences and have learned from them - that's for sure. I have not repeated past mistakes and try to learn from others'. But, you never know when your next lesson is about to be served up, so don't get compacent about safety.

Truth!!!

You don't wear a helmet or carry a hook knife for all those days you don't need them - you do it for the one day you might...

[fokiten]

The dude is dead, ok?

Maybe these hot life tips might be better placed in the:

"LIVE LONGER KITE" thread?

Sound reasonable?

I think it does.

R. I. P.

fo

[AlexBreaux]

My sincere condolences as well.


Do we need licenses to buy equipment?


Toby

Thats actually a great idea.. And then what about the used market.

[Tom183]

Equipment will find its way into the wrong hands no matter what - accept that as a given.

So, what can we do to protect this kind of person from themselves? Gang up on them? It's hard enough to talk sense to some people one-on-one, and when there's two of them, one person talking sense is just wasting breath...

[T Dub]

I don't think that your breath is EVER wasted when you are talking about safety. If we all stop talking about safety, the current emphasis that we have on it will be lost forever very quickly. At the very least all of the warnings that were provided to the lost kiter will be embedded in his buddy's memory and if he kites, he will kite safely and be much more apt to spread the word. Sometimes people have to learn the hard way, but such is life and that does not mean that we don't still have the RESPONSIBILITY as kiters to warn others of the dangers that are involved in kiting, whether we are heard the first, second, third time or even after a catastrophe such as this.

My girlfriend has been bugging me for MONTHS to get her some lessons or to show her how to ride and the conditions are just not right here in the summer. But after reading this, I IMMEDIATELY called her and insisted that she buy a Shred Ready carbon helmet (no, this is not an advertisement or endorsement, I am NOT sponsored and FAR from it, I just swear by my helmet, feel it is VERY superior to most of what is out on the market).

http://www.shredready.com/

If anyone is interested, the website link above is where I got my helmet.

But who really cares what brand of kite it was? The size DEFINITELY matters but brand, that is just being judgemental to a certain company. And everyone has the right to be judgemental, especially if they have had bad experiences with a certain company, don't get me wrong. I just don't think that those battles need to be fought in this thread.

Also, I agree with Fred & Tom, who cares if you look funny, if you get up and walk away looking funny from an accident instead of dying, I'll take a chance and look like a jackass...

[FredBGG]

ALWAYS offer advice!
I find that being soft spoken and polite when offering advice works the best. A good explanation of why not to do something is better than just saying NO.

Anyway there is always someone that will not listen. That's when I tell them about kiters that can't walk anymore or the one's with permanent brain damage and garbled speech. That normally gets them to open their eyes and ears a bit more.

Cheers

Fred

[fokiten]

Regards,

In fairness, I suspect that poster was inquiring as to the make and model of the kite...c/ flat / old / new that sort of thing...

Bottom line, is that almost everyone here is pro stoke

I take crap for being negative,,,I'm ok with that.

I'm proud to be anti hype, anti promo, anti pon pom waver...

Hey,,rule your beach, be wary of stoked new guys; throw that sand swami off your beach...

Promote deepwater case hardening of every newb before he's allowed to launch from your beach...

This is one serious f-en sport, you can die for real.

I stand behind ever post I've ever made...

I think it's time to quit pimping and start taking things more seriously...

I'm taking some freinds out on the boat, they want to learn..

No, no fucking way are they going to be doing it from the beach..

No fucking way,,,that's where the bad shit happens.

Regards

R. I. P. bro...
fo