Please! Be responsible!

[Windrider]

It's a combination of global warming, heavy metals in the water supply, and air-borne carbon.... all these toxins and heat are making us all dumber.

What were we talking about....?

[knot_moving]

Perspective of a beginner (who has been through lessons). I first tried kiteboarding 3+ years ago with a C kite and tried for a while and put it away. Last fall I came back to it with a bow-kite and was immediately hooked! It was so much easier and felt so much safer.
I bought a new kite this spring and have been riding pretty often for the past 3 months.

I think the gear is deceptively safe - when everything works it depowers very well. However if something goes wrong:
1) kite overflies and inverts
2) front line breaks
3) ...lots of other scenarios

Then things can get dangerous very very quickly.

If you look at flying and scuba lessons, the instructor will cause failures and make sure you know how to respond properly, but more importantly I think it gives you the experience of something going bad wrong and you learn some respect.

I wonder if there is a way during instruction (maybe while flying the kite in the water without a board) to introduce a failure so the students get to experience it and learn what to do in a semi-controlled environment - using special equipment so the instructor can force a safety release if the student doesn't do it?

[RichardM]

the key is a standard bar and better instructions on how to use it from the beginning.

To blame:

1. companies
2. instructors
3. the riders

So we need to start at the companies: standard bar colors, standard kook proof, and most important standard release. Once we have this, we can go for the instructors to starts with releasing the QR in any kind of weird situation. The riders need to be educated so releasing becomes a reflex.

Only then we will see less fatalities.

Time to work on #1 !

Maybe the magazines (and videos) are even MORE to blame.

Pick up a mag and all you see are pictures of people doing stuff that is totally stupid.

There was a recent picture of a pro almost touching a pier railing with bystanders right there.

NO AMOUNT OF INSTRUCTION AND WARNINGS can make up for this crap. Every mag will have a little article in micro print extolling the virtues of safety, but almost EVERY PICTURE shows UNSAFE behavior.

Unless it's on land, you virtually NEVER see anyone even wearing a helmet ! Obviously, how dangerous can it be if you don't even need a helmet?

Richard M.
Malibu Kitesurfing - since 2002
(310) - 430 - KITE (5483)
http://www.MalibuKitesurfing.NET
kfRichard@MalibuKitesurfing.NET

[frankm1960]

I don't think it's lack of instruction that's beating up kiters.

Next time you're out kiting and look over your shoulder to see big black clouds and the odd water spout on the horizon just ask yourself one question... do I feel lucky today?

No amount of instruction is gonna save your butt in a sudden 50kt gust.

[ScottM]

yeah seen that was quite weird to see cause at first didn't believe it was a funnel coming from the clouds. Headed in anyway and landed kite and pointed to the slight funnel left. Could then see the swirling water below as it passed by the kiting area so tried to call people in but don't think they noticed.

[Don Monnot]

I agree with Toby about standardizing equipment. I think that would help. I recently bought a used kite (2008) that came with a bar. I won't use the bar because the QR is so different than what I'm used to using. I'll sell the new bar when I sell my old kite. Hopefully the new user will either be familiar with that system or they'll be a noob and just learn with that system. It's not a bad system, but it's different than my other bars, and I don't want to be confused in a moment of panic.

Don

[Laughingman]

My two cents

I am new to kiting. I started early this spring. I grew up living walking distance to the beach of Southern Lake Huron. I know the water, and the weather. I don't even have to see a storm coming, I can feel it coming. I have sailed all my life, and I was an avid slalom water skier. I have tried many different sports, not one of them scared the crap out of me like KiteSurfing has! I love it, I will continue to do it as long as I can. But damn, when I felt the pull of a 12m kite I knew that moment how dangerous this could be. I took lessons with 2 instructors. The instructor I took most of my lessons with, allowed me to have one to one lessons, and I was able to ask for 1 or 2 hour lessons (personally I think 4 hours is to much for anyone). We would cover 1 or 2 things a lesson, and before we could move on at the beginning of the next lesson, I was asked to show what I had learned thus far. Between each lesson I had time to practice everything we had done. I was so shocked how difficult doing a self rescue was that I practiced nothing else for a week. They would even simulate an emergency and critic me on weather or not I made the right decision quickly enough (pull your safety!!!!).
It has all paid off in spades, last weekend I was in a "rush" to get on the water ( I was helping to launch all the other kiters and realized I was going to miss my chance if I didn't get out there now!), I always check my safety somehow the release was partly pulled when my kite was launched, the kite powered up as the release let go (in a power spin, not sure why yet) and started pulling me toward rocks... and past that was a play ground (yikes)... I was a safe distance, but wow am I ever glad I was. I had to make sure my leash was attached before I let go (i always check before I go on the water but one thing went wrong already...) it was attached. I simply let go of the bar and everything went according to the way it should, my kite depowered and dropped to the edge of the window. Nobody got hurt this time. I think it is important to note, at this location you are only allowed to do water launches, who knows what would have happened to me if I was on land!!! I think I will be doing water launches at all spots from now on.

I see a lot of people with no water experience, with no weather experience, taking up the sport, I think it is great they are interested but if they are truly interested, then do the research! Know what you are up against, the danger is real!

Sincerely

Pete