In your mind does trying to help absolve one of liability?

[SporkNyoureye]

This happened about an hour ago:

I'm in Hatteras riding my 12m and I'm a little tired and overpowered. I come in to land and a gentleman goes in for the catch but I'm in some mud and I just go sliding towards shore which moves my kite dangerously close to a tree. I bring the kite back up and start going back out to try this again when another guy comes out into the water to help. This guy however grabs my bar and when I yell at him to let go he simply says "Relax". I keep yelling at him to please let go of the bar but he refuses and the next thing I know I'm lying face down in some dune grass with several people standing around me trying to help me up. Apparently I was knocked out for a little bit because I flew 75-100 ft. (laterally) and I only remember people being there, surrounding me, the whole time (one of the guys said it took them at least 30 seconds to get to me).

Anyway, I look up and see me kite caught in a patch of trees and thorn bushes and it's got 2 sweet rips in it. After retrieving the kite (with no help from them) I go to talk to the gentleman about helping me pay for the repairs. Through a translator he informs me that he was trying to help me and therefore not responsible for what happened. Upon hearing my request for compensation the rest of his group dives in all at once and claims it was my fault. So now I've got 10 or so French-Canadians yelling at me for even considering such an idea while I stand there and bleed with a trashed Cabrinha.

I know he was trying to help me but he didn't have a clue what he was doing. My legs are cut up, my right thumb isn't working, I was knocked out, and my kite has 2 nice rips in it and none of it would have happened if he hadn't touched my bar and try and do whatever it was he had in mind.

To be honest I'm pretty fucking pissed right now but I couldn't believe the indignation this group of people responded with. I mean am I simply a product of the American tort system and way out of bounds here or what? I understand he had good intentions but he nearly killed me and he destroyed my kite.

Any advice? Any international people care to respond to this?

[waveknave]

[Windrider]

I think you probably have grounds for being upset, both by Canadian law and US law. I'm not a lawyer, but here's one reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law

Check the section under "Consent". Sounds like you did not give consent.

And read the section "In Canada". It does not sound like you were in need of help, nor was this a medical emergency. Unless the person was a kiter, they certainly exhibited gross negligence in trying to render aid without knowledge of the device being used (kite) which resulted in causing damage that would not otherwise have occured.

Was the person who tried to help a kiter? Did he claim to know how to kite?

Is it worth pursuing legally? Probably not unless you have some sort of permanent injury that will cause problems the rest of your life. But, you definitely have grounds for being seriously pissed off.

[tungsten222]

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[Windrider]

You probably taught the guy and all his friends a good lesson... don't touch the damn bar. He was probably pretty freaked seeing you get jerked away, crashed and unconscious all because he grabbed the bar. You deserve a beer.

[flyingweasel]

.

[Henrythepeacock]

Beat the hell outta that dam canadian...

[pbmaniac27]

thats truly unacceptable behavior

being knocked out is not laughing matter what so ever.

Yesterday some, very likely drunk beach goer walks out to where I was kiting and starts asking me if he can have a go. I start giving him the speal about taking lessons and he says he knows how to do it you just pull one way or the other. WHILE SAYING THAT HE GRABS MY BAR AND STARTS YANKING IT. it was seriously one of the scariest momments ever for me in kiting, I honestly debabted punching him in an effort to get him off the bar instantly, but desided agaisnt it since he was rather large and probably would not feel it in his intoxicated state. I had my hand on the QR and managed to get him to let go before any real trouble, but it was a seriously scary momment.

Anyway wish you a speedy recovery.

[Toby]

I don't think you will have any success with blaming him and get anything from him, even not in front of court...he has more witnesses on his side...

If I am you, I would just be happy to be alive, who cares about the gear, care about your health, anything else is replaceable. You could have been in the trees as well...not only your kite.

Lear your lesson from it, share your story, so people will be warned about what can happen.

I still wonder a bit how he wants to help you land and grabs your bar? In that moment you should have released immediately, no matter what. You let the situation happen, so blame yourself as well, no matter what he did. Of course, he should be blamed too, if he really did anything on purpose. If he had no clue, than of course not.
Maybe it was a way of localism (were they kiters at all?), so you don't show up there again? If you can proof this, then I would pursue going to court and go for man slaughter (right word for it?), since that is not acceptable.

But remember: nothing really bad happened to you, be thankful for this in the first place, then you could get angry about the gear, but health is so much more important, that you should rather forget about it and learn your lesson and be thankful, that you can go out again today and enjoy the sport!

Greets
Toby

[Toby]

In your mind does trying to help absolve one of liability?

one another note: I always wonder about this too, when a kite is down, and I want to help to get it up again...what happens, if I rip the kite when trying to help?
Should I be responsible and pay for it? Do we need to ask before we help if the rider wants to be helped?

Any comments on that?