Kiting alone

[Foil]

If there is insane crazy current or any rocky obstacles downwind, use a board leash if absolutely necessary. Some people will disagree with this piece.

Always tell someone your going out

Never go out farther than you can swim,
.

when going out on very long foiling trips far away from the start point, typically at Flag beach which is ideal for this adventure style riding in the lighter winds, I nearly always clip on my reel leash, and try to behave myself and not boost around,fool around or take other avoidable risks, but sometimes when a 5ft wave line passes beneath me i still have not learned how to avoid boosting off it and chasing it back down to drop over its top edge for a bit of fun whilst humming a beach boys tune.
good intentions to behave just disappear when temptation to mess around gets too much.

[knotwindy]

.

and try to behave myself and not boost around,fool around or take other avoidable risks, but sometimes when a 5ft wave line passes beneath me i still have not learned how to avoid boosting off it and chasing it back down to drop over its top edge for a bit of fun whilst humming a beach boys tune.
good intentions to behave just disappear when temptation to mess around gets too much.

This ^ is an actual problem for lots of us!

[edt]

the most dangerous time kiting (both solo and with others) is launching and landing. I don't have advice just wondered why I didn't see any suggestions about how to more safely launch and land solo. All the advice is about beacons flares and knives.

[elguapo]

for the record..


board leashes are incredible dumb anytime... but triple dumb when alone.
doesnt matter whether you use a helmet or not.. you get a hit at base of skull there is a good chance you'll lose consciousness.
knock yourself while alone.....even chance you don't wake.

sorry most folks lives are worth more than a board.


having trouble getting back to your board.. then accept being the kook and use something like this.

or.. idk, spend the next the next few sessions re-learning how to body drag.
its not that hard.

also using a higher aspect kite help too..




sorry most folks lives are worth more than their board...



did i mention using a leash is dumb?

[tautologies]

I find it hard to set absolutes for kiting alone. I tend to lower the risk tolerances when kiting alone, but I've kited in off shore, in big waves, in cold water and nuclear gusting winds....but not all at the same time. Like in cold water, the margins are just so much smaller...and so off shore wind is not an option in cold water for me. When I kite in off shore, I make sure I am willing to part with the kite if something should happen. In cold water having an agreement with someone on land and / ir radio communication tools. There are things that can mitigate some of the risk, but obviously not all, but it makes it a bit hard to set absolute hard stops. I also try to mitigate one increased risk with another...If the waves are big, the wind needs to be strong. But what is a man supposed to do with fridged 2x overhead sets are rolling in and no one kites?

[knotwindy]

Yea, you can talk about equipment and safety gear all you want but
Humans, in general, are terrible at useful risk assessment. Perceived as opposed to actual.

Especially at launch/landing. Also, add complacency for better kiters and you get

The Beach ShiteShow. Alone or in groups.

It’s not human nature but it’s what we do, & not likely to change anytime soon.
So learn to stay out of the crash zone and learn to be better at it yourself if you want to be ‘safer’ when kiting alone.

[Hugh2]

To answer some additional questions, I sometimes self launch from beach, but if it looks tricky, like side-off and gusty, and the waves are small I will drift launch. If the wind is nuking at the end, I flag out to one line.

As for equipment, I carry a PLB, new this season, hoping someone is paying attention if I ever have to press the button. I have the Neil Pryde lifejacket with a front pocket that holds the PLB, a safety kit of whistle and mirror, and a spare knife.

[FLandOBX]

I kite alone most of the time. I agree with all of the above, particularly the wind direction advice (never ever side off or offshore wind). The only thing I'll add to the discussion is that solo downwinders are risky. If I'm kiting alone, I stay in a fairly confined area close to my launch. Downwinders are great adventures, but it's best to go with a partner or a group.

[jumptheshark]

Way less likely to kook out when kiting alone. The added risk tends to make me err on the side of caution more than when there are others around. No one to distract me, no one to show off to, and no one to help out if I mess up, so I tend to dot all the i's and cross all the T's in well practiced order. So much of rigging, launching, landing and packing are near automated steps that are more consistent than when there is added socializing breaking it up.

[Hugh2]

I do most of my downwinders alone, both at OBX and in Cape Town. In Cape Town that's not such a big deal as much of the way there are other kiters around, albeit not people I know and hence not looking out for me, but in OBX I'm entirely on my own when doing most downwinders, it is unusual to see anyone else out. I try to stay reasonably close to shore, the major exception being crossing inlets between islands.