Kitesurfer dies after slamming into wall of home in Fort Lauderdale

[kitelife]

60 mph is 52 knots.

Pretty much the same if you ask me.

Going to have to disagree. Also, he said A 60 knot gust which is 69 mph. Big difference. Anyway. How about we all talk in knots and understand that unit and not exaggerate another 15%.

[plummet]

One possible reason for the kite high is to get out of the turbulent air that that very close downstream objects might be creating.....

Isn’t that rule number one in kite school. Don’t launch upwind from objects. Come on man. Are you seriously justifying flying an overpowered kite at 12?

I'm not justifying anything. I'm just saying it happens.
In many of the locations around the world there is no option not to launch close to downstream objects..... You either do or you dont kite. This location is like that.

[kitelife]

60 mph is 52 knots.

Pretty much the same if you ask me.

Going to have to disagree. Also, he said A 60 knot gust which is 69 mph. Big difference. Anyway. How about we all talk in knots and understand that unit and not exaggerate another 15%.

above 35 knots its all dangerous anyway.

[RaviTheJedi]

This came up in my google feed. It was sad when I saw it. Told myself to always release QR even if I slightest doubt about safey. Why: I have two kiddos who love spending time with me.

RIP Fred.

[kitelife]

I'm not justifying anything. I'm just saying it happens.
In many of the locations around the world there is no option not to launch close to downstream objects..... You either do or you dont kite. This location is like that.

Yeah I get it. Some spots are more risky. How often do you launch straight to 12 in front of objects downwind? Think it’s more like 10 or 2, not 12.

[kitelife]

above 35 knots its all dangerous anyway.

Kiteboarding is dangerous. It becomes less dangerous with experience and by experience it includes understanding weather, wind speed, kite size, surroundings, etc.

Kiting in 35kts with a 6m is safer than kiting in 20kts with a 14m the way I see it.

[nixmatters]

Very sad news. It's super easy to say why didn't he pull the QR but when shit hits the fan it takes a few seconds to actually make that decision.

I am curious as to why he was walking south to get his board though, opposed to directly east in to the water right in front of the launch. That 3 story building would have been generating a serious updraft and he was needlessly walking right in front of it by the looks of things.

FL1.jpg

I'm replying to bring back a very relevant comment on what most likely caused the sudden air lift. Plummet mentioned it too if I'm not wrong.

Rather than wasting time and audience attention with converting mph to kts, why don't we discuss the time he needed to analyze and assess the situation and hit the QR?

It takes an average person 1 second to hit the car brakes after seeing the danger. With both hands on the bar of an overpowered kite it's a lot different, isn't it?

P.S. It's a 4 storey building

[plummet]

I'm not justifying anything. I'm just saying it happens.
In many of the locations around the world there is no option not to launch close to downstream objects..... You either do or you dont kite. This location is like that.

Yeah I get it. Some spots are more risky. How often do you launch straight to 12 in front of objects downwind? Think it’s more like 10 or 2, not 12.

Probably 90% of the time. I launch in a field behind the surf club. Then you have to get the kite to 12 to get out of the surf club building directly upwind, walk inbetween power lines and a building not too dissimilar to the one in the video, across a road and car park and down a walk way to the beach. All with kite at 12.

90% of the local kiters launch in this manner as the beach is often rocky and covered in drift wood. Not to mention when the tide is in theres no beach.


3.40 in this old video of mine shows the location.

https://vimeo.com/user4519783

[bragnouff]

Yes, definitely once in the vicinity of that building there would have been a very turbulent wind and updraft. And enough of it to generate that kind of dramatic consequences in a smooth 20-25kts on a 14m overhead. I'm not dismissing the existence of the freak 60kts gust, even if I don't see much evidence of it on the video, in the trees, in the sand, or in the speed of the first few hops he did on the beach while being pulled downwind.

What I'm saying is that if we put too much emphasis on the freak gust theory, then we turn that into a freak accident, into something with a tiny probability of happening. Kind of : "Extremely bad luck, otherwise it would have been all sweet and fine", and we don't learn a lesson. Whereas the reality (as I see it) is that there was already a huge amount of latent risk from having such a big kite at 12 in squally wind in a sketchy location. All those combined factors should have been triggers to be on high alert, with the mind all prepped and ready to release asap.
But yeah hindsight is always a wonderful thing, and things happen super fast...

[PullStrings]

Sure houses are close downwind but the distance from the water's edge to the building walls appear to be a few meters over lines length
Since lines are 25 meters you can QR safely with no damage to property IF you are walking near or in the water with kite low

A few meters ( 3-4m) is all he needed if he was walking at water edge with kite super low and released the kite
Houses would not have been touched and all would be fine
Very tight spot yes but doable safety wise
Talk about helmet safety will you please ?