jkrug wrote: ↑Wed Sep 15, 2021 1:08 pm
jumptheshark wrote: ↑Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:35 pm
Again, most often when we do crash em, its with all four lines tensioned and more often than not, its a two second relaunch.
the only reason i've ever crashed my peaks is because i flew under them while on a wave...zero line tension. i'm not even sure how you'd crash a peak with tension in the lines. and i've never successfully relaunched after 3 such events. my peaks just sink, almost immediately, no line tension still. i figure it's because i ride in waves, and once down, the waves crash over them and it's over. maybe there's a video out there of a peak relaunch in waves, but i've never seen one. they all seem to be done in lakes/ponds. i still like my peaks, but my rule is: do whatever i can to keep them out of the water, cuz they're not coming back up.
Have also had a peak fall slack line from outrunning it on a wave before and had it swamped by a wave. Your right, its almost certainly game over for relaunch and usually even reset. Thankfully breaking waves are usually close to shore so a quick wrap up toward the kite and shore launch are how I've dealt with it. Have had to put Peaks back up in sketchy little shore spots more than once, but again, in the end, ride home to the launch.
Most line tensioned crashes are either because the person oversheets a bit, pinwheels the kite and releases when its pointed down, or in things like backroll transitions where there is a kite loop and you miscalculate when it's behind your back.
I have never claimed these kites are anything more than single skin. No one has. It's inherent risk and should factor into decisions of how far from shore you ride, or how hard you want to push it in offshore breaks. I also see risk in places with current counter to wind like hood river where a downed kite might not drift in the right direction at all. Whatever the case, the techniques mentioned are mitigation of when things go bad. Does not preclude things from getting worse. To anyone who has not relaunched a wet flat Peak, I encourage you to go through the learning steps in a safe and controlled spot, if for nothing more than having a clear understanding of their limitations. These skills may well come in handy. So far I have managed to avoid serious danger and get myself home from many a crash, neither am I timid about trying all manner of new things with these kites for fear of dropping it.