VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

I'm so sorry to hear of another fatality....

I'd like to share with you all some safety release advice.

I have made it a habit to repeatedly reach for and get a good grip on my safety release.

I do it every other tack..
I do it every time I ease off for a bit of a rest...

The reason I do this is that I want to make it become a natural reflex.
IT REALLY WORKS.
A few time when shit has happened my hand is already on the quick release when I need it.

I call it the gun slinger theory. You know the super fast wild west gun slingers. They practice day in and day out so that they can draw their gun as fast as they can. In there case and in ours it can make a diffference between life and death or lots of painfull things inbetween.

I think that it is particularly important that skilled kiters do this because they will be in more challenging conditions and being skilled they mess up less often and may sort of "forget" how to find the release.

Be Safe.... It's the best way to be cool

Always test your safety release system on a regular basis. And like Matt says,the reflex's that you need to release have to be developed. Shit happens fast.

depends on your weight.

I need about 11 knots for my 11 M kite, usually at 11 o'clock at Nitinat

TAKE A LESSON, READ A BOOK, WATCH A DVD, COME TO THE BEACH. YOU CAN'T LEARN TO KITE BY POSING QUESTIONS ON A FORUM, JEEEEEZ It's guys like you flying kites and learning on their own that will result in accidents & getting kiting banned from beaches.....grab a brain

A bit harsh, but absolutely hit the nail on the head.

You are endangering others (not just yourself) by skipping the essential kiteboarding lessons.

A pilot wouldn't self-teach.

K going to wade in here abit....

First and foremost where are you at ambiatrax? If you live in the Victoria area, then just head down to cook st. and WATCH. Dont pester people with loads of questions, just watch and see what they do. If you can make the time to rig a kite in light conditions you can make the time to watch.

Secondly, Lessons are simply the best, safest and to top it off, most ppl are generally riding after three days. Self teaching is a long, unsafe and frustrating process. However, some cannot seem to grasp this or out of their budget. The next step is to get videos. One that I recommend highly is offered by leading edge productions and elevation kiteboarding. It is available online or at Nitinaht lake at the elevation center. Just google either Leading Edge or Elevation to get to their websites.

Thirdly...truly think of the safety of yourself but be responsible for the safety of others. In 5-6 kts wind depending on the kite, flying it will be iffy at best, and if a gust comes through and you don't know what happens when you have that kite above you then you should not have that kite in the air. I can appreciate people have stoke, want to learn, figure their fit or good at sports and should be no problem, however there are many forces at hand that most people do not consider, so once again, WATCH people actually doing the sport and WATCH videos or even better, just take lessons.

Our sport is growing rapidly, and as a result beaches are more crowded with others just learning as well and when shit hits the fan problems seem to compound in a hurry putting yourself and others at great risk. SO PLEASE head the warnings/advice of the others that have taken the time to put forward their opinions, they all have a point and are valid.

Dale

Hey DAle do not forget about Strongkiteboarding lessons .
We have been teaching for about 7 years now and found
lots of new ways to make every ones learning very easy.

Being a kiteboarder for quite some time now. I am happy to
share all the tips and tricks to make learning easy and fun.

All Lessons are by Only 1 instructor and Run For full days .
No matter you experience, Even if you have never flown a kite
before, We will get you up and riding right away.

just a reminder that many of us are self-taught. We learned before there were lessons available and we went through some more trials and tribulations that the average learner is going through now. The gear we used had little depower and so we learned all about kite position instead of bar (in-out) position. I'm not knocking lessons at all but it is possible that certain people can learn it all on their own. I'm not promoting that but I just want to make sure that kooks that are not taking lessons are not ostracized as stupid. They might know they are informed enough and have enough confidence to do it on their own, like we all did 8 years ago. That said, lessons are the best idea and the safest even if redundant for some. But if a learner has any doubts and is planning on learning to kite in a busy place around others (like at Nitinaht) then lessons are the best idea. Besides your rescues are pre-paid that way. Ending up on the opposite side, or end of the lake, or the embarrassment of being rescued by the coast guard, are more reasons to take lessons to avoid these things in the beginning.

Here here.

Lessons. I cannot say enough about getting lessons. I tried to learn with the help of well meaning friends who got my kite in the air and then took off on their own. As a result I skipped vital steps such as upwind body dragging. Getting back into it this year, i finally got a lesson. Best thing I ever did. Money well spent. While videos are great, and I watch the one Dale suggested repeatedly, even now, there is no substitute for lessons from a professional outfit such as Strong or Elevation, both of which operated at the Nat Wind Machine. Come on out, take lessons, keep yourself and other safe.

Peace,

Kevin

thankgodiatepastafobreaky wrote:just a reminder that many of us are self-taught. We learned before there were lessons available ........ just want to make sure that kooks that are not taking lessons are not ostracized as stupid.

I think I know what you are saying and don't really wanna go down this road but....as usual I am a sucker and:
yes, times have changed, any incident now on a beach has the potential for resulting in irreversible consequences impacting all wind users....and, no, I will go out of my way to indicate to kooks that learning without a trained or able partner or lessons IS STUPID and they should get the F&*K off my beach All he has to do is have the thing hindenburg on a kid who then is unscathed but Mom takes it to the municipality or threatens a lawsuit.....it's all over Count the kites in the air over 8 years ago when it was a novelty. Even if all are trained and able we will still have incidents that we will have to mitigate....my own kiting endeavors included....allowing untrained persons to play around by themselves cuz they have cash/time for the kite but none for the safeguard is not acceptable in my mind

Having said all this it sure seems that these guys drop little fuel on the simmering coals, we beat each other up over it and then never hear from them again....I know you take your own precautions, Pasta, I've seen it first hand.

Glad to play the devil's advocate

yes Kus and Kevin - I agree with you!

Try this site. It has lots of great information:

http://kitesurfingschool.org/

cheers,

Do what makes you happy!!!Take your time enjoy yourself and don't get to
technical. Find the right people to talk to. Hang out at the beaches learn from
Watching and go for a swim!!Don't do it bye yourself,Make sure you have someone that knows more than you!!Have fun good luck!!!