Why it's good for us to be Safety Police on the beach

Pepi · Since 16 Jun 2006 1831 Posts Pure Stoke Sports Shop Owner **CGKA Member**

A lot of you may have see these postings on facebook or via the other kite forums, but thought it was worth linking as a reminder for why we encourage everyone to act as (courteous!) Safety Police at our local launch sites.

All it takes is one successful lawsuit to cause a bunch of launch shutdowns to occur at your local launch site.

http://masskiting.com/kiteboarding-forum/how-get-kiting-banned-pbay#comment-65651

shred_da_gorge · Mon Nov 04, 13 12:37 pm

Funny, I just flew out of Bahstun over P-Bay (and No-honk, er, Nahant) this morning. Hard to tell what he's doing wrong from the pictures (other than having a board leash IMO), but I've seen plenty of hot-shots "jumping" across the beach with the kite as soon as they get it up in the air - in just about every place I kite. Self-policing in any "community" is a tricky thing... diplomacy is key. Pick your battles wisely.

(This is not to say I disagree with you BTW. Kiting seems to be at a 'critical mass' every year these days with its growth, popularity, groupon lessons, etc.).

airon^ · Since 07 Aug 2013 290 Posts Durango Obsessed

he obviously did not take a safety break before proceeding...

Laughing

knotwindy · Since 25 Sep 2011 615 Posts Addicted

i agree but it is difficult to stay calm and friendly with somebody you know is abut to do something they are not even close to ready for but will not listen to reason. any ideas on the best way to get them to at least listen?
preferably nicely (at first)

Justsmile · Since 20 Jul 2009 1530 Posts Not Portland XTreme Poster

Sella · Mon Nov 04, 13 3:59 pm

kiterbiker · Since 12 Jun 2010 65 Posts

I think if someone is about to do something stupid against advice of those around and are unwilling to listen to more experienced people, before letting nature take its course, be sure to warn any non kiter(Or oblivious kiters) that may be around in the line of danger.

I think the likely hood of beach banning is way more likely when an unsuspecting beach user is in the way of danger whether its getting whacked with a kite or having someone tea bagged into them while they are sunbathing. Anyone downwind or within kite tomahawk range should be given a heads up to whats about to take place, something like:

"Hey, this guy is not listening to good advice and might do something stupid. Come over here for a minute where its safe and watch some mayhem unfold with us."

They may even enjoy the sports commentator narration of the mistakes being made you can provide along the way.

Dan k · Since 31 Mar 2013 87 Posts

Twin tip board, seat harness, board leash. Does airon know your posting his pic online?

pollywog · Since 07 Aug 2009 291 Posts Obsessed

Did anyone else see the guy on the grey best in August on the spit? He asked my hubby to give him a launch. Hubby told him his kite was not inflated properly and his lines were not connected correctly. My hubby did not launch him and tried to explain the issues. He was a foreigner and didn't really understand what my hubby was saying. Another guy came over and they re-rigged. We watched him from the sandbar cafe for awhile and luckily it wasn't busy. He got yarded in the pool behind the sandbar many times. It was entertaining but was scary.

What would others do in a situation like that?

blowhard · Since 26 Dec 2005 2027 Posts Windward

HOT launches are AWESOME Twisted Evil

Wanna-Go · Since 14 Sep 2009 95 Posts Central, Wa

Hey that looks like the kite I sold on Ebay a couple weeks ago.

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1691 Posts I give out bad advice.

Kiteboarding is unique in that it creates a hazard for those within reach of the lines and downwind of the kite. I remember watching Jim Bison go over and pull the plug on a kite of a tourist who was kiting way too close to others. He was right to do it.
In July I saw a Judge from The Dalles flying his kite above his head a 12 o clock, unsafely. I was in the process of teaching an advanced lesson and my student was fine kiting back and forth. So, I went over and told the Judge(I will keep him nameless) that he needed to take a lesson.
It was obvious that he needed one. He was being pulled around his kite and dragged. His hands were at the ends of the bar and he was pulling when the kite went down. It was sad to watch.
After I told him to take a lesson and that what he was doing was unsafe he just ignored me and continued. He was a large problem to those who were unaware of the potential disaster he presented.
After my lesson he came up to me at Brian's hut and introduced himself. I introduced myself and offered him a lesson. He said and I quote, "I prefer to learn by alternative means." I told him it was unsafe and that I could not agree with that style of learning due to the risk presented to others.
The fact is that unless we require people to have a certification to kite at a given spot, or we give power to someone to enforce safe practices at the beach we are powerless to stop people.
In my opinion we need to have a system that certifies kite boarders of all levels. The pieces for this are already in place. All IKO/PASA instructors are required to evaluate their student levels. A simple test would ensure that a kiter was safe and good to go.

knotwindy · Since 25 Sep 2011 615 Posts Addicted

any time you give others the power to stop people from doing anything it WILL get out of control. that is just what small people with a little power do. we really need to just get better at doing this ourselves. the easiest way is to get a group of 3 to 5 people together and just talk to the dangerous offender nicely. most beginners will stop if presented with a group of better kiters all saying "what you are doing is dangerous to yourself and more importantly others here to enjoy themselves". if for some reason that does not have the desired effect, you can always escalate the tone of "help" gently until understanding is reached. the key is to not try this yourself but get some support to talk to the person and be nice initially.

J_Matic · Since 14 Oct 2011 158 Posts InDaHo Stoked