When I started kitesurfing yonks back I watched a video "Kiteboarding: How to Rip". Some people may still remember it i guess... Anyway on the video they say: "Don't go out further than your willing to swim in." I always keep to that rule, I avoid long tacks out to sea to make extra ground so then if my gear brakes I won't have too far to swim. Lano is an exception, I guess you have to go far out to make it to the break but still I avoid going far out at all costs.

Heres something scary to consider when thinking of using boats for kite/rider rescue, how to correctly approach a downed kite (as dave........mentioned).

A mate (non kiter) told me of a bunch of guys he saw in spain trying to retrieve a downed kite by boat. conditions were 25 - 30kts open surf beach, near tarifa. The kite was tumbling along lines and bar slopping around behind the kite getting twisted up yada yada, these guys came up from down wind, turned side on to the wind, to grab the kite as it rolled towards them. They pulled it on board but the wind caught it and it rolled out the other side. The bar and lines then got caught on something on the boat and the kite hot launched and swung into an almighty suicide kite loop. The boat and all its passengers and everything inside got emptied into the churning surf. Kite crashed and dragged the boat to shore 500m down the beach.

Dont know if after this story i would really want to use my boat to rescue a downed kite, specially not in 30 knots and churning surf.

Then again i'm not a crazy spanish dude

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Originally posted by JiP

Has someone mentioned this already ? but what about taking your mobile phone with you ? (of course in an aqua case !)

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Or some concrete?

The trouble with posting this type of "warning" is that you get guys like havox reading it as something new & different they just cant wait to try for themselves.

hey jip,
I had to have a second glance, i thought you had the same avatar as poor relative.....my bad

Ian,

Glad you made it.

Fred

quote:

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Originally posted by Robbo2099


For those of you who don't know Ian, he's probably the single fittest kitesurfer you'll ever meet in your life and he's been kitesurfing longer than anyone in Australia. If this can happen to him it can happen to anyone.

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It just shows no matter how fit or experienced you are, when you head out in dodgy conditions and the sh!t hits the fan it hits it HARD!!!

SAS boys never quit . Good story / well done . Did you regain your kite ??

Thats Karma!

I have a lot of respect for a guy who teaches kiteboarding and has the ballz to put his hand up to making a mistake he teaches his students not to! Good onya brother and thanx for reminding me I'm human and also make mistakes . . . . . all too often