This is what I have come up with on one of my swims in. Kite goes down in the surf you are not able to get back up you have time before you get into the killing zone .Instead of releasing your safety and having to swim in why not releases your harness and let the kite pull it in and even hold onto the back handle till you think you will do damage to your kite then let go.
I have found trying to swim with harness on very hard + weight + the harness acts as a sea anchor as you try to swim in. And if it’s a good idea why not starts trying to make harness that can releases quicker.
Hope this help some one one day.

Very true I kite with a leggy so when the surf hits your kite you still have your board to get in on. Have you ever tried paddling and duck diving when your kite has been hit by the first wave of a set with a harness on. Some brands use a quick release on the spreader bar like pro limit and mystic so maybe have a look at them.

Remember lesson number 1,

Dont go out further than you can swim in.



But we all break that rule.


Murphys law- if somethings going to break,
It will happen at the time you are furtherest away from shore.

F@ck you Murphy,,,,,who ever you are?

Who is he anyway And why does he have to be such an a-hole[}:)]

One of my friends kites with a large bbq chicken attached to a game hook in a backpack. If his kite goes down and he can't relaunch it he attaches the hook to his safety leash before pulling the final release. 9 times out of ten when the kite arrives to the beach there is a delicious marlin or wahoo with it which helps weigh the kite down to keep beach users safe.

lotofwind said...



...Murphys law- if somethings going to break,
It will happen at the time you are furtherest away from shore.

F@ck you Murphy,,,,,who ever you are?

Who is he anyway And why does he have to be such an a-hole[}:)]

This is like the lost item that you find "IN THE LAST PLACE I LOOKED!!!!"

well... lotofwind. heres my theory....

it breaks when you are 'furthest from shore' because you would be a damn d*ckhead, or genius, if you could keep kiting furhter out once your gear had broke!!!!

...or is it like old mate on his windsurfer... he broke the boom on the opposite tack (so the handle he wasnt using going out) and sailed a further kilometre out to sea, wondering what he was gonna do, before he ditched.

(yes i know there is a flaw in my logic... but... im bored)

Gone to dark side said...
Kite goes down in the surf you are not able to get back up you have time before you get into the killing zone .

Downing a kite in big surf is ok ...
if the upping happens straightaway.
Immediately.
If it just refuses to fly before the approach of the next oncoming sneaker set,
there is only one smart option ...
Cut ties with the kite and let it go free.
You see,
if you have 4-line traction on your kite,
and you get pounded by breaking waves ...
you end up swimming in with an exploded kite.
If you decide to flag to 1-line after downing your kite in big surf,
and you get pounded by breaking waves ...
you end up swimming in with an out-of-shape kite and a birdsnest of kiteline.
The smart thing to do is just release the kite.
When you do, it twists and tumbles in the soup and finally gets beached and then gets stuck to the wet, warm sand on Paradise Is.