i opened my mail today to be greated with the pamphlet "lifejacket regulations in victoria have changed" so as a person who spends alot of time on the water, be it kitesurfing, fishing, waterskiing, etc, i read on...

First page in states that when using a "kite board" or "sail board" we must wear the specified PFD when underway or in an open area of the vessel, in otherwords, all the bl00dy time on a kiteboard.

thinking this was a typo i read on...

under the heading "what type of PFD must i wear?" it specifies the type of PFD that must be worn. [NOTE: The following is "kite board" and "sail board related, not for other vessels]

Coastal waters:- PFD type 1 or 2
Enclosed waters:- PFD type 1 or 2 or 3
Inland waters:- PFD type 1 or 2 or 3

Ok this is sounding bad!

... read on ...

These rules do have a catch tho, and that i think we can use it to avoid wearing the PFD's. It states in the FAQ's that we dont have to wear the PFD if operating the "kite board" or "sail board" no more than 400m offshore and wearing a wetsuit that is at least 3mm thick. i know that i kite with a 3/2 wettie most times, and dont usually venture out past 400m, so i think i might be ok, but those whom kite with shorts & T shirt or go more than 400m out are technically breaking the law......how bad is this!!

I just thought i'd point this out to the Victorians, maybe it will save a few people from fines, as they are going to enforce these lawns quite harshly apparently.

thanks for your time & for reading this far.

Dave.

"ah",ya gotta laugh.Water Police with kites.They could have a blue strobe light attached to a helmet.Most of you kiters are alright,you could out run em.I'm still learning so I guess I'm Stuffed.

A dude with a tape measure, wadeing out through the surf to measure 400 mtr's,"I gotta see that".

Thanks for the info Dave

that S|_|X maybe just say your harness has a PFD rating, lol they probably wouldn't know.

the latest NSW waterways laws are the same...PFD must be worn when more than 400m offshore. Funnily enough, you are allowed within 30m of a person in the water (provided they are not in a designated surf zone) and as most lines are around this length, they still could get hit by the kite in the event of a crash. Makes you wonder whether they just draw these distances out of a hat sometimes.

are the impact vest/harnesses a personal flotation device ??

Hahahaha its probably a good idea for n00bs like me, the 400m thing, coz 2 days ago i was out kiteing in a sideshore and i decided to go REALLY far out to be manly. anyways, after i was about 700m out (YES 700m, im underestimating so that people dont give me ****) my kite decided to fall out of the sky then proceeded to invert. hmm. after having a little rant i pulled my saftey, and pulled myself through the jumble of lines to my kite and sat on it until Ian (THANK GOD) came over with his trusty foil. well, i got towed back in and untangled my lines and all was good. BUTTT i was EXTREEMLY lucky, being that far out i wouldve had to float back in coz swimming is a bit dangerous in shark infested waters. and if you get fatigue out there youd be in the crap so to speak. Anyway, THANK YOU IAN you saved me a bunch of effort. :)

yeh true. i didnt really think about much other than ghetting my board, and kite and **** together so notihing got lost. and by that time Ian had come over anyways. But yeh your right. and it looked like a pretty daunting swim with all my **** if i did have to.

quote:

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Originally posted by RAL INN


Also included was the 5kt speed limit within 200m of shore. this being the yellow buoys dotting the bay coastline.
ni and was rescued by the WP was cur picked to shore, then handering one isanal hazzard, and always be nice and co-operative to .
Tony L

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speed limits are designed for power boats, the cops were laughed at for giving my rowing crew a warning (made the inside cover)

PFD's personally i dont think are the correct way to go they should make it an impact vest that is suitable for the riders weight. this would give adequate floatation and comfort out at sea

basic designation of PFD's

only the PFD-1 is designed to keep your head above the water even when unconcious. PFD-2 is to offer flotation, and keep the bright colours, and PFD-3 is just a buoyancy vest, colours dont matter.

Jetpilot make a PFD-3 rated vest, i know kitepower sell them, but they look a little long to accept a waste harness.

I bought a Jet Pilot PFD a few years back for wake boarding. Started wearing it when I was learning to kite after a couple of long sessions of dropping the kite over and over and spending most of my time bobbing around.
I wore a waste harness with it with out a problem, it actually stops the harness from riding up. You just got to make sure the vest is tight on other wise the harnes can push it up to your face. Not good.
Best method I found is to buy one that fits and drink beer every after noon for about twelve months, by this stage it should be fitting very snugly.

This might be worth looking into, the wording has changed in regards to what an approved pfd is. It used to be that it had to comply with Aust design rules or standards. I think it know says that the pfd has to comply with "a standard" meaning something like the uniform shipping code or similar however if you can find a country that makes floaties that it also classes as a lifesaving device then you are in. Or a plastic bag that you can blow up and tie a knot in when the proverbial hits the fan.. Maybe the KBA need to buy a small country?.