I agree, the government trying to license and regulate kiting- look at their prior efforts - jetskis, wow that has been really successful!

But, that said in Victoria you don't see people being irresponsible on jet skis as much as they used to be. (just my observation, I'm happy to be proved wrong on this) And your PWC license is tied to your drivers license, so points on one affect the other. You get booked over the limit on your jetski/power boat and you lose your drivers license too. I think jetskis are more dangerous than kitesurfers, windsurfers and 12 year old sailors put together though!

I saw a jet ski rider being booked at Mordi Pier for comng out of the creek at 5 knots but then not waiting long enough before opening it up. A cop on a jet ski was waiting there at the creek entrance and pulled him up straight away. So the Victorian government is serious about enforcing water safety.

I just can't see how they are going to police this and to be honest, how many accidents occur down on Port Philip Bay due to kiting? If you check the KBV website, its pretty rare. Most of the incidents there seem to be dog walkers worried about kites on the beach.

Most accidents seem to occur on land rather than on the water so how would licensing change that?

Also, how does licensing impact interstate and international visitors? Kiting is a pretty portable recreation sport, thats one of the things I like about it. A good argument to make is that there are plenty of tourism dollars that would go elsewhere if a licensing system was adopted.

What about the 12 year old kids mucking around in their Sabots and International Cadets, they are hardly causing problems and require regulation. In fact, if they are sailing with a club, they have probably been doing an IYC approved course (Which my sailing club put me through in NZ when I was 12-14) which probably makes them more competent than most adults out on the water.

But, at this stage, its just a tabling of a discussion paper. ie. should we think about thinking about the possibility of licensing kiters and sailboat users. That doesn't mean KBV shouldn't get involved at the first available opportunity and represent our interests though.

On that note, I see KBV has 289 members. There must be a lot more Victorian kiters than that. I will be joining when the membership year ticks over, (My BKSA membership lapsed in April) but those Victorian kiters who want some representation on this issue and aren't members, should be paying fees and joining up. It's not that expensive to do, and a whole lot less hassle than booking in to VicRoads to do a licensing test!

Good work 'J'
Look forward to your post meeting report.

but they are not full time riders - couldnt be - most of them spend far too much time waanking to be full time anythings -- chink chink

exarch said...

<rant>
@Robe --> first things first you cannot agree 100% AND USE THE WORD BUT!
it simply implies you don't know how to structure your opinioins.
</rant>

a licence will be the stail point for everyone interested in potentially joining the sport. you don't need a licence to swim therefore we have people using the beach.

you don't need a licence to go bush walking therefore we have people treaking all over the place

you don't need a licence to skate board therefore we have people skate boarding

you don't need a licence to snow ski or snow board therefore we have people anjoying the snowfields

as soon as you regulate the entry into an activity the broader community (these are your potential nubies) will become disinterested!

you --> kite surfing is awesome!
nubie --> how do i start?
you --> here take this test you need a licence then once you have passed that go and get some lessons, then you might consider a rig oh and you have to renew your licence also.
nubie --> to hell with that i'm taking up extreme knitting!

would any of you have started kite surfing two years ago if you had to get your licence before you started?

and one final note having a licence does not remove the idiot capacity of some people --> we need a car licence however --> www.theage.com.au/national/hoon-loses-ute-after-doubling-speed-limit-20090803-e68l.html

so i think we can lay that argument to rest.

Or do you need "L plates" when you go for your lesson?

No Licence required!!!!!! The State Gov. has dropped the proposal like a bag of spuds. We would like to think that we had some impact on the decision but somehow I don’t think so!
Either way it’s great news that we are still free to ride around and annoy anyone we want..!

Although.....

They have decided that they still need some sort of regulation on Kite boarding (wind powered vessels) so they are looking at Kitesurfing Zones in the open water (outside the bay/metro area).
This seems almost as crazy as the licence in my opinion, it sounds like they want to just push us into the corner/pocket of the coast line so they know who to blame if something happens in that "ZONE".
A quick easy fix for the government.

Cheers

lostinlondon said...

"you don't need a licence to snow ski or snow board therefore we have people enjoying the snowfields"

I think that skiing/snowboarding is different, because have you looked at the terms and conditions on the back of a skipass lately?

By wearing the pass and riding on the chairlifts you are agreeing to abide by the rules of the skifield. (Standard rules all over the world) It's a regulated activity. If you get caught flagrantly breaking the rules with no regard for other peoples safety, you'll have your liftpass torn up, no refund.

That is okay providing you are using the lifts, how about cross country, back country or dare i say a kite related snow activity :)

no lift, no worries, therefore no-responsibility????

could the solution be as simple as 'just don't cock up!' unless there are ladies about, then it's perfectly acceptable :D

Using the same logic, surfing has far more third party related injuries so therefore all surfers will be banished to a smaller more secluded area to surf.
Baz.

waveslave said...
[.....And in the end,
WAKSA rolls over and plays dead,
goes belly up and bloated,
and gives away the kiters rights.

Nothing to do with WAKSA. When WAKSA wants to talk its got its own voice.

Just when GreenPat shows you up for the liar & total dickbrain you prove to be over & over again here on the forum you go & do it again.

1 example - Cottesloe was 2 days & 1 meeting away from passing legislation which would have seen the whole of the Cottesloe foreshore from Leighton to Swanbourne become a totally kite free zone >NO KITES ALLOWED< - penalty immediate confiscation & possible fine as well.
It was all set to happen. Would have happened - no doubt at all.
How then can a compromise; worked out by local kiter (& WAKSA 'cteeman) Jono Keys in conjuntion with WAKSA; where we had to shift one possible launch zone a couple of hundred metres south be seen as "rolling over & playing dead"
I would say 'jumping up and being very much alive & onto it' is way closer to the truth.

But Im forgetting you dont deal with the truth - other than to distort &/or destroy it for no positive reason whatsoever.

One straight question Slave.
Do you think kiters should be allowed to kite between the flags at patrolled beaches.
Straight Yes or No please. (No semi-literate 5th grade poetry req'd ... lol )

And you are wrong if you think your beach doesnt need protecting. Who is going to make sure your beach becomes a "KITE ZONE" if the govt goes down that path.
I dont think it made it as a "JETSKI ZONE" did it ?
Its people like you that make the likelihood of designated KITE ZONES far more likely.
The world would be a better place if you simply STFU. (but please answer the ? first)

Look as much as I think waveslave is a ****st!ck.... I kinda sorta have to back him up here

he is possibly referring to Phil Morrow's post at the bottom of
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=39229&whichpage=1

where he says licensing would be a good idea. then again he tempers that remark with the fact that vehicle driver's licences have not eliminated carnage on the roads.

(seabreeze search only goes back 12months and this is a teeny bit older)



irrelevant anyway, as concensus seems to have bene reached on waveslave and his value to the world of watersports in general

I'm not sure what bad movie you base your whing-ing & complaining on Slave...is it "Ground Hog Day" because you just keep going on & on & on like a pain in the arse dog barking at 3 in the morning.

You've made your point time & time & time again, over & over & over that you don't like WAKSA, you don't think WAKSA does anything for WA Kiters...Perhaps in your own words, you'd like to point out one positive thing you've contributed on this forum, or for the kiting community in WA?

You won't join WAKSA. Your call. For those of us who are members of, or involved in WAKSA, trying to address a number of issues up & down the WA coast for kiters, how about just for once, you give it a rest?

We get it...you don't like WAKSA, and everyone on this forum knows it.

Can I ask you do something positive - STFU and find something else to get on your hobby horse about...Seabreeze readers are tired of you negativity. Come back to us with something positive to say about what you've done for kiters at your local spot. Until then...

I think there may be some history between a few of you guys...!!!!!!!!

I would like to point out one of the justifications the State Gov. used to move on all this new proposed legislation.
They have no record of numbers in regard to kitesurfers and also no form of regulating us, if that’s what we require…. with no records of safety, injury, accident and fatality's.
This is where the idea of the licence came from, also the kitezones!
We brought the point forward (now that the licence has been dropped) that the idiots will still be idiots, outside of Zones or inside!
So instead of the Zone, make every kiteboarder have insurance through AKSA, or the local KSA’s, therefor they have better ideas of numbers for their reports and graphs, they can feel confident that we are at least insured and through being a member, we have access to rules/guidelines etc.
We will also be recommending- if the Gov. want to put some money into something to help everyone, then put it into the KSA’s to help them produce more information in regard safety, guidelines, safe local spots etc.
Cheers

J

Imagine they required licenses for surfing....then you could surf snapper with 500 of your best mates instead of 1000! Awesome!

I got my fishing licence the other day...so far I've caught 10 undersized bream. If I don't Catch $30 worth of fish by year end I'm gonna be so mad.

Here's an ignorant question, when I'm in a boat I have a port and starboard side, but a kiteboard goes both ways, so how do you know when you're on your port tack, and therefore supposed to give way to someone you're about to T-bone?

waveslave said...
Puppet said on the forum 8/7/08
Quote:
"I reckon that if it could be achieved a kite licence would be a great move."
Unquote.

Which means when decoded by Puppet.....^^^
"Puppet is 'probably' not real keen on licences."
lol.
Nice backflip and fence-sitting.

Surely 'slave it is better to be proactive and self manage than to get someone that has no idea from the government do it for us. It is simplistic thinking to think that WAKSA can keep all beaches open for kites, it is all about compromise. Some places kiters should not venture, like extremely crowded swimming beaches, in between flags, in a shipping channel etc.

At least offer an alternative if you are going to criticize.

Deja vu

So am I right in thinking that there has been no "official" response from AKSA or any of its affiliates, or have I missed something? Makes me wonder why I should renew my membership. Again I think this is a prime subject for AKSA to show leadership or in the least state its position with clarity.
Baz.