Something I'd wondered about and found out the answer on the weekend.
Short answer: you swim, and swim, and swim, and swim trying to catch up with it and then if you're very lucky, as I was, someone helps you out and drags it in for you.

I was riding toe side about 4-500 metres off Mullaloo, went to turn back to shore when my harness (Dakine-seat) came unhooked at the crossbar...WTF.

I released the safety and let the kite look after itself while I loosened the straps on the harness so I could get it hooked up again and while I'm doing this somehow have pulled on the velcro release for the safety leash...NNNNOOOOOOO!!!! Kite disappears very quickly downwind until it settles leading edge down and starts to drift just a tad slower than the speed I could swim at.

I reckon I might have caught up with it eventually but don't know if I would have been in any state to do anything with it. As it was my calves were starting to cramp up pretty bad by the time I aborted and got back to the beach without having rescued the kite.

Huge thankyou to Rob Gannon who teaches at Mullaloo and incidentally gave me my beginners lessons a couple of years ago. The prospects of getting back to the beach with kite and board (and me) all present and intact were looking pretty slim until he came along. The appropriate reparations will be forthcoming. Thanks again.

J-P

Im glad im not the only one.

I know that feeling as well, as i took my kite out one day, everything was fine until out of the blue the chicken loop came off my harness point as if it simply snapped.

i was in the same position where i was faced with the unbearable question swim after the kite or leave it?

at first i swam but it seemed to just float away just that bit faster then i could swim, after i realised i wasnt going to catch up with it and realised how far out in the water i was i was forced to swim back with out it.

SOMEHOW i still dont know to this day by an act of god after hours of chasing it down the beach it had to be out of site slowly but surely out to sea, i went back to me car drove long way around the beach where i was greated by an englishman who had picked it up and was going to return it to the local surf shop.

lessons have been learnt
mark your kite with your name and details so that if it does go you dont put your self in danger going after it and myabe just maybe it will come back

the reason for the kite to brake off came down to a soft chicken finger and somehow unhooked it self (apparently a common problem with larger riders)

next time i know i have to let it go if its out of my hands.

Yup, twice this weekend just gone would you believe. One exactly the same as Abesy (got to be careful of those SS chicken loops) and the other was a missed handle pass which somehow resulted in a broken piece of safety line, leaving just a small amount of line on my leash as the kite went yonder. Both occasions I was lucky enough to have people assist. A guy in a small sail boat, the other a group of teenagers on surf skis. HUGE thanks to all those concerned, including one fellow kiter who gave it his best but couldn't recover it. Sounds like we almost have enough members to start a club. Probably won't find too many wanting membership though.

anyone got any tips on pulling a downed kite in, if your kite is still up and you want to recover some poor sod's piece of gear?

i have tried kiting in with someone's board and even that was pretty damn hard, i would think pulling a kite in would be supremely difficult? is it better to perhaps get off your board, leash your board and then body drag in with the bloke's kite in your back hand?

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Originally posted by Neill

anyone got any tips on pulling a downed kite in, if your kite is still up and you want to recover some poor sod's piece of gear?

i have tried kiting in with someone's board and even that was pretty damn hard, i would think pulling a kite in would be supremely difficult? is it better to perhaps get off your board, leash your board and then body drag in with the bloke's kite in your back hand?

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Not sure either. But throwing an idea out there.
What could be done, is land your kite in the ocean, at the edge of the window, and let it drift whereever. grab onto the other blokes kite. Deflate it and roll it up as best as you can. Re-launch, and off you go.
Any other ideas?

haha that happend to me at mullas wen i took my torch out for her maiden voyage (under my control that is) and i was using vishys harnes.. raily surface pass caught and edge n dropped the bar.. n his leash auto releases and my kite goes tumblind down the beach.. it was a sad sad sight

ps abesy i wouldnt have a fixed loop because there will come a day where you need to QR and u my friend will be Fooked. find another place to clip ur leash onto, on my CL thers a lil metal ring that the pin holds onto and i clip to that ring so even wen i hit the QR im still attached to the kite.

I carry a second leash, just wait for it to stop rolling about eg. leading edge downwind. Then just get in there, clip your leash on and get out of there asap, make sure you keep your feet on your board as you dont want to have to try body dragging after a board while attached to two kites. Once attached to the kite ride a little way so as to get away from the lines. If the kite hasn't already flipped over then flip it. Now gun it back to shore, the lines should bounce along behind, kite might roll over a few times and do a few flips or whatever, but if the person isn't grateful that they got their got back just dump it back out to sea
Thanks
Matt
PS Kite retrieval is a dodgey process, hopefully someone has a better method, and this probley shouldnt be tried unless you are very confident at what your doing.

Not sure if this helps your case?
But this suicide leash works up to 20knots.
seabreeze.com.au/gallery/gallery.asp?imageid=6583

Over 20 knots the kite hits the water too hard and regardless of how greatly marketed a kite is, it will break. The Neutralizer 5 will depower your kite in loaded situations and there is less chance of your rigging breaking in strong wind (20 knots+)

((On the beach you can tie the Neutralizer 5 too your anchored board in strong wind cause it controls the apex of the canopy which will have zero angle of attack to the wind.))techsh-t
seabreeze.com.au/gallery/gallery.asp?imageid=6414

Heres an even simlper solution for peeps using a suicide leash and are worried about loosing the whole caboodle if you relese the CL - run a short leash (about 100mm long with small shackles at each end) from the suicide leash clip to the fith line.

I could go on about having it elasticated so the suicide leash clip is held out of the way for when you hook in/out, but that might fry your noodles. Genius?

was going to reply with lots of useful info, but can't be bothered now!

infindie im pretty sure u havent even had kiting lessons yet!!!

I've always maintained that you should never go out further than you're willing (or able) to swim back in. You just never know when you might have a sudden gear failure that leaves you stranded!

That feeling you get when you realise that your bar/lines have parted company with your harness is not pleasant

harness's can fail quite easy, unless your leash is attached to your scrotum (might help in your case) that kite is going bye bye.. at least on a surfboard you can paddle that sucker after it! or home depending on how flash your wallet is feeling at the time.

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Originally posted by INfiniDIE

quote:

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Originally posted by bellz

infindie im pretty sure u havent even had kiting lessons yet!!!

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I have had one lesson last summer with Darren mate, plus I kited with my mates in Queensland across the Whitsunday Channel, along Conway beach (where crocs roam). Then I came back home with a 14m Naish and Play around with that, and Bought a tiny 2 metre Ocean Rodeo off Meerkat thats super fun for skimboarding in 40 knots.

and I always attach my 3rd line to my harness so when im unhooked and i let go of the bar, im still attached...so im wondering how you can lose your kite?

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mate just be quite hey, your embarrassing yourself.

also in addition to Q:What to do if you become separated from you kite? A: buy a cheap inflatable boat in the boot of your car for such an emergancy.

secondly seeing this discussed before, if you do loose your kite contact someone police, coast guard etc incase they send out a helicopter thinking your still attached to it. makes sense

hmmm i see now, and dont worry unchained I embarrass myself by the fact im still alive after all the crazy **** ive done.
I kitelooped on land at pinnas a couple weeks ago, dont have a board yet u know, so i just tried what i saw Len10 doing, landed pretty sweet but that 14 turns like a bitch, was more of a downloop.

and I didnt know people were crazy enough to just hold onto the kite, relying only on upper body strength to keep them attached to the kite, thats just stupid.


oh and as for you KDA thanks mate, I dont get that problem as I made my own chicken Finger from an oldschool Flying Objects semi circle harness thingy, sits nice and tight on my spreader and locks the chicken loop in place, but getting out is kinda hard in a rush.