i'd say contact AKSA in the first instance - sounds like someone with an axe to grind rather than a genuinely concerned member of the public. we get the same here in brisbane, all it takes is a few people with a bee in their bonnet and all hell breaks loose. pretty funny to read though, youd think the beaches of byron were more dangerous than a baghdad suicide bombers convention

Hello Greg S,
Don't be too surprised if you get banned cause kitesurfing has no cred and never will have.
Some kiters are so full of self-importance that they think they have a God-given right to fly their kites anywhere and amongst the general public.
Wake up freaks and smell the fear.
Innocent by-standers that are in close proximity and sharing the beach with you are made to feel anxious, defensive, wary and vunerable.

My advice to kiters (kiter to kiter);
Be cool, stay under the radar cause you are walking around on the beach and dicking with a fully loaded shotgun with no safety-catch.

The future of kitesurfing is stupidly predictable.

Where can i get me some of those kite wires for ripping peoples arms off?

Bare in mind the beaches the lady is talking about(Main Beach and the Pass) are the MOST CROWDED beaches at any time of the year in our area. Go a couple of K's in any direction and you would find no crowds and better conditions.

hay waveslave is on the money. We have a responsiblity to keep out of peoples way. Holy crap you gotta see it from their prospective. If you need someone to move ask, they will. If you see a newbie putting people in danger stop the idoit and tell what the bloody story is.

I am an IPO officer in council and deal with the councilors. If a kid gets hurt then they will get votes for "banning kiting" and you will be so history!!!! Nothing can save you then. Nothing

quote:

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Originally posted by jan

quote:

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Originally posted by waveslave
The future of kitesurfing is stupidly predictable.

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Like your posts?

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He is right! Wake up !

Jet skiers think they are unreal too !

Hows Owsley going ?

How about a situation were some kiters are going about there business and are within the rules and there is no one within 30 meters of them. This lady comes walking along the beach to show her grandkids the big colourfull kites with people haveing fun and comes within 30 meters, should she be the one to walk around the kiters and stay 30 meters away or should the kiters be forced to move along the beach away from there original location. And if there is an accident who do you think has made the wrong decision not to keep their distance

How many of us have been in this situation when you start your session with no one around only to find people continue to come to close to you with no regard for there own safety.

ric

Thanks for all the comments.
Byron Main Beach /the pass is a crowded beach, because it is a major tourist/backpacker destination. There is also a swimming club that swims from the Pass to Main Beach every morning, lots of board-riders, families, walkers, etc. She is right that it is a disaster waiting to happen IF we are not careful. Usually as the wind picks up, there are less & less people. There is only a handful of local kiters, and usually several travelling kiters out on a windy day. So keeping safety risks low means educating / informing the newbies and visiting kiters about safe kiting, no-go zones, the launch-landing area.

I think a softly-softly approach works best for all of us... as Kitehard said... help kiters launch & land, stop & have a chat, stay out of the crowded surf zone, and keep our distance from other people... general respect for others. Most people do this anyway.

As for responding to this letter, we need to discuss it at the Club meeting this weekend. My thoughts at the moment are to let it pass, as it seems to me to be someone wanting to stir up trouble.

We have a brochure underway showing the no-go zones, launch-landing area, and other information, which can be put in backpackers/ and maybe given out at the beach to new people if they are rigging up.

It would be good to have new people join AKSA, so they at least have 3rd party insurance, as well as reinforce safety aspects.

We can't deny that there are kiting risks, even if the letter-writer exaggerated them. So responding to the letter like she is a madwoman I think would inflame this situation. We might be able to turn it into positive PR though. Any suggestions how?

Greg

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Originally posted by Surgeon

If most of these so called noobs are going through schools which I assume they do cause most of the shops hand out cards an stuff - the syllabus of the schools needs a serious revamp.

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I went to purchase a new kite from a local shop, and was trying to get the best deal. I then asked whether they could give me a basic lesson on setting it up ect. and he said for that price he couldn't, but he could give me a KBV (kiteboarding Victoria) membership which, in his words, "includes third party insurance, if anything happens."

I didn't end up purchasing from this shop, but my impression was like, so you want my money, and am prepared to give me a good deal, and you're just going to throw it at me without any skills. But because i have this "card" that covers me for any damage to other people, that will be ok.

My thoughts were that they were expecting me to have an incident.

hay ellery thats interesting. It is bloody hard to make a dollar and i know it is to much to ask but in a perfect world you would not be able to purchase a kite unless you could show you can:
1)flyit
2)have had lessons
3)paid for lesson you will have

People love to wacth the kites, the eyes light up in the kids, every one loves them really. I think thats why not much has happened.

Yea great call wdric thats is what happens. A request will get them to back up and a verbal warning counts for heaps if something does happen

The best way is for everyone to keep an eye on every one else. It is easy to get forgetful and do something stupid and what a difference it makes when people offer to help. Makes the sport that much cooler, as if it needed any help

quote:

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Originally posted by ellery

quote:

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Originally posted by Surgeon

If most of these so called noobs are going through schools which I assume they do cause most of the shops hand out cards an stuff - the syllabus of the schools needs a serious revamp.

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I went to purchase a new kite from a local shop, and was trying to get the best deal. I then asked whether they could give me a basic lesson on setting it up ect. and he said for that price he couldn't, but he could give me a KBV (kiteboarding Victoria) membership which, in his words, "includes third party insurance, if anything happens."

I didn't end up purchasing from this shop, but my impression was like, so you want my money, and am prepared to give me a good deal, and you're just going to throw it at me without any skills. But because i have this "card" that covers me for any damage to other people, that will be ok.

My thoughts were that they were expecting me to have an incident.

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so why didnt you pay for a lesson like everyone else? i understand it can be hard to get the money together for lessons when youve just spent a crap load on gear, but the correct sequence should be that you had lessons, then bought gear. I mean, you dont rock up to a car dealership before you get your learners permit and expect them to show you how to start the car, change gears and reverse park before you buy it.

It has already been mentioned in an earlier post but I would like to reiterate the point.

Just dont kite at the pass/mainbeach area.

It is ususally ridiculously crowded there when the good northerlies blow during the summer. A couple of kMs` away from there are miles of empty beachs, You could probably petion the council for a couple of special areas for kitesurfing. One in the bay for the northerlies and one around Suffolk side for the southerlies.

In my area our kiting beach is designated for two things, kiting and training race horses, now that`s a show of "government intelligence"((those two words should not be used together)) working for the people, don`t you think?

So is kiting actually banned in Byron? A note from Tobes in the last Kiteboarder mag says it is.

I would have thought it would take more than a letter to the local newspaper to get kiting banned. With all due respect Byron is full of people who feel passionately about anything. The local rag is full of loonies rabbiting on about conspiracies and plots and evil deeds.

Also, I still can't see why people choose to kite close to the beach. It's much more fun and much safer to cut loose out in deep water where the only consequence of messing up is getting wet.

Bondo I love the bit about the car dearlership! that is so true.

I work in a shop and I get it all the time pepole expect to be able to get massive discounts on there current model new gear and get a free lesson thrown in aswell!

Got to pay your dues like we all did to get into and enjoy this sport