Where were you kiting? Close to the ferry or near South Melbourne Life Savers? Port Melbourne/South Melbourne isn't actually zoned for kiting (and hasn't been for a while) but they've generally turned a blind eye to it provided you stay away from swimmers and keep away from shore.

Unfortunately most of the kiters here don't actually do that meaning we won't get to do it much longer because a couple of people spoil it for the rest of us. In short, launch and then stay further offshore than the boating markers and they generally leave you alone because you're not endangering any swimmers and provided to ride slowly until you reach the boating markers, you're actually allowed to go out travel in and out to get to the boating zone. The kiting zone is a zone to allow you to stay close to shore and thereby ignore the 200m/shore 5 knot rule. The whole principle is that if you not kiting in a kiting zone you have to abide by standard boating laws which means:

1. 5 knots if you're less than 200m from shore
2. 5 knots if you're within 50m of a swimmer

transportsafety.vic.gov.au/maritime-safety

Page 49 applies to all kiters if you're in an area not demarcated as a kiting zone.

Here is the latest - if the zones you were shown were on Parks Vic documents then they are probably the final ones for this round of the Boating Zone Review.

There are now only four types of zones:

Boating only - Swimming is not permitted in this zone.

Swimming only - All vessels including personal watercraft, powered and non power vessels are not permitted in this zone.

Kite Boarding Area - This zone provides an area for kite boarding which may exceed 5 knots except within 50m proximity to other vessels and swimmers. ther vessels are permitted in this area.

200m from shore - Swimming and boating are permitted within 200m of the shore subject to defined areas above. All vessels must adhere to 5 knot speed limit within 200m of the shore.

These zones are clearly marked on the maps available here: http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/3zones.cfm

Parks Vic is aware of kiting and are always willing to chat about issues.

This info was posted to Seabrreeze and to the KBV site a while back so maybe lost in the historical stuff.

Dont forget Kiters in the water with a kite flying are considered vessels and need to adhere to the standard boating (and yachting) rules including no-go zones, 5-knot zones, not approaching or kiting within 200m of objects, swimmers, buoys, piers, beaches (except those designated as kiting beaches) etc. The most critical one, and probably what the South Melbourne guys were concerned about is sailing within the 200m 5-knot zone.

The 200 meter 5-knot zone extends from the West Beach kiting area right to (and beyond Station Pier. In some areas the 200m zone extends further out due to shallow water and suitability of the extended area for swimmers.

We have not been banned from rigging and launching along the South Melbourne stretch and as long as we body drag to outside the 200m zone (shown by line of yellow pylons) we are not breaking any rules.

HOWEVER

As always we need to be ultra careful when choosing where and when to launch/land and recently there was a lot of criticism around people self-launching/landing (and crashing) on beaches amongst other beachgoers.

Also 200m zone applies to the whole stretch from the St Kilda pier (includes the pier and the Royal Melb Yacht Squadron boat ramp and boat mooring area, yes, even the kiddies pool) right down to the trial kiting area on Hampton Beach.

At Kitebeach (Brighton beach) we are tolerated but it is NOT a kiting beach and thus those who love to "thrill the crowds" with air transitions just meters from the beach, or spray waders/swimmers with their wake, are not doing the kiting community any favours.

Here endeth the lecture ... :)

Finally - only a few actually designated kting zones in the area - West Beach St Kilda, Hampton Beach and Balnarring. Nominations made during doscussion with Parks Vic of the recommendations for others were made.

PS: Just reactivated the KBV headiline article we posted in April this year - was the latest (and I believe still is) we had on the Boating Zone Review.

What is interesting is that I'm sure the area described by Michael was described as a 5-knot zone in the last draft of the proposal and it is now been changed into a 'no boating' zone. This is the spot many of us have kited for some time. It is not used by the life saving clubs (as it falls directly between them). It's frustrating that we've lost that spot.

I'd be interested to know if KBV were consulted in relation to that point and to see if there is any way we might go about re-negotiating?