I agree with you Waveslave.

But why should we (windsurfers)? Why shouldn't you (kiters)?

Thats like saying "I drive a big landcruiser, therefore you in the Mini should get out of
my way when I illegally driving on your side of the road".

OR. Would you like it if a jet ski rider was in the position of the kiter and a kiter was
in the position of the windsurfer?

Needless to say i'm still gunna bail before I hit strings.

A friend of mine was sued for over $60000 from a yachting accident.A broken nose was the result of the accident I believe.Ended up costing him $22000,He lost his house.Tell me rules dont count.
I truly believe 99.9% of w/s and kiters do care and do try to avoid any sort of incident,It just takes 1 #%!* head.
Learners are another storey alltogether ,Kiters and W/S, Though Kiters seem to have a steeper learning curve than W/S god bless their little cotton sox.
Try to cut them both some slack.Actually if learners marked their masts/lines with surveyers tape it would make things a lot easier for everybody.
Back to the #%!* heads,talking to them will just get you abuse so make sure the "injured party" knows who they are so they may take whatever steps they deem appropriate[}:)].Help clean up both sports.

mr plod said...


who has more options to avoid cllision, the guy planing on the wave or the guy dogging out sinking up to his waist?

In this case the guy on the wave, should give the guy going out space, but that doesn't mean rider going out always has right of way.
Not here anyhow, when I gybe over the back of the wave, I check for waveriders coming in, if I can't get out without interfering with their wave, I stall around and go behind them.
We're all out there to ride waves, so we try and give the guy on the wave a fair go.

If you say sailor going out has right of way, there are idiots around who come from your blind side and jump the very same lip you're trying to smack, when they could easily have gone downwind a bit more, but not got such a vertical ramp.
By the time you see them it's too late to do anything about it, if they've misjudged the trajectories, too bad!!!

The conditions here are very rarely gnarly, so getting out is normally not a problem.
When it does get big then people going out get more consideration.

You may sail by those rules Ben, but don't expect everybody else to!

> If you are on a collision-course with a kiter with no room for avoidance....

You dork, this thread is how to prevent collisions. Not about ignoring other people until it's too late. With this attitude, were you the kiter on the video ???

The guy coming in, and being upwind, must look out for others, simple as that. Same as if a kite was going out and a W/S was coming in: the W/S would have to look out for the kite.

A strong possibility here is that the kiters is not in control (again), and/or being a beginner or some gear problem or too worried about his lines to look out for collision (not uncommon the lines worries thing).

Hey slave, I keep telling everyone thats the way we do it down here, but nobody will listen!!!!!!

AUS4 said...

I cannot believe this, why dont you guys want to solve the problem. Why cant you just stick with port and starboard rules, why confuse every one with my wave his wave Mickey Mouses's wave, just stick with port and starboard its bloody simple.

Sailboarding and windsurfing are two different things

> why cant you just stick with port and starboard rules

Because the application of the rule would be different depending on whether the wind was north or south in Sydney, for instance. Doesn't make sense.

Your name has a sail number, you must be a racer and then the ROW rule makes sense for most head-on, flat water conditions where both know the rules. It don't in waves.

> just stick with port and starboard its bloody simple

If it's that simple, then why is it that sunday sailors in perfect flat conditions don't apply it ?

When sailing or driving, the idea is to anticipate what everyone is going to do, as well as telegraphing your intentions clearly to the other parties. This lets everyone's sphere of influence expand, so your actions overlap and interact with the other people around you. When everyone shows the proper courtesy (and is aware of what's going on around them), you will never ever get into a situation that is anywhere close to a collision.

Just like driving, it's the inexperienced parties that are a danger to others because they aren't fully aware of what's going on around them. A properly executed lane merge is a balletic verse of poetry, just like two sailors sharing a 'party wave'.

Expand your horizons, don't think about whether YOU are in the right or wrong, but more shift your viewpoint outward. Think about how someone in a helicopter 200 metres above you would expect everyone to behave, and let that influence your actions.

There is no spoon

spot on Nebbian.

This whole debate is pointless.

Waves aren't like flat water. Those who wavesail understand this.

Here's another analogy:
Imagine you're in your local shopping centre. There are people everywhere, going in all directions. Imagine you're walking down the middle of the corridor.
What rule do you follow so that you don't bump into someone?

Hmmm?

The reason you don't give a simple answer is because there isn't one. It depends! Do you always go to the right of someone? Do you always turn left? Do you not deviate from your path because the breeze is blowing from your right? Even if you're about to run over a little kid who is oblivious to everything except the chocolate bar they're eating?

Don't be silly. What you do is expand your consciousness to control the space around you. If a gap opens up, you swerve in that direction. If you see a granny up ahead with a walking frame, you deviate away so that they have a clear path in whatever direction they're going.

This system seems to work well for everyone in shopping centres, without any signs on the door saying "Everyone must pass to the right, except when overtaking, and steam gives way to sail". What bollocks.

Reading a few posts GOT UP TO ONE OF USERS RAVES....AND LAUGHED...............it really hit home when USER refered to the kiter having his right hand forward.......... ETCETCETCETC.NO IDEA AT ALL.

stop even calling yourself and ex windsurfer.... its embarracing

YOU ARE A FKN TOSSSER GET OFF THE WATER AND FILL THE BATH.

YOU ARE THE KOOK IN THIS CLIP

.........Thats the way to start the week.

Good point about the vision aspect .........Aus404

AUS4 said...

isnt that the point to have one universal rule that everybody knows or if they dont they can read it somewhere instead of a different rule in every town that confuses everybody...one day you may forget what town you are in and then you will be in trouble

it is hard do that because different spots have different emphases (on wave riding or wave jumping).
The closest we have to one rule though IS very simple actually.

(1) Going out has right of way. That is to avoid getting smashed. Simple safety rule, and costs less money for masts for everyone.
(2) BUT if you are planing out and are lining up a jump right in the section, you do not have the right to ruin a persons wave ride. One of the reasons for that is the guy may have to go down the line to get out of trouble .... as an extreme example look at Jaws: if you don't keep heading DTL and just sail straight in you are going to die.

Now that is simple and makes sense. Why people can't understand it, I'll never know.
It is very easy to discern whether you are at a "real" wave spot or a spot which is just a good jumping bashncrash spot.

Interesting when I lived at a classic spot with DTL conditions, half the tourists said nothing, the other half asked if there was any underwater hazards to look out for. NONE ever asked what local rules were.

Theres lots of people who's famous last words were

"They were in the wrong, I Had the Right Of Way"


Avoid collisions at all costs

Nobody Wins


It furken hurts when you prang

end of sermon

nebbian said...


If you see a granny up ahead with a walking frame, you deviate away so that they have a clear path in whatever direction they're going.

Depends what tack she's on

Seriously, I can't believe how many people are unaware of any rules on flat water let alone in the waves.

In addition to any rules the simple way is to go around anyone that's not planing, they can't get out of the way.
When planing you should be able to easilly steer around people to avoid a collision!

When overpowered it can get a bit tricky going off the wind and therefore most people will pull upwind, so you can't always expect the obvious.

Not sure what a Kiter will do when overpowered but assume they would go downwind, probably face first or boost out of the way.

That collision should not have happened for any reason, simple!