Never go kitesurfing / kitesailing in an off-shore wind
Quote:
Originally posted by, Cliff
Kitecat in an offshore... you've had better ideas Tom
Obvious I guess.
I was at Cambersands yesterday with my friend James for my first flat water session. It's something I've been dying to try.
The off-shore breeze kept the sea nice and flat.
XC online weather forecasted 18-25mph x-off-shore, it was in-fact just light winds 5-10mph directly off-shore with 15mph gusts every now and then. The
tide was in all the way and beautifully flat.
Easy launch and ride away. No spray, just smoooth sailing. I had to keep the kite looping tho or it would have fallen out of the sky.
The flat water was a dream to sail on but things quickly went from good to bad.
Never again will I go out in an off-shore wind.
I also know now not to downloop a kite in a KiteCat unless you're pointed in the general downwind direction or the KiteCat will flip you out...an OCE
(Out of Cat Experience). I ended up in the water and out of reach of the KiteCat with little chance of reaching it.
Even tho the wind was light, it was enough to drag me out to sea. I thought that if I flagged the kite out on the 'oh #@%$#! handles' that I could
somehow swim back in while towing the kite behind me....wrong! Flagging the kite out still leaves enough kite poking up out of the water to act like a
sail.
I OCE'd just 30ft from shore. It might as well have been 30 miles. I was out of my depth and could not touch the bottom or get any purchase.
Wear a life jacket. I wasn't wearing one and became exhausted very quickly trying to swim the kite back to shore and when I realised I hadn't made any
progress, I had to make a sad decision. I had to let go of the kite or it would kill me. By the time you read this my lovely Flexifoil 10.5m ION
should have made landfall somewhere in northern France.
If I had hesitated another minute or two I may not have had the strength to swim back.
My friend James was the hero of the day. He swam out and saved the KiteCat.
All of this just 30ft from shore. Lesson learnt.
After we changed out of our wet gear we went back to the beach to see the kite. It had gone!....it was just a tiny speck out at sea.
I called 999 and explained to the coastguard that I lost the kite in an off-shore. I did this to prevent a full scale search and rescue should someone
find it out at sea or washed up somewhere.
I know I'm going to get flak for this but if maybe someone will read this and learn from my foolish ways then it's worth it.
I've passed on great conditions that would've not been life threatening but if anything had gone wrong me and or my kite would've been across the
colorado river and a 3 hour drive away. You need a boat with a driver if you are going to take chances in offshore conditions. So many things
totally out of your control and regardless of your skill can ruin the day at some level.
Coastal Wind Sports Team Rider Landsegler Disc wheels
PTW Hero Buggy - XXtreme ApeXX Buggy US 88 - Libre Hardcore IvanpahBuggyExpo.com Youtube link
Bob Muse
HQ Montana X 8m, Montana IX 12m, HQ Ignition LEI 5m,
PL Phantom 12m, 15m, Big Blu 24m+, Synergy 10m, Venom 10m, 13m , Phantom II 12m Vapors 3.8, 5.4, Crosskite Sonic 7m, PKD Combat 10.3m
Uturn Butane 2.5m PKD Buster 3m Genetrix Hydra 7m Ozone Yakuza GT 14m
thnx for sharing.
have not sailed on open/salt water so this is a good lesson to learn.
i sail on lakes so if flip/pitchpole overboard i can pick up boat on other side if necessary.
always were my life jacket though... a good knock on the head in the even shallowest of water and u might not make it.
hopefully you'll be re-united with your kite.
PKD-0.7m Buster, 1.4m Buster, 1.8m Century
HQ-Beamer III 3m
PL-Reactor 3.8m, Reactor II 6.9m
Ozone-IGNITION 1.6m, Little Devil 4.5m, 7.3m Frenzy
Pansh-Sprint Ltd Ed 5m, 7m Ace
Flexifoil-Blurr 5m
FS- Pulse2 12m, Speed 1.5 17m, lots of Revs and dual line stunters
Sirocco Sprint 4.2, 5.2 -SIROCCOx 5.2-
Tough lesson. I have learned a few that could have been worse.
1. Wear a life jacket is the strongest advice I can say. I have swam back in several times and despite being a competent swimmer, without a life
jacket a couple of times I would have had to abandon the kite.
2. If you ditch the kite, swim to it and wrap it up. I thought my 19m would float on top of the water and maybe I could relaunch it. I spent an hour
swimming about 40 yards towing the kite. When I finally reached shore the kite was full of water, enough that I couldn't lift it. I spend about
another 45 minutes with a friend draining the kite. In the past I swam to the kite wrapping up the lines and then rolled it up. Much easier to swim
in.
3. Kite with a buddy. You are lucky you did. It isn't always necessary but if you need help it is nice to not be SOL
No flames here bro but glad you are ok. We pay for our lessons one way or another.
US40
HQ 1.4m which my 8 and 10 year old fly
Pansh Flux 2m, Legend 3m,
HQ Hydra 300 PZ depower, Neo 8m, 11m
Flysurfer S3 Deluxe 19m, S2 15m
Flexboardz Haize
Radbuggy
SIMS snowboard
Crazy Fly 145
What is the saying...experience is something you get a second after you needed it? I had a similar experience with my F.S. 19...ditching in
unfavorable wind and filling it with water. A jet ski driven by the wife made the difference in my being able to save my kite.
It was stupid on my part but I learned alot real quick. Glad you are ok. You can replace the kite.
Curtis
Currently flying:
Beamer IV 2m, 3m, 4m
Ozone Flow 5M
PL Vibe 1.3
Synergy 12m
Flysurfer 19m DLX
HQ Apex III 7.5
PL Twister 7.7m--Just plain sick...
Hey Redsky,
Good job on bailing on your kite! Lesson learned!
I've been there. I went out in offshore waves, wind died, kite fell, couldn't relaunch it. I tried self rescue. But there was only enough wind to go
prependiculer but not "upwind" toward shore. All I could do was parallel the beach. I tried around an hour to get that kite back in. But there was no
way so I paid my respect and let go with little fan fare.
I'm still waiting for Kami to U2 me saying he found my kite on the other side of the Pacific.
This happened to me windsurfing once. The wind got too high for the size sail I was useing and I couldn't get back to shore. I derigged my sail and
tried paddleing back in but I couldn't. I desided to wait it out and float to the other side of the lake since I was exhasted from paddleing and
lifting the sail. I was about 100 yards from the other side when a jet skier kindly towed me back. After that happened I was scared to go on the water
for a bit. I was reseaching "land windsurfing" when I came across one of carltb's videos and I knew kiteing was the answer. It's been 8 months since I
first discovered kiteing, 7 months since I first used a kite, 5 months since I first flew a real power kite, 3 months since I first flew a depower, 2
months since my first ride, 2 1/2 weeks since I can say I have a quiver of kites and 1 1/2 weeks since my first atb ride.
Arcs - Charger I 8m, 10m, 12m, Venom I 13m - F-Arc 1200, 1600
Single Skin - Born-Kite LongStar2
Fixed Bridles - Pansh Legend 4.5m - Peter Lynn Voltage 3m
No need to rag on you - you played the odds, had some bad luck but ultimately made the right decisions.
I've been out in cross off-shore conditions and before I hit the water, decided that I would just kiss the kite good-bye if it went screwy. Always
been out in good strong wind though, so I felt I could get back to shore with a body-drag etc.
Did you try deflating the leading edge only, rolling up the kite and swimming in on it like a surfboard?
Glad you are ok- story told how fast things go bad on the water- If you had the vest on it you might still have the Ion and none of us would be
writing now.....at least you had a suit on! Mine gives some buoyancy but not enough to hold me up.
Good call on contacting the CoastGuard- many times here they have false alarms from getaway kites and the owners not doing that.
HQ Beamer II 1.8-
Flexifoil bullets 2.5- 3.5 mine, can\'t have it!
Pansh ACE 4.0- for sale $75
Peter Lynn Viper- 3.9
Naish Aero 10.0
Naish Aero 12.0
Rockville Kite Trike
Originally posted by sand flea
glad you made it out.
Brother please get a life jacket!
Thanks! I won't be going out again without a life jacket or lid. New respect for the sea. Even in the most placid conditions things can go bad. Lesson
learnt.
Quote:
Originally posted by Flyfish
Hey Redsky,
Good job on bailing on your kite! Lesson learned!
I've been there. I went out in offshore waves, wind died, kite fell, couldn't relaunch it. I tried self rescue. But there was only enough wind to go
prependiculer but not "upwind" toward shore. All I could do was parallel the beach. I tried around an hour to get that kite back in. But there was no
way so I paid my respect and let go with little fan fare.
I'm still waiting for Kami to U2 me saying he found my kite on the other side of the Pacific.
Scary stuff. I too paid my respects to my kite with a final salute before letting go with the words...you were good.
It was a bit like that scene from Titanic. In the grand scheme of things tho, a kite is just a kite.
Quote:
Originally posted by Snake
This happened to me windsurfing once. The wind got too high for the size sail I was useing and I couldn't get back to shore. I derigged my sail and
tried paddleing back in but I couldn't. I desided to wait it out and float to the other side of the lake since I was exhasted from paddleing and
lifting the sail. I was about 100 yards from the other side when a jet skier kindly towed me back. After that happened I was scared to go on the water
for a bit. I was reseaching "land windsurfing" when I came across one of carltb's videos and I knew kiteing was the answer. It's been 8 months since I
first discovered kiteing, 7 months since I first used a kite, 5 months since I first flew a real power kite, 3 months since I first flew a depower, 2
months since my first ride, 2 1/2 weeks since I can say I have a quiver of kites and 1 1/2 weeks since my first atb ride.
Glad there was someone on hand to tow you back. Another reason to not go out alone I guess.
Quote:
Originally posted by Kamikuza
Did you try deflating the leading edge only, rolling up the kite and swimming in on it like a surfboard?
Good idea. I'll remember that for next time in an on-shore but with an off-shore and the coast just 30ft away I made a swim for dry land.
I had a moment of quiet panic when I was thrown over board as what to do. I have zero kitesurf experience. I had to take two deep breaths to calm
myself and try to think the problem throu wasn't as easy as I thought. It's a scary and lonely experience.
Quote:
Originally posted by beachrights
Glad you are ok- story told how fast things go bad on the water- If you had the vest on it you might still have the Ion and none of us would be
writing now.....at least you had a suit on! Mine gives some buoyancy but not enough to hold me up.
Thanks, without the vest I'd have lasted about two or three minutes at most I reckon. I bought the wetsuit just two days before. I never really
thought I'd get thrown overboard. I was going to just use a leaking drysuit to keep the wind at bay!
Quote:
Originally posted by Txshooter38
What is the saying...experience is something you get a second after you needed it? I had a similar experience with my F.S. 19...ditching in
unfavorable wind and filling it with water. A jet ski driven by the wife made the difference in my being able to save my kite.
It was stupid on my part but I learned alot real quick. Glad you are ok. You can replace the kite.
Some folks have lost a kite to sea while buggying on the sand...never mind being on the water !
If it makes you feel better I lost one to Davy Jones Locker..(a Fixed bridal). Partially let go to avoid OBE..partially yanked in gust buggying. Would
not drop from sky for several hundred yards till out past waves. Went in but thought it best to not go out over my head w strong off shore wind. Only
nearby help was paddle boarder who was not comfortable going out to rescue.
Still don't wear kite killers...
Another for Davey Jones locker.
Davey Jones sings a song for you for giving to his locker:
the lesson you should have leanrt is a deep water pack down. all you wouldve needed to do is, wind in your lines until your kite was with you, then
deflate the leading edge but not the struts, then rolled it up and swim in with it.
Originally posted by carltb
the lesson you should have leanrt is a deep water pack down. all you wouldve needed to do is, wind in your lines until your kite was with you, then
deflate the leading edge but not the struts, then rolled it up and swim in with it.
do you kitesurf?
is there a last ditch (before you actually ditch the kite) self rescue technique for use with arcs too?
Scout II 4m
Montana VI 9.5m
Matrix 15m
F-arcs 1200 & 1600
Pulse 13m
Ozone Reo 8m
LF Envy 12m
Suds, I have had good luck with rolling up the kite from the wingtips. Pulled both together and started rolling. Lifejacket gave me the buoyancy to
do it comfortably. Usually a bit of air is trapped inside that helps with buoyancy. I have only tried it with my foils but I cant see the arcs being
different. I put the kite on my board and swim in. This has mostly happened when wind changed and was either too high for the kite or too low.
US40
HQ 1.4m which my 8 and 10 year old fly
Pansh Flux 2m, Legend 3m,
HQ Hydra 300 PZ depower, Neo 8m, 11m
Flysurfer S3 Deluxe 19m, S2 15m
Flexboardz Haize
Radbuggy
SIMS snowboard
Crazy Fly 145
stetsons right. the self rescue for an arc is the same as my previous post but when you reach the kite, you bring both tips together and roll them up
slowly as you are swimming in. the longer you have to swim the more you will roll the kite up as the air will gradually leak out of the kite. if you
still have your board then you can also use that as a floatation device. if you still havent reached land and all the air has been squeezed out of the
kite then strap it to your board with your safety leash and swim back with it like that. the main thing to remember is not to panic. even if you
arent a strong swimmer, you will be suprised how much float a wetsuit gives you
Originally posted by cheezycheese
That sucks Tom. Glad you are ok. Shows how quickly a good time can turn into despair. You can always get another kite.
Originally posted by carltb
the lesson you should have leanrt is a deep water pack down. all you wouldve needed to do is, wind in your lines until your kite was with you, then
deflate the leading edge but not the struts, then rolled it up and swim in with it.
do you kitesurf?
I have no kitesurfing experience. Kamikuza suggested the same thing. I've heard of the deep water pack down but didn't actually know what it was.
It makes sense tho and it might have worked. The thing is I was only 30ft from shore and very tired.
For this to work I'd have to keep afloat until I had wrapped the lines up and then do the deep water pack down and then swim in from an even greater
distance.
I think your idea would have worked and afterwards I was sad about the kite but at the time all I wanted to do was to get back on dry land asap.
Thanks to yours and Kami' explanation of the deep water pack down, I will practice it next time and report back.
Cheers
![[*]](images/perspective/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
sorry!
