SAFE KITEBOARDING GUIDELINES – A CODE OF CONDUCT
Many kiting accidents can be avoided if kiters are informed of safety
procedures and exercise reasonable care. Kiteboarding can be hazardous to riders
and to bystanders, particularly if practiced without adequate training, safety
gear, observation of safe kiteboarding practices and appropriate caution.
Riders must accept that even if these guidelines are followed, that
accidents, injury and even death may occur in the sport of kiteboarding.
Kites can produce powerful force with little or no warning. Sudden wind gusts, improper line
attachment, mishandling, etc., can result in dragging and/or lofting, possibly
with no time to effectively react. A kiter may not always be able to just let
go or kill the power of the kite, as many accidents have established.
Your ability to safely and completely depower and drop your kite and
otherwise manage in an emergency will weigh heavily on your technique,
preparation, prior practice and the reliability of your gear.
The following guidelines have been created by New South Wales
Kiteboarding Association (NSWKBA) to improve beach safety for kiteboarders and
other beach users; to minimise the potential of complaints and create an
environment that will be conducive to providing continued access for kiters to
existing kiteboarding beaches.
NSWKBA strongly advises the adherence to the following principles,
guidelines and practices to ensure the safety of all beach users.
GENERAL SAFETY GUIDELINES
Proactively
assist other kiteboarders . Offer to assist other riders with launching
and landing using reliable agreed upon visual and audible communications
such as tapping the top of the head to indicate that you require
assistance with landing a kite and the universal “thumbs-up” to indicate
you are ready for your kite to be launched. NEVER release a kite for
launch until you receive an unequivocal thumbs-up signal from the kiter. Get adequate
training .
Kiteboarders, particularly beginners, should seek adequate, quality
professional instruction. Beginners must avoid crowded areas; particularly
as kite control is still being developed. Beginners should body drag out
at least 60m from shore prior to water starting and should always stay out
of restricted beach areas. Be careful in your launch area selection and be
willing to drive and walk a bit further to have access to safer
conditions. Build your skill and experience carefully in side shore or
side onshore winds less than 15 knots. Riders have been seriously injured by
choosing poor launches when far safer conditions were relatively close by.
Be particularly careful in new conditions and at the START and END of your
riding session. Many accidents occur in these times even among experienced
riders. In kiteboarding, “DISTANCE IS YOUR FRIEND,” so use it!
Kiteboard within your limits . Know
your equipment’s limitations as well as your own. If you aren't 100%
healthy OR IN DOUBT, DON’T GO OUT! Don’t fly under the influence of drugs
or alcohol. You should be comfortable with conditions and your gear
otherwise, don’t launch and “live to fly another day”. Always maintain an
energy reserve while kiteboarding. Hydrate regularly and wear adequate exposure
clothing (wetsuit), to deal with unexpected time in the water. Cold-water
kiteboarding requires additional critically important precautions as
compared to warmer conditions and are beyond the scope of these
guidelines. Don’t kiteboard alone or further from shore than you are
readily able to swim in from. Always use a kite
leash and quick release. We recommend HELMET and
IMPACT VEST. Make sure you have proper safety equipment, such as a tested,
well maintained kite depowering leash securely attached to your harness, a
quality, well fitting helmet and impact vest. Most kiteboarding fatalities
involve head injury. A good helmet for kiteboarding, MAY aid in reducing
injury and improve the chance of survival in many but not necessarily all
impacts. Regularly test and maintain a reliable chicken loop or kite
depowering quick release. Relying upon manual unhooking alone to release
your bar is UNRELIABLE based upon the accident experience. The rider needs
to understand and accept that in an emergency, this quick release MAY NOT
be accessible or function correctly in the critical seconds of the
emergency. It is up to the rider to do everything possible to avoid the
emergency in the first place and to aid proper function of the release
through practice and maintenance. Launch, ride and
land well away from bystanders . Give way to the public on
the beach and in the water at ALL TIMES. Be courteous and polite to
bystanders. Complaints have frequently led to bans and restrictions on
kiteboarding in some areas and continue to do so, on a regular basis.
NEVER launch, ride or land upwind of nearby bystanders. While it may not
always be possible, work to keep a minimum 100 m buffer zone from
bystanders. Be aware of the weather. Is
the forecast and current weather acceptable, free of pending storm clouds
and excessive gusty winds? Lightning can strike well ahead of approaching
storm fronts. Static electricity in the air is a clear sign of an
impending lightning strike. Get out of the water well ahead of storm
fronts. Colour radar can sometimes give a clue as to violent storm/gust
potential. Are seas and wind condition within your experience, ability and
appropriate for your gear? New kiters should practice in lighter, side or
side onshore winds. Onshore winds have a much higher injury rate even
among experienced riders and should be avoided. Offshore winds should be
avoided in the absence of a chase boat. If storm clouds are moving in,
land and thoroughly disable your kite well in advance of any change in
wind or temperature, if necessary totally depower your kite by using your
kite leash while still away from shore. Lightning can strike many miles
ahead of storm clouds. Learn about unstable weather in your area and work
to avoid squalls and storms through TV, radio and Internet information. Sailing and
Powered craft. Never force your right-of-way over
other craft when on the water. Wind shadows and wake chop can cause you to
lose control of your kite and end up in the path of other watercraft.
Also, as large boats require extra time to avoid collision, it is
especially unwise in this situation. NSW Waterways regulations require
that no matter who has designated right of way, all watercraft must avoid
potential collisions in all circumstances. If a potential collision
appears to be developing, change direction briefly, giving clear
indication of your intent to let the other craft pass, at least 100m
from an intersecting boat and allow large boats to pass without causing
them to alter course. Never force your right-of-way
on boats engaged in racing. This is potentially very dangerous since they will
expect you to get out of their way. Sailboats running with the wind can move
very fast and have limited manoeuvrability. Keep well clear.
http://www.maritime.nsw.gov.au/sbh/safety_water.html
PREFLIGHT CHECKLIST
Use appropriate
launch areas . Make sure your launch area is open, FREE OF
DOWNWIND BYSTANDERS, hard objects, poor or slippery footing, nearby power
lines, buildings and walls etc. within at least 100m, and preferably more,
particularly in higher wind. Too many riders have slammed into walls,
parked cars and trees with better launches not so far away at all. Some
riders have needed in excess of 200m, to regain control in violent
dragging or loftings in higher winds. Avoid kiteboarding near airports and
in low flight path areas, complaints have led to restricted access in some
areas. Never fly your kite in the path of low aircraft in flight. In the
event you are inadvertently proximal to an aircraft, begin moving your
kite low to the water at the first indication of inbound aircraft. What size kite
are other riders using? Check to see what size kite
other kiteboarders are rigging and get their input on conditions. Try to
select a kite size for the lower to middle part of the wind range. Do not
rig too large a kite for conditions and carefully consider advice of more
experienced riders. Failure to act on prudent advice has cost some riders
severe injury and even death. If you don’t have a small enough kite to
safely launch, DON’T! Check and repair
your gear before you fly .
Check your kite for tears or leaky bladders. If you have leaky bladders or
tears in your kite, repair them before flying. Check ALL kite, harness,
and control bar lines, webbing, pigtails, bridles, the chicken loop and
leaders for knots, cuts, wear or abrasion. If the line sheathing shows any
breaks or knots, replace them. The pigtails should be replaced no less
frequently than every year on inflatable kites. Inspect and test your
quick release. Frequently, mentally and physically rehearse pulling your
quick release in an imagined emergency situation. Make sure your flying
lines are equal as they will stretch unevenly with use. If they have knots
that can’t be easily untied, replace your flight lines. Do not casually
make changes to manufactured equipment. Whatever you do must work reliably
in what conditions may come. Avoid solo
launching. Solo
launching and landing are NOT recommended and should be avoided when
possible, particularly in stronger winds. Launch with a trained assistant,
using reliable audible and visual signals. Never use untrained bystanders
to help you launch or land your kite. Riders have been severely injured by
making this easy mistake. Rig your kite for solo launch at the last minute
and launch without delay AFTER CAREFUL PREFLIGHTING as serious accidents
have happened in only minutes during this stage. If you leave the kite
unattended, wrap up your lines and weight the kite with sand or other
heavy items. Crossed kite
lines can wreck your day. Launching with crossed or
snagged lines has maimed quite a few kiteboarders as the kite tends to fly
up at very high speed, dragging or lofting the rider into nearby hard
objects faster than they can react. Walk down your lines and examine them
carefully.
LAUNCHING AND GETTING UNDERWAY
Always launch
with your kite over the water away from trees, rock walls
and other obstructions. Wind can behave unpredictably around walls and
trees. It is better to be pulled toward the water than a tree, car or
road. Pull in your trim strap or rope to a point that will allow stable
kite flight with existing wind conditions, to properly depower the kite
before launching and so that you can readily hold the bar and release it
if necessary. Always maintain minimum clear downwind buffer zones.
Physically and mentally rehearse managing emergency situations including
just "letting go" of your bar. Never ask for launching or
landing assistance from inexperienced members of the public. Preferably,
ask for assistance from experienced kiters you know personally. New kiters,
eager to be accepted into the group, may offer their assistance but their
launching and landing skills may be inadequate. Keep it low and
go , to
try to avoid lofting or involuntary lifting. In general, DO NOT bring your
kite much above 45 degrees from the ground and NEVER to the vertical,
within 100 m of shore or any hard object at most launch areas. Never
launch, fly or land upwind and close to the shore or hard objects or stand
on the beach for extended periods with your kite in the air. This careless
practice has killed and maimed riders. This practice MAY reduce the chance
of lofting but may also promote dragging and serious injury in
gusty/strong wind conditions. So, if you are dragged be ready to totally
depower instantly using your kite leash and ideally before the dragging
starts in the first place. HAZARD AVOIDANCE IS THE KEY along with rapid
pre-emptive, rehearsed actions. Do not fly your kite near vertical or
sloped surfaces that can cause uplift and sudden dragging/lofting (walls,
buildings, hills, tree lines, etc,). Avoid thermal generating areas as
sudden thermal lofting can occur. Launch in the appropriate part of the
wind window to avoid “hot” or over-powered downwind launches. Make sure
that there are no bystanders within your downwind buffer zone or close by
in general. Get off shore
quickly . If
there are substantial waves where you need to put on your board consider
body dragging outside the breaker zone first. In flat water kiting areas,
stay away from the beach. The fun is off shore, danger to the rider &
bystanders is near shore where most of the hard stuff is located. Yield the
right-of-way. Yield the right of way to all others in the
water. Riders must yield to others when jumping, to anyone on your right
hand side and to launching riders. A rider already riding a wave has
right-of-way over others in the vicinity. A rider leaving the beach has right of way over a rider
approaching the beach from outside.
When in doubt, STOP. Kiteboarders should not jump within a buffer
zone of at least 60m of others and objects that are downwind. Always be
aware of the position of your lines relative to others. Line cuts can be
severe and tangled lines with another kite, deadly. 5. Board
leashes are dangerous. All kiteboarders are encouraged to master
body dragging for board recovery. Use of a board leash is dangerous and is
generally discouraged due to the hazards of board rebound or wave driven
impact. Injuries have happened with both fixed length and reel leashes. Wearing
a helmet and impact vest is always advised but may not provide adequate protection
against board impact as the boards can violently hit any part of the rider and
have penetrated helmets. If there is risk of your loose board hitting bathers,
find another launch.
6. Don’t
get lofted! Lofting or involuntarily lifting is one of the
greatest hazards of kiteboarding. Avoiding unstable weather, keeping your kite
low and getting offshore without delay are only a few of the measures necessary
to avoid this threat. If, despite all precautions, you are dragged or lofted a
short distance AND have time to react, depower your kite as soon as you start
to pause. You will likely be dulled by shock so mentally rehearse totally
depowering using your leash immediately under such circumstances. Total
depowering using your kite leash, ideally should occur before you are lofted,
still offshore and away from hard objects. Multiple gusts can hit over a short
period and you may be lofted a second or third time, so ACT to totally depower
your kite using your kite leash as soon as you can. DO NOT ASSUME that you will
have a lull between loftings, sometimes you do and sometimes you don’t. If you
are airborne over land, it is uncertain how and if you will come out of things.
Focus on controlling your kite with small control inputs to avoid stalling the
kite. Some have advised keeping the kite overhead AFTER you are lofted and to
try to gently steer towards the least hazardous area to impact. Other riders
have said that reversing direction or transitioning after lofting has helped to
reduce forward speed. It would be wise to accept and plan for the fact that YOU
CAN BE LOFTED AT ANYTIME you have a kite in the air.
LANDING
Use assisted
landings. Solo depower using your kite leash
immediately if necessary—but only when there are no other kiter-assisted
options readily available. Approach the shore slowly with caution. Keep
your kite low (ideally within 3 m of the surface), to try avoid lofting.
Take care to avoid causing an accidental jump in well powered conditions
while approaching the shore. Arrange for assisted landings at least 100 m
from bystanders, power lines, vertical surfaces, trees, etc where possible.
NEVER use non-kiteboarders for assisted launches or landings, as use of
bystanders has resulted in severe rider injuries. Use mutually understood
hand and voice signals to improve launch and landing safety. Riders have
been killed standing around looking for an assisted landing when gusts
have hit. IF IN ANY DOUBT, DEPOWER YOUR KITE USING YOUR KITE LEASH even if
you are still offshore. ALL riders should be comfortable with depowering
their kite using their leash immediately even in deep water and swimming
in to avoid being lofted or dragged in sudden gusting winds. Properly stow
your gear . Properly
anchor (or ideally deflate your leading edge and roll up your kite),
disconnect and wind up your kite lines. Do not allow your kite to be
accidentally launched. Kites should be placed in a safe area well out of
bystander and vehicular traffic.
Kiteboarding Resources for weather and general information on the Web
Kiteboarding Road Rules - On the water
Be sure that you can
handle the prevailing weather conditions and never kite in offshore winds.
If in doubt don’t go out! Kiteboarders using
the seafront should give way to other water users and retreat to a safe
zone outside of the navigational channel when other craft approach. The seafront can get
exceptionally busy both on the beach and in the water. No matter how
competent you are, or how good the conditions look, never risk the safety
of others. If in doubt don’t go
out! Always maintain a
50-metre downwind safety zone between yourself and other craft. In the
event of coming into conflict with other water users stabilise your kite
at 12 o’clock. (Top of the wind window). Never kitesurf within
50-metres upwind of any moored vessel. Never kitesurf in or
near to the bathing areas and swimmers, buoys and boat moorings. Stay at least 60m clear of swimming
flags at all times. Never practice
jumping on land or close to the beach. When returning to the
beach, give way to riders who are launching. When kiting between
rock groynes, kite in an anti-clockwise circuit (nor-east wind) and with
enough arc to allow incoming riders some room to manoeuvre or performs tricks. Don’t downwind shadow
a rider and keep at least 2 line lengths downwind so that if the rider
fails in a manoeuvre they won’t hit you. Turning in front of
an inward rider and then shadowing so that they can’t do a manoeuvre is
inconsiderate. Don’t ride close
behind another rider. They may be unaware of your presence and change
direction suddenly. Look around before
you jump. Don’t jump within 2
line lengths of the beach. Don’t stand on the
beach (chatting) with your kite over the water or above your head. If you’re a newbee or
honing your skills, ride out of the high traffic zone a little further
downwind. The wind is the same, you can body drag for your board in safety
and won’t frustrate the more advanced riders and you’ll find that you’ll
progress quickly when not being worried about crashing into someone. Give way to people
entering the water. Make yourself
familiar with local rules and observe them. When kiting between
rock groynes enter the water 2 line lengths south (nor-east wind) of the
corner so as not to create congestion. Roll up lines when
leaving the kite for extended periods. Prior to changing
direction look over your shoulder to make sure the passage is clear. If you are being
closely followed and need to change direction signal to show that you are
coming about and then do so if possible with care. This may require you to
bear away before instigating a change of direction.
The following Right of Way guidelines should be adhered to when Kite
Surfing: (courtesy of WAKSA)
There is no absolute
right of way - All parties should take any action necessary to avoid a
collision. When two riders are
on opposite tacks and there is a need to alter course to avoid collision,
the port tack rider (left shoulder forward) shall alter course and/or kite
position in order to keep clear of the starboard tack rider (right shoulder forward) who
should maintain the same course and speed. When two or more
riders are on the same tack with kite lines overlapped, the upwind
rider(s) shall keep their kite high and the downwind rider(s) keep their
kite low. When two riders are
on the same tack and are not overlapped, the rider behind shall ensure the
rider ahead is aware of the rider approaching from behind. Never deliberately
manoeuvre into a right of way position so that it interferes with another
water user. If you are behind another kite heading into the beach, turn
early to allow the lead rider plenty of room to turn. Always check for
other water users before water-starting, jibing, relaunching a kite or
recovering a board. A rider shall not
jump if there is any danger of possible collision with another rider. When wave riding, the
first rider on the face of a wave has right of way. This may override the
starboard tack rule. Give way to surfers even if they drop in on your
wave. Give way to surfers
and other water users when in the surf, at all times. Do not tack out
through a surf break that is occupied by surfers. All riders should be
aware of and abide by all applicable federal, state and local laws and
regulations.
Acknowledgements
Western
Australia Kitesurfing Association (WAKSA)
British
Kitesurfing Association
Kernow
Kitesurf Club
Seabreeze www.seabreeze.com.au
NSWKBA
and SSKC committee members