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How not to: Emergency Pack Down

Created by toppleover toppleover  > 9 months ago, 1 May 2016
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toppleover
toppleover

QLD

2067 posts

1 May 2016 3:43pm
Sorry, couldn't embed it but here's the link - enjoy.



Oh great, it worked
Underoath
Underoath

QLD

2434 posts

1 May 2016 4:02pm
Wifey, thought i was watching porn.
Dave Whettingsteel
Dave Whettingsteel

WA

1397 posts

1 May 2016 2:53pm
Cbulota is going to love this one!

Shows winding up lines onto bar pretty risky
KiteBud
KiteBud

WA

1606 posts

1 May 2016 3:43pm
Select to expand quote
Dave Whettingsteel said..
Cbulota is going to love this one!

Shows winding up lines onto bar pretty risky



Yep, can be risky if you don't do it right.

First thing is the terminology is a bit confusing since we usually refer to a packdown when you are deep waters and you want to deflate your kite and pack it down to get rescued by a boat for example: www.surfertoday.com/kiteboarding/the-self-rescue-and-pack-down-kiteboarding-guide

Second thing is it's definitely far from a ''textbook'' performance as he forgot the most important part of all rescue scenarios: activate the quick release to allow the kite to flag out! Another common mistake with people wrapping lines is they often forget to wrap and secure the safety line around the bar first (once the kite is flagged out), which would prevent the kite from powering up...

I rescued a guy in Coronation in 35 knots who was getting dragged violently on the beach in a death loop after attempting to wrap his lines around the bar in the water after a kite inversion...Even if he activated the chicken loop quick release, he forgot to wrap and secure his safety line before wrapping, so his back lines eventually regained tension and the kite powered up and started death looping.

If you attempt any self-rescue by wrapping your lines and you have tension in one or both of your back lines while wrapping, that's bad news! You can clearly see the tension in all three lines while he's wrapping the bar in the video (looks like his left back line broke off)...

I said it before, the process of wrapping lines is complex, challenging and you can't afford any mistakes while doing this. The windier is it, the more difficult this is and the higher the price you will likely pay for even the smallest mistake. If you don't have the correct instruction along with some real practice and repetition, it can be a dangerous way to rescue yourself...

Christian
quikdrawMcgraw
quikdrawMcgraw

1221 posts

1 May 2016 4:02pm
Geez that kite really whooped his ass twice
RPM
RPM

RPM

WA

1549 posts

1 May 2016 4:38pm
Easy to pack down in like 15knots.. I think people really overestimate wind speed to justify their incompetence.

Event a telly tubby like CBulota could do it and make it look good. Wrap or no wrap on bar!
Lambie
Lambie

QLD

742 posts

1 May 2016 10:56pm
Thats an awesome example of a 'how not to do it' video - John Cleese wold be laughing out aloud !!

dyyylan
dyyylan

72 posts

2 May 2016 1:30am
Select to expand quote
cbulota said..

he forgot to wrap and secure his safety line before wrapping, so his back lines eventually regained tension and the kite powered up and started death looping.


This is probably a good time to ask: How much of the safety line do you wrap before starting on the other lines? Whenever I've had to self rescue my kite has been ****ed enough that this has never been an issue, but good to know!
KiteBud
KiteBud

WA

1606 posts

2 May 2016 9:08am
Select to expand quote
dyyylan said..

How much of the safety line do you wrap before starting on the other lines?


You should secure a length that is at least equivalent or more than the length of your kite's wing span (distance from one wing tip to the other)
Shark Biscuit
Shark Biscuit

NSW

341 posts

2 May 2016 11:27am
Select to expand quote
dyyylan said..

cbulota said..

he forgot to wrap and secure his safety line before wrapping, so his back lines eventually regained tension and the kite powered up and started death looping.



This is probably a good time to ask: How much of the safety line do you wrap before starting on the other lines? Whenever I've had to self rescue my kite has been ****ed enough that this has never been an issue, but good to know!


The answer is all of it. If you don't, there will likely be some power left in the kite and it makes it that much harder to wind up the lines.
jackforbes
jackforbes

WA

530 posts

4 May 2016 9:14pm
Too much weights, not enough speed work bro
Alysum
Alysum

NSW

1030 posts

5 May 2016 12:41am
Jeez I kept saying "What are you doing?!" Seriously grab the kite asap once you're near it!
Good on the guy for sharing the video though so others can learn.
Just2807
Just2807

181 posts

4 May 2016 10:54pm
Select to expand quote
dyyylan said..

This is probably a good time to ask: How much of the safety line do you wrap before starting on the other lines? Whenever I've had to self rescue my kite has been ****ed enough that this has never been an issue, but good to know!


Ideal would be the exact minimum line length that promises kite will stay flagged + few more wraps just to be sure. The more the better.
I used to pull (and wrap) like 10 meters of centerlines (IDS) with my 1st encounters with the kite in water :D I didnt trust kite designers ;D
Big mess on the bar but safe!
fingerbone
fingerbone

NSW

921 posts

5 May 2016 5:44pm
Holy crap....you must make some noise having sex
kemp90
kemp90

QLD

1694 posts

6 May 2016 6:41pm
God that was painful to watch!
Rattlehead
Rattlehead

QLD

555 posts

6 May 2016 10:57pm
Time to tikes up lawn bowls of golf or some ****
timmybuddhadude
timmybuddhadude

WA

862 posts

6 May 2016 10:23pm
Select to expand quote
cbulota said...
Dave Whettingsteel said..
Cbulota is going to love this one!

Shows winding up lines onto bar pretty risky



Yep, can be risky if you don't do it right.

First thing is the terminology is a bit confusing since we usually refer to a packdown when you are deep waters and you want to deflate your kite and pack it down to get rescued by a boat for example: www.surfertoday.com/kiteboarding/the-self-rescue-and-pack-down-kiteboarding-guide

Second thing is it's definitely far from a ''textbook'' performance as he forgot the most important part of all rescue scenarios: activate the quick release to allow the kite to flag out! Another common mistake with people wrapping lines is they often forget to wrap and secure the safety line around the bar first (once the kite is flagged out), which would prevent the kite from powering up...

I rescued a guy in Coronation in 35 knots who was getting dragged violently on the beach in a death loop after attempting to wrap his lines around the bar in the water after a kite inversion...Even if he activated the chicken loop quick release, he forgot to wrap and secure his safety line before wrapping, so his back lines eventually regained tension and the kite powered up and started death looping.

If you attempt any self-rescue by wrapping your lines and you have tension in one or both of your back lines while wrapping, that's bad news! You can clearly see the tension in all three lines while he's wrapping the bar in the video (looks like his left back line broke off)...

I said it before, the process of wrapping lines is complex, challenging and you can't afford any mistakes while doing this. The windier is it, the more difficult this is and the higher the price you will likely pay for even the smallest mistake. If you don't have the correct instruction along with some real practice and repetition, it can be a dangerous way to rescue yourself...

Christian


Christian that me...five years massive waves those weeks and first ever death loop as coming in by the shore thanx for that
Bronnieren
Bronnieren

WA

89 posts

7 May 2016 3:13am
So if a line breaks you flag out the kite, and self rescue by either: a) dont wrap lines, and pull yourself to kite asap via the safety line, or b) wrap the lines, making sure you wrap the safety line around the bar one at least one wingspan worth, before wrapping the other lines. However, what if the line that breaks is the safety line? I guess you might not realise until you flag the kite out and it blows away?
kernal
kernal

WA

541 posts

7 May 2016 8:54am
All you need is one line to be shorter then all the otherd by one wingspan length (10 meters) thats it.

That is all a safety system is doing.

Very very simple.
angryphill
angryphill

QLD

65 posts

7 May 2016 6:05pm
The sound effects
Rob83
Rob83

WA

129 posts

8 May 2016 10:55pm
I was watching this in an airport with the volume up loud so everyone could hear it
Redgy
Redgy

WA

117 posts

11 May 2016 10:34am

bet you got some funny looks from people at the airport
Danger Mouse
Danger Mouse

WA

592 posts

11 May 2016 3:17pm
Select to expand quote
Bronnieren said..
So if a line breaks you flag out the kite, and self rescue by either: a) dont wrap lines, and pull yourself to kite asap via the safety line, or b) wrap the lines, making sure you wrap the safety line around the bar one at least one wingspan worth, before wrapping the other lines. However, what if the line that breaks is the safety line? I guess you might not realise until you flag the kite out and it blows away?



The main key here is to know your gear well, you should be able to see which line is broken prior to pulling your safety and you should know which line your kite will flag to. If it IS your safety that is broken (one of the front lines) then you should wrap the other front line around the bar (to the length of the kite's wingspan) so that it flags to this line and there will be no tension left in the back lines for the kite to power up.
toppleover
toppleover

QLD

2067 posts

11 May 2016 6:02pm
Select to expand quote
Danger Mouse said...
Bronnieren said..
So if a line breaks you flag out the kite, and self rescue by either: a) dont wrap lines, and pull yourself to kite asap via the safety line, or b) wrap the lines, making sure you wrap the safety line around the bar one at least one wingspan worth, before wrapping the other lines. However, what if the line that breaks is the safety line? I guess you might not realise until you flag the kite out and it blows away?



The main key here is to know your gear well, you should be able to see which line is broken prior to pulling your safety and you should know which line your kite will flag to. If it IS your safety that is broken (one of the front lines) then you should wrap the other front line around the bar (to the length of the kite's wingspan) so that it flags to this line and there will be no tension left in the back lines for the kite to power up.


If it's blowing 30 knots & your safety line breaks, do you start to wrap or punch the feck out ?
Bronnieren
Bronnieren

WA

89 posts

11 May 2016 5:40pm
Thanks guys, I am pretty trigger happy on the safety release, as I am pretty keen to avoid starring in my own deathloops movie . So if a line breaks in big wind I will just pull safety immediately, hoping it wasn't the safety line that broke. However, if a line breaks in very light wind, and the kite is not going anywhere, I might check which line it is before pulling the safety. Then if it was the safety line that broke , I could wrap one of the other lines a full wingspans worth, then wrap the others lines, and then self rescue from there. Good plan?
theWaterBoy
theWaterBoy

WA

225 posts

12 May 2016 3:46pm
I love it - he dropped the C Bomb at 3:45... classic!

?t=215
KiteBud
KiteBud

WA

1606 posts

12 May 2016 4:34pm
Select to expand quote
Bronnieren said..
Thanks guys, I am pretty trigger happy on the safety release, as I am pretty keen to avoid starring in my own deathloops movie . So if a line breaks in big wind I will just pull safety immediately, hoping it wasn't the safety line that broke. However, if a line breaks in very light wind, and the kite is not going anywhere, I might check which line it is before pulling the safety. Then if it was the safety line that broke , I could wrap one of the other lines a full wingspans worth, then wrap the others lines, and then self rescue from there. Good plan?





Hi Bronwyn,

Quality kite lines don't break for any reasons. every time I had line breaks I knew it was only a matter of time just by looking at the condition of the lines and I chose to accept that risk instead of replacing them, which of course would've been the wiser thing to do... These last few years when I go kiting in more than 25 knots I will always choose my bar/lines that are in the best condition and put in that extra 2 minutes of time during the setup to thoroughly inspect everything.

As usual, prevention is better than cure, so if you simply inspect your lines while you setup the kite and make sure there is no fraying or knots in your lines and you double check your connections at the kite, there are no reason for them to break or come undone. I regularly find knots in lines of other people's kites...which over time will create a weakness in the line and break the line.

A common sight when kiters go in deathloops is that they have a great deal of hesitation to release the kite completely, probably out of fear of damaging/losing the gear. The truth is you are much more likely to damage the gear if tight lines are wrapped around a looping kite and if the kite is smashing repetitively to the ground/water as opposed to an ejected kite drifting away without any tension in the lines.

Of all kites I've seen being released from their pilot, none of them have had any damage whatsoever. Ejecting the kite completely is a difficult reflex to develop but probably the one that can make the most difference in a life or death scenario.

Also don't worry about calculating the wingspan length when wrapping the safety line, on modern safety systems like the one you have, you just have to make sure the bar had slid out to the stopper ball after activating the chicken loop release, which is plenty of length.

Christian
Spitfire
Spitfire

WA

398 posts

12 May 2016 5:35pm
What a great video!!! Am i evil for laughing?! When he nearly had it and then grabbed some more lines to power it up again sent me over the edge.

He runs like he jizzes his pants every 5 steps. Hilarious
Bronnieren
Bronnieren

WA

89 posts

12 May 2016 7:18pm
Thanks Christian , you are a sage of kitesurfing, I often find myself quoting you :) One of my lines (the safety one) has a knot in it, which I need to get fixed. Its good to hear that you have never seen any kites damaged when the kite has been fully released. I am trigger happy with flagging my kite it out, but admit that I would have been very hesitant to release the kite fully until now .
Danger Mouse
Danger Mouse

WA

592 posts

16 May 2016 12:31pm
Select to expand quote
toppleover said..

Danger Mouse said...

Bronnieren said..
So if a line breaks you flag out the kite, and self rescue by either: a) dont wrap lines, and pull yourself to kite asap via the safety line, or b) wrap the lines, making sure you wrap the safety line around the bar one at least one wingspan worth, before wrapping the other lines. However, what if the line that breaks is the safety line? I guess you might not realise until you flag the kite out and it blows away?




The main key here is to know your gear well, you should be able to see which line is broken prior to pulling your safety and you should know which line your kite will flag to. If it IS your safety that is broken (one of the front lines) then you should wrap the other front line around the bar (to the length of the kite's wingspan) so that it flags to this line and there will be no tension left in the back lines for the kite to power up.



If it's blowing 30 knots & your safety line breaks, do you start to wrap or punch the feck out ?


Knife the back lines and wrap the front.... Unless your kite is doing a good job of trying to drown you, then get rid of the lot.
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