Hey so I understand how dangerous board leashes are if they become tense under water and snap back and hit you, but what if you could avert the tension?

All it would require is a super long leash line to be attached to a retractable device.. This would essentially give unlimited slack to the line, which can be reeled up after a stack.

Effective board leash with no danger - so who wants to make it?

I hear hospital food is not that bad these days

You mean like this?

www.oceanustech.com/

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rod_bunny said...

You mean like this?

www.oceanustech.com/

Yes, but rather than a 30inch (1m) line I was suggesting a much longer one. I am unsure why that company did not adopt a longer line, knowing of all the injuries these leashes produce.

Can I ask you what is wrong with learning how to bodydrag upwind? It's much more cost effective.

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dave...... said...

Can I ask you what is wrong with learning how to bodydrag upwind? It's much more cost effective.

Less body dragging = more kiting time.

stacking less= Less body dragging= More kiting time.
When you ony have to drag once or twice a session it doesn't really matter.

Learners feel safe with an umbilical cord attached to their board (mummy). This sport is now 10 years old and the overwhelming verdict is leashes are dangerous. Now go re-invent the wheel. Farting around with a retractable leash takes as long as 2 body-dragging tacks to get back to your board never mind the danger factor.

Just a thought.... maybe a death spiral with the board tangled 5m up the lines (and prob your neck) would change your mind.

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dave...... said...

Learners feel safe with an umbilical cord attached to their board (mummy). This sport is now 10 years old and the overwhelming verdict is leashes are dangerous. Now go re-invent the wheel. Farting around with a retractable leash takes as long as 2 body-dragging tacks to get back to your board never mind the danger factor.

Regardless of safety some people are just going to use leashes. Why not encourage new concepts about safer ideas rather than scrutinise the efficiency of them? Yes leashes are considered unsafe, that's why I am putting forward this idea to better the safety. Isn't that obvious mate?

Yeah body dragging is an important technique to learn in case of emergency, but honestly if you're too proud to adopt a better alternative then maybe you should ditch this whole internet thing and go live in a shed

I've brought one and never used it. Read up on body dragging here on seabreeze - got some good tips - and found I no longer needed one when I could body-drag effectively. Sure you will find the same thing.

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KiteNutt said...

Just a thought.... maybe a death spiral with the board tangled 5m up the lines (and prob your neck) would change your mind.

It's not going to be perfect mate but it is an improvement and that's what inventing is all about.

I think some of you guys are a bit too hell bent on the whole 'anti-leash tirade' thing.

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foxkiter said...

I've brought one and never used it. Read up on body dragging here on seabreeze - got some good tips - and found I no longer needed one when I could body-drag effectively. Sure you will find the same thing.

Don't get me wrong, I don't currently use a leash and I can body drag upwind fine. Sometimes I'll get dragged downwind after losing my board and have to tack about 10 times to get my board, very time consuming indeed BUT it did give me time to think about ways of improving the kiting experience - Ah, it's nice to gain some good from bad!

Obviously being a Noob you are yet to get above
waist deep water and or have yourself a good old kitemare.
When not "if" this happens to you think about what will happen when you pull the saftey on your kite and all that happens is you get dragged by your tangled board leash that you can't fire off.

I have nothing against you so don't take this personally mate. But just learn to be a proficient and safe kiter to be around and stop Always looking for the easy way out.

But if you must wear one make sure you have a camera in ya car to take pics of your lessons learnt to share with other noobs.

deXtrous: Don't do it buddy, apart from all the other reasons it makes u look lame... get better straps for your board.

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[b]

It's not going to be perfect mate but it is an improvement and that's what inventing is all about.

I think some of you guys are a bit too hell bent on the whole 'anti-leash tirade' thing.

Before you invent, please listen and learn....and learn to use the "Search" function

I have a very good idea Dexrose,
An electromagnety thingy on your ancle and opposite pole on the board.....that will activate when a button is pushed.... It will shoot your board back to ya real quick and also scare all the sharks away.....
So it is a double whammy invention.

Topic: retractable leash, new post,..... SAFETY???? Delusional.

Well excuse me for trying to better a shiitty design


And Dave, does this thread not relate to safety? :S

I think its a great idea, maybe you could just use an old fishing reel and really thin line and good size gang of 3 or more hooks. You could tie the reel around your kneck so its really easy to locate in a big stack and attach hooks to one of your straps, then simply untangle the line and reel your board back in. Good luck mate! You really could be onto something great!

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deXtrous said...

dave...... said...

Can I ask you what is wrong with learning how to bodydrag upwind? It's much more cost effective.

Less body dragging = more kiting time.

I dont get it about leashes and losing your board.. Bodydragging should be the second thing you learn (1st is properly landing and launching in a safe way)

So many people lose their boards because they can't bodydrag. I have no sympathy for people who cant bodydrag back to get their board. I see it all the time and wonder why the instructors don't teach this properly before letting a noob out on the water. I refuse to pick up boards..At Maroochdore Qld I have seen no less than 6 boards start their journey out to sea. I could stop and get it back but usually people don't even come say thanks after you land your kite or see you on the beach so why bother. My instructor in Bali where I learnt had me bodydragging for 1.5 hrs solid to both up and down wind. I have no dramas getting my board in any conditions and I have only been kiting just over 8 months. Some people need to learn for themselves or have a kitemare before they get the basics down pat.

Learn to bodydrag all you newbies.. Its a basic skill.

As mantis5 said:

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Learn to bodydrag all you newbies.. Its a basic skill.

that covers it perfectly .

If you can't body drag .... You can't kite !

Instructors should not be putting people on boards before they can bodydrag. But just about all do !
Instructors should also be physically teaching "in water kite packdown and self rescue techniques. But none of them do !

These are basic safety requirements which are clearly not being taught to the majority of newbies.

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mantis5 said...

deXtrous said...

dave...... said...

Can I ask you what is wrong with learning how to bodydrag upwind? It's much more cost effective.

Less body dragging = more kiting time.

I dont get it about leashes and losing your board.. Bodydragging should be the second thing you learn (1st is properly landing and launching in a safe way)

So many people lose their boards because they can't bodydrag. I have no sympathy for people who cant bodydrag back to get their board. I see it all the time and wonder why the instructors don't teach this properly before letting a noob out on the water. I refuse to pick up boards..At Maroochdore Qld I have seen no less than 6 boards start their journey out to sea. I could stop and get it back but usually people don't even come say thanks after you land your kite or see you on the beach so why bother. My instructor in Bali where I learnt had me bodydragging for 1.5 hrs solid to both up and down wind. I have no dramas getting my board in any conditions and I have only been kiting just over 8 months. Some people need to learn for themselves or have a kitemare before they get the basics down pat.

Learn to bodydrag all you newbies.. Its a basic skill.

i agree it should be the second thing to learn. if you dont get body dragging you dont move on to the next step. in all fairness though if it is quite choppy it is very hard to see your board. it would be nice if a fellow kiter helped out. I have never lost my board but I have saved a few. even if you are the worlds best body dragger, if you cant see your board you can body drag to it.

"Well excuse me for trying to better a shiitty design


And Dave, does this thread not relate to safety? :S"

Sorry mate, It does, just on not what to do. It shouldnt be something you rely on and use all the time. In special circumstances a leash can be advantageous, but the safety concerns must be weighed up. I do occasionally use a 8' leg rope on my surfboard if in places where my board will end up on the rocks, unless you are a very experienced surfer and have kiteboarded for at least 3 years I would not recommend it at all. A rivermouth with a crazy tide is another example.
There's just been too many accidents no matter how long the material is. I know your intentions are good, but it's pretty tried and tested.

You can put retractable leashes with the full lycra suit and floppy hat! Quite a sight when all used together.....

I stay well clear of these characters.

I'm new to the sport and learnt without a leash, in choppy conditions it can take quite a while to get to my board as it can't be seen especially if its upside down.

I did alot of research and was against using a leash however decided to try one to find out for myself.

After a few sessions and multiple falls I found the leash did not cause the board to 'rebound' towards me, there is just too much drag in the water for the board to accelerate even under alot of tension. If the board is on the surface and I got thrown around then what happens is the edge would just dig into the water and the board sinks.

Overall, after my own testing I found that $900 for a new board outweighed the very low risk of being struck by the board during a bad fall.

It's not just the leach retracting and sending the board into you. If you launch (get air) either on purpose or accidentaly then the board will dangle underneath you and you will land on it.

Surely this isn't rocket science?

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deXtrous said...

Yes, but rather than a 30inch (1m) line I was suggesting a much longer one.

Cut a piece of rope a bit longer than 1 metre. ^^^
Next, tie one end to your ankle...
and the other end to a meat-cleaver.
Now, jump around like a madman and swing that fken meat-cleaver all over the place...
and see what happens.
lol.

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WA Surf said...

It's not just the leach retracting and sending the board into you. If you launch (get air) either on purpose or accidentaly then the board will dangle underneath you and you will land on it.

Surely this isn't rocket science?

The leash would not automatically retract. As I said in the original post, after you regain yourself from a stack you would be able to retract it manually.

And unless you got lifted on a perfect 90 degree angle I don't see how you could land on the board? Remember it would be a very long line so it would stay slack the whole time in the water, upwind of the direction that you will fly in the air.

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vbold said...

I'm new to the sport and learnt without a leash, in choppy conditions it can take quite a while to get to my board as it can't be seen especially if its upside down.

I did alot of research and was against using a leash however decided to try one to find out for myself.

After a few sessions and multiple falls I found the leash did not cause the board to 'rebound' towards me, there is just too much drag in the water for the board to accelerate even under alot of tension. If the board is on the surface and I got thrown around then what happens is the edge would just dig into the water and the board sinks.

Overall, after my own testing I found that $900 for a new board outweighed the very low risk of being struck by the board during a bad fall.

Like kitenutt said earlier, wait till you have your first kitemare before deciding just how risky that leash is.

Have you tangled a bridle round a wingtip and had your kite start looping out of control and dragging you downwind faster than you've ever been dragged before?

Have you kicked your board off so it lands downwind near the lines of your crashed kite in such a way that a leash could wrap around your lines?

As a newbie you aren't in a position to know what might happen. Learn from those who offer their experiences. Your profile says you're at Brighton. The crew there (like everywhere except StKilda on a bad day) look out for one another which means that not only will they help you find your board, they'll also be happy to give you some pointers on body dragging skills. Depending on wind direction I'm one of that crew and happy to help where I can.

On the other hand you'll definitely get certain kinds of looks if you're cruising round with a board leash. It's not because other kiters are anti-social, they just know what's up with board leashes.

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harry potter said...

Instructors should not be putting people on boards before they can bodydrag. But just about all do !
Instructors should also be physically teaching "in water kite packdown and self rescue techniques. But none of them do !

These are basic safety requirements which are clearly not being taught to the majority of newbies.

Hey Harrypotter,

I agree with you partly. We get heaps of Newbies coming to us to complete their training and most have not done self rescue in deep water, nor have they been taught packdown. Most cannot bodydrag upwind to their board. When asked their level, the only answer we ever get is "I was just getting up on the board" Lol

We train in deep choppy water which makes life tough, but ALL of our students can body drag upwind or they don't get the opportunity to lose one of our boards

ALL of our students can also self rescue with no problem because we don't like launching our rescue dinghy. Reality is, we haven't launched our dinghy for a student all season this year. They are forced to learn self rescue .... and it works. Necessity is the best incentive to learn.

I agree though, almost all shallow water schools don't teach adequate upwind body dragging nor self rescue. The students don't take it all that seriously when they can touch the bottom and stand up!

Cheers,

KH

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WA Surf said...

It's not just the leach retracting and sending the board into you. If you launch (get air) either on purpose or accidentaly then the board will dangle underneath you and you will land on it.

Surely this isn't rocket science?

The leash is 9 foot long, at that distance you will land down wind of the board (unless you fall straight down).