RULE 1- write your name on your board! this way if you loose it on the water you get it back.

RULE 2- Always stay with your kite, in a bad situation this is what is going to keep you alive (unless its out of control and you are getting dragged), you can use it as a flotation device and use it as a little sail by sitting on the leading edge and lifting one side of the kite to use as a little sail to get you back to shore. its is also good to stay with your kite because it is a good way to get spotted if the need arises EG: wind goes off shore you get blown out to sea.

if you have a good instructor they would have run you through all the self rescue techniques.

What to do and don't do when rescuing a stray board and / or a stray kite?
dont grab the bar.......

thanks brava! exams 2morrw its a biatch!

yeah stamp you have a good point.

my only advice is to stay with the kite, with the off shore winds thing.. sorry wasn't thinking ditch the kite.

Charl dv said...

even if wind goes off shore stay with your kite as it is your flotation, in lessons its taught that when self rescues dont work as its off shore or something you deflate your LE but keep struts inflated, rolll kite up and plug the deflate valve to stop fillin with water.. then u use ur leash or some spare lin floatin around to tie it all up to a neat package, you then use that as a little raft and make the swim for the beach.

Very true ..... stay with your kite many people OVERESTIMATE their ability regarding swimming distances rips and sweeps no point getting halfway in and realising you are stuffed.
Stay with your kite, if you are really in a bad situation it is a lot easier for a rescue craft or ( god forbid ) a plane to spot a kite than a head in the water.

(Either attemp the water packdown method )

or

Do what coose said lie on your kite and use one wingtip to sail across the wind if you can..... I had to do this once and it took me almost 5 hours to get back to shore and about 7km down the coast but both kite and I arrived safely. just as I was winding up my lines preparing for the long walk back to the car a rescue boat arrived someone had spotted my kite in the water from the cliffs, so fortunately I didnt require the aid of the rescuers but if the wind was a few degrees different I certainly would have but at least they would have been able to spot me well my kite for this reason I buy bright coloured kites not blue or other dark colors, but i guess it depend on where you usually kite as to the likelyhood of this being required.

That being said I think the original question was asking about something else.

Board Retreival - you can try to pick it up on the fly or stop first I usually lay the board flat accross my chicken loop conection area below the bar as this will sort of help support the extra board you will probably have to then fly the kite with one hand.

Kite Retreival - not really recommended as it can be inherrently dangerous but you can try to pick up the leading edge flip the kite and hold it as you would on the beach ( upside down ) in your back hand whist you control your kite with your front hand. I would assess the situation very carefully before even contemplating attempting to pick up a loose kite as you really have no idea when you first approach as to where the lines are or if the kite is suddenly going to flip and catch you with it.

to retrieval a board i plop in the water besides it as riding along and picking it up doesn't work for me as i don't seem to get a good grip, anyhow plop in the water lay it on your lap as your water starting.. dive kite with both hands and then as you get up grab board with which ever hand you think is good... ride away, waving to the girls on the beach.


rescuing a stray kite is more tricky especially in waves.. haven't done it, and prob wont ever do it, so cant answer your question,

although today had a kite in cross off and a mate dropped his kite out the back surf, became a bit of a mess.. only thing i could do was drag him in with the kite flagged.. his surfboard made its own way in.

So sorry guys, if my message was not quite clear.
Stray kite means to me a kite that is on the water but not attached to a kiter, floating downwind with lines and bar hanging after it - obvious danger. Stray board means to me a board abandoned / lost by the kiter due to a crash or other mishap, floating downwind. I've rescued a few boards, but I have no experience on rescuing a kite, so I can't comment, but happy to learn it.
Cheers

I wonder what you think is the better way to grab a stray board...approaching upwind or downwind to it? I've always done it by approaching upwind, stopping, grabbing the board water start, etc.....but it looks kinda elegant to just grab it on the way, especially if it is a surf board....

Andrash said...

So sorry guys, if my message was not quite clear.
Stray kite means to me a kite that is on the water but not attached to a kiter, floating downwind with lines and bar hanging after it - obvious danger.

Yep, grab that leading edge and use your momentum to help flip the kite. Every thing else will follow behind you.
It 's a bit easier riding toeside and if your on a surfboard don,t put the nose through the kite.
Last but not least collect your carton of EB stubbies....

I've had to pick up a couple of kites...

Come up from Downwind so your clear of the lines, then grab it and tow it in. its easy if you have a stopper ball on your C-loop line, a bit harder if your flying a bow with no stopper.

I had to do it on a Havoc once and actually clipped my leash onto the pump attachment point on the stray kite and towed it in that way, that was by far the easiest but still not recommended unless your really confident...

Hi Guys,

Easiest way I use is to approach the kite from the side and downwind of the canopy. I switch to toeaside as I approach and grab the kite by the nearest bit and drag it across the wind window with me to trail the lines across the wind.

Then I drop my kite in the water on the side of the wind window and let it sit there while I turn the kite over onto it's back. Dragging it across the wind window before I drop my kite clears the lines. I then unclip my safety leash from the chicken loop and connect it to the pump lanyard anchor point in the middle of the leading edge.

As soon as it's connected I relaunch my kite, take off, and drag it in. I let the bar and lines trail along behind.

With boards I approach the same way, but I don't stop. I grab the board as I ride past by the front strap. This allows me to remain planing and I can drag the board in easy and throw it at the beach, then carve away after letting it go.

Both of these methods should NOT be attempted by anyone who is not TOTALLY CONFIDENT in their riding ability and able to execute this without mistakes.

Others have detailed easier methods in this thread already. My methods are fast and I lose little ground downwind but again, if you have a crack at it, be very careful. Thankfully it's not something I get to do everyday.

Good winds,

Thanks for all the input so far. At the end I will compile a summary.
I know that guys at the offshore side of Woodies retrieve stray kites quite often. I wonder if any of them follow this thread.
Cheers

Andrash said...
I just wish someone enjoys it as much as I did

I heard a female turtle was seen using it to escape the males

Hi,
This is the summary with some of my comments. I don't thing it is complete in any sense, but there were no more comments for the last 3 days.
Most of the text is cut and paste, not my own wording. I believe it is an important safety issue, and it would be great to have a demo video done with comments by an experienced rider for educational purposes.

General rule:
"These methods should NOT be attempted by anyone who is not TOTALLY CONFIDENT in their riding ability and able to execute this without mistakes."

Retrieving stray board:
1. Approach the stray board downwind. It is easier if you approach riding toe-side. Grab the board by the front strap and drag it to shore. Throw it at the beach, then carve away after letting it go.

2. Plop in the water beside the stray board and lay it across your lap. Water start and as you start planing hold the board with one hand while the other controls the kite. Throw it at the beach, then carve away after letting it go.

Retrieving a stray kite:
My comments: Stay away from lines all time no matter what method you use! Good to have a hook knife accessible for the worst case scenario...! Holding the kite by a line can cause injury to your hand and fingers!

1. Approach the kite from the side and downwind of the canopy. Switch to toe-side and grab the kite by the nearest bit and drag it across the wind window to trail the lines across the wind. Drop your kite in the water on the side of the wind window and let it sit there while turning the stray kite over onto it's back. Unclip your safety leash from the chicken loop and connect it to the pump lanyard anchor point in the middle of the leading edge. Relaunch your kite, take off, and drag it in. Let the bar and lines trail along behind.

My question: by approaching the kite from the side, grabbing the nearer wingtip and dragging the kite across the wind window will naturally turn the kite into the wind and flip it to its back flagging it by the wingtip that I hold. Then bit by bit I can trace to the middle of the leading edge. This way there is no need to drop my kite. Please correct, if I am missing something here?

2. Approach upwind. (??? my comment: not sure about this). Ensure that your kite is parked at edge of wind window on the water and away from stray kite lines. Deflate the leading edge and roll the kite up. Roll the lines around kite, by rolling kite over the water. Pull your kite up and park it overhead. Put the kite under rear arm (ensure no lines are hooked to you or your gear). Water start.

Cheers