I'd like to kick off a thread for issues specific to Pelican Point that the guys on the committee can start to address.
1. Kites left on beach/grassed area.
To me this is a root problem at Pelican Point. Many people are setting up or landing rigged kites/lines on the beach and grassed area and then LEAVING them for significant periods of time. Gear left out is causing people to land over other kiters and passers by in an unsafe way. It takes only a few minutes to rig a kite, or pack it up.
2. Clean up Pelican Point Day(s).
As suggested (by shane in another thread?) can WAKSA please assist in contacting council etc to arrange a Clean Up day. I'm sure many many users of Pelican Point would be willing to volunteer some time to clean up the growing litter (and glass!) around the point and potentially perform some garden maintenance to the bushy areas. This could be repeated regularly.
3. Dead tree near East of grassed area.
Theres quite a nasty tree that appears quite dead at the eastern edge of the beach/grassed area. Its quite close to where people are attempting to land. Would it be at all possible for WAKSA to approach council and offer to assist with its removal?!
4. Fence between beach and nature reserve.
We all know it. Its a death trap for kites. Can WAKSA approach council and suggest or ask them to replace the fence with something less dangerous that still seperates the beach from the nature reserve?!
5. Signs/Noticeboard
I know some people are very much against signage and notices, however I believe they are an excellent way to communicate information to kiters. Whilst John's "excuse me" approach is great, there will be times when local kiters are not around or are just plain busy kiting when one of the many overseas users of Pelican Point shows up with their gear. Some simple ideas for safety could be posted that could make a significant difference to Peli, for example the first such guideline should say "Kiters Give Way"!
6. Kite School Area
Now I know this will be slightly provocative and contentious, but it needs to be discussed. The area used by the kite school is often congested. I don't know how to resolve this but maybe some others can offer some ideas? Off the cuff, I would like to see some sort of guideline in place such that kiters stay clear of the area between the beach and learners/teachers. This would require some commitment by teachers to leave enough room for people leaving the launch area to comfortably pass by. I would like to point out that I think Ian Young's approach is excellent... launch, jump on jetski and get well away from the busy area.
Anyone else with some ideas? Pls post away!
In reply to Jan's post:
1. Good Idea... it seems to make sense that with a few less kites hanging around on the grass, and the lines etc that go with them, it should make for easier landing, not to mention making it easier for others to set up and launch without having too much of an impact on the pedestrian path running through that area.
2. All for it mate! Another good call... having had my own feet sliced up a few times now, i'd be keen to participate in anything that makes the area cleaner and safer for all of us. Obviously this sort of action will create a better impression of us in political circles as well which can't be a bad thing at any given time.
I would also suggest getting some fill for the side of the retaining wall which seems to have washed away. This could be a bit of a problem if someone had a stack and landed on the wall from the top of that small hill leading down to the beach, and it's something that could easily be repaired.
3. Again, good idea. Anything that clears the area of hazards can't be bad. If the tree is dead, there should be no problem having the council contribute to having it removed.
4. Kill the fence!! Obviously needs to be there, but it's nasty no matter which way you look at it. There may not need to be a fence so extreme if there was a little more of issue #5. If the signs clearly request kiters not to venture down past the fence on the beach at certain times, then it wouldn't necessarily need to be fort knox (just an opinion, there may be some other use for the fence).
5. Advertising safety and perhaps some 'rules of thumb' for the kiters at peli would be pretty good. If someone unfamiliar comes along and can clearly see a few guidelines for the area it would be great.
6. Another good idea. Perhaps there could be another 'rule of thumb' on this issue... obviously we would like to promote professional tuition in our sport rather than hacks coming down with 2nd hand gear and 'giving it a whirl' (good segment on Just Add Water the other day Ian btw), it would make sense to provide the schools with space to teach properly. On the other hand, as pointed out by Jan, it would need to be a committment made by all involved for it to work.
Basically with all the above ideas there will need to be a contribution from all of us, and clear guidelines for the area will make it much more workable. Otherwise everyone will be running around in circles. If we all know the 'rules' so to speak, then the regulars of peli will be able to identify non-regulars and perhaps point a few things out about how we like to keep things safe and enjoyable down there, and hopefully they are considerate enough to respect those guidelines. My point is building on Jan's point, set some very clear rules, and as locals set the example on how we want things to go at peli.
Lets get this show on the road, cause it would be a tragedy to lose access to such a good spot. Action will certainly speak louder than words with all this.
Happy Kiting everyone!
Deano
yeah on all the topics that jan put forward i agree. we have to action all the problems that we put forward soon and stop talkin. good idea to put a thread on here for pp.
1, I agree with this totally. what i thought may be a good idea to this is that say the kite is on the ground and your just wanting a break, why not collect your lines up and place them nxt to your kite with the bar. therefore your lines are still hooked up to the kite correctly and you just need to extend them out when your ready to go out again and they will still be in the same position. afterall, the kite doesnt take up much space at all, and is mainly the lines that get in kiters and the publics way.
2,sounds good to me! show the public that we aint kitesurfing bikies and that we do care about where we kite, and that we are prepared to do manual jobs as well as kitesurfing to secure the point in the future.
bit hard to think of work im sposed to be doing and work that i want to be doing at the same time so ill think about the other points brought up raised by jan. sounds as if u hit all 6 nails on the head though bud!! 
All the Ideas are good guys, keeping our beach clean and cluttered free is benificial for us and public users. As I recall in the meeting 4 local members agreed to join a sub commity on:
* Maintaining Safety for all
* Talking to the public and educating them at the same time about our unique sport
* Keeping an eye on new members and out of towners so that they can enjoy using the area respectfully.
* Giving something back to the comunitty, for our reputation sake.
This I feel will create good vibes within ourselves and observers but most importantly as mentioned in the meeting will reduce the work load of the local rangers. which will then benifit us by keeping them of our backs and having them and the public on ourside.
My only other suggestion for WAKSA is to organise with the council, to fix and redirect that foot path to the rear of the rigging area so that no cyclist, rollerbladers and walkers get clotheslined by our strings. The amount of times that I have seen people of all ages getting tripped up by the large pertruding cracks on the foot path is countless, more times than actual accident caused by kiters. It's in need of a major repair so maybe we can utilise this to our request on redirecting the path an kill two birds with one stone.
But in the mean time give way to cyclist and the public by not crossing the path when you see them coming remember to look left and right. Launchers and kite catchers cross the path with caution. Be curtious and inform the pubic of your intensions believe it or not you have someones life in your hands. Definately do not launch a kiters kite or land their kite crossing the footpath. Look after each other don't yell or abuse each other, positive feedback often work better and assist your fellow kiter before an accident occur.
Im gonna be there today and tomorrow while it's not windy and perhaps rake those stinking weeds, If anyone else is keen bring a pair of gloves and a rake and join with.
bonny
Jeez just from a sailboarder reading the threads ...... you kiters are copping a fair bit of flak.
The fence at Pelican Point was there to stop vermin (foxes, cats, dogs) from getting out to the Point. It is not there to stop humans or as a trap for kites. The Point used to be a major bird site .... it was there to stop the ferals/domestic killing the birds. Do not know if it does that any more - maybe an approach to CALM/Subiaco Council.
As for a cleanup of Pelican Point, good idea. Maybe get the Council and sailboarders involved. Seems as though the Council is keen to police the area a bit more on the weekends with the ranger out and about on the last bit of wind on the 18th January.
I did not think that the kiters were that much of a problem at Pelican Point . I tend to stay out of the shallows, and clear of you guys. And you have taken over the North rigging area - no problems from my point of view. No way would I ever touch one of your kite - too much power for a small lad like me
As for the mix of kiters and bodysurfers at the beach, all I can ask is that you keep an eye out for the bodysurfers. Was down at Brighton on 18th (yep I know that it was blowing a gale onshore). There were three guys out .... one was shredding and was very good to watch. The point was that this guy was jibing upwind of a couple of bodysurfers and heading down close to them while riding the wave. He was good. He was confident. The people that he was heading around were not! There were not many people in the water .... there was no reason to go close! I know that he knew what he was doing! The problem could be that he did not know what the swimmers might do. I would hate to see one of you guys (or a sailboard for that matter) hit a kid swimming in water. Good luck with your efforts!
Radmac
interesting to hear the fence was possibly intended for vermin !
like i said, would be good to see if we can get the fence made a little more kiter friendly rather than the sharp death trap it currently is.
im not trying to get rid of it but ive seen plenty of people shred kites on it
3. dead tree... much more living than I thought, don't think thats going anywhere. doubt council would really want to start cutting down healthy trees
5/6. seems there are some plans for some buoys marking out no surf craft areas at peli. (tony?) ie between the markers and the shore is a no kite area (launch/land and safety zone only?). this would help make the busy launch area safer and hopefully help out the school guys to find some room too?
theres been some talk about a proposal to move the footpath closer to the road. does anyone know what the deal is or if its just hopefull?
that footpath idea is a good one... or at least do what bon was saying and have a bit of 'traffic direction' when someone is launching or particularly landing... there's usually a few people standing around, perhaps it could be an un-written 'rule' that if someone is catching the kite, another person should be keeping their eyes on the footpath and perhaps stopping pedestrians for that short time, and explaining why that is happening... at least that way there's safety in mind, responsibility is being displayed, and also getting a bit more public knowledge out there that it is a good sport and we're doing our best to keep it safe...
clearly it would be better to have the footpath redirected, but that's something we can't control really... if we concentrate on the things that we can control, then that's gotta be a pretty good place to start.
Deano
No problems with kites at Pelican Point last Friday and Saturday - plenty of room - what a way to end the summer sailing season!
Radmac
I noticed last week that more and more kiters are practising being curtious towards one another at Pelis. By wrapping up there lines and leaving the kites upwind of the rigging area to give other kiters oppertunity to set up without tripping or going over line and kites. It's so refreshing and simply safe for kite catchers to find a spot to place the kite. Good looking out
bonny
Firstly let me say that I'm not the bloke whose kite the fella in Crawley decided to play with (despite the moniker).
Secondly thanks dean/Jan for introducing me to this sport.
THirdly, whilst I have only been around 5 minutes and couldn't body drag myself out of a wet paper bag I have some thoughts on how we can keep the momentum going on self regulation/image improvement (these ideas slosh across a few threads so sorry for that)
1) Jan's Peli point users group is sensational. Fill it up with kiters/w'surfers/birdwatchers/yachtsmen/dogwalkers and crank up a clean up/busy bee. Get the local paper down there to report on it. "WAKSA/Windsurfers/birdwatchers unite". At least it would be a good news story.
2) Rather than Kite-marshalls, why can't all members of WAKSA be supplied/buy a bib/kite tag or something that clearly shows them as a WAKSA member who consciously practices a members code of ethics(really pump up the "safe kiting guidelines" and call it our ethics... this should also publishable to the media/council/government/boaties etc).
Having a symbol like that clearly showing for all to see would a) keep the kiter mindful of the code (he/she is on display as a member) b)highlight potential bikie kiters(steer clear of) (a well recognised and publicised symbol might help JOE Public feel more secure knowing a responsible member is behind THAT kite)c)further encourage members to lend a hand to fellow members on launch/landing etc through a sense of community.
Hopefully this sense of community would encourage other non members to get involved and understand further the issues our sport faces, thereby lifting behaviours out on the water...and eventually public perception
CAVEAT...OK I've only been around 5 minutes so I'm sure that I have probably said something idiotic here. If I have please forgive me.
DUDE!! SWEET!!!
nice post mate. some very good ideas there. perhaps the 'sub committee' members could take some of those ideas back to Ian and get something cracking.
there is also a post on the other 'non peli point' thread about some fellas doing repairs on the dune at phonebox... perhaps the local paper could be involved there too...
worth some further investigation at the very least.
Deano
ps, can't wait till you're out of that wet paper bag mate ;)
what happened to the sand bags at peli point?
there were about 3-4 of them kicking around and now they seem to have vanished?
LOGO - great idea - been thinking on that 4 a while and have a bit of a design im working on to pass on to WAKSA
Thinking - car stickers, T's &/or rashies, but kite sticker would be the go 4 sure i reckon
Wot about a logo design comp like AKSA have just had ???
- FINN X
As a keen kiter, I'm more than happy to be on a sub-committee to oversee the safety at Pelican Point, as are all the other members. However, I feel that WAKSA should acknowledge this official contribution of our time and energy by organising and issuing attire signifying the sub-committee members' role. For instance, supplying hats and rashies that have the name of our role on them would enhance our visibility to other kiters and the public. This would then provide some badly needed positive publicity, as it would be clear that we are being proactive in the community. Without official gear, kiters new to the area, or those not directly linked to WAKSA will not necessarily take our positions seriously.
What are your views on this John and Ian? Look foward to your responses...
bonny
The ideas about having something that shows you are signed up, read the rules and abide by them is a great one. There does need to be control as more and more people are seeing the sport and thinking......"Give me some of that" kind of thing!
The logo or something on the kite would be great as long as it can be removed if selling etc otherwise we will have guys buying second hand kites with it already on there.
The rest of the points are really well thought about and great for the sport in general.
What about putting a flyer on the notice board at Pelican Point showing this site and forum or other usefull ones? Get everyone in the know and all that..........
A bit late for this......but I think we need to give a 2 week notice to enable all interested to show up.
As it stands only 4 people would show tonight; there are about 30 regular kiters at Peli Point.
Should we look at Monday night 7.30 pm 2 weeks from now?
Wind's up.....what work?
yeah i reckon it's a good idea having it in 2 weeks that monday.
ie monday 29th at 7pm at steves.
perhaps we should create a new post to get some idea of numbers?
infact, i'll do it right now :)
Deano
