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Old 05-23-2005, 11:26 AM
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I asked the rider what he would do differently in the future? He said if the locals are staying off the water he would think that over very carefully before rigging up and heading out. Some new experiences can be a bit too new and extreme. It may be better to blow off rigging up until more familar conditions are on.

Also, he would keep a eye on his kite while riding and not allow himself to get distracted and ride past it again stalling the kite. Wave kiteboarding requires some special skills and a fairly fast manuverable kite perhaps on shorter lines as well. He would rig shorter lines in the future than the 27 m lines he had up that day.

He would also wear an impact vest to try to even the odds a bit more.

All kiteboarders should carry hook knives. More than one knife makes sense too. It is too easy to drop a knife when you can least afford to do so. A story that revolved around this appears under "New Rider and the Corkscrew of Death" at:

http://fksa.org/viewforum.php?f=81

IMPORTANT: make sure your hook knife won't readily snag line where it is secured. If you attach it to your harness make sure the attachment will break away say under line loading. DON'T use fastenings that can catch line like some carabiners.

Some cave divers, using only one line often under tension have been known to carry up to FIVE knives. Kiteboarders only have 400 ft. of line flapping around over head with a breaking strength of 600 lbs. Who needs knives?


From: http://www.northshoreinc.com/

Another variety of hook knife taken from hang gliding and paragliding. This one is designed to make it harder to cut your finger by accident. Two razor blades also improve the cutting efficiency.


From: http://www.myskyshop.com/

A smaller, more traditional type of hook knife that can allow an accidental finger cut.

If you don't carry a couple of knives currently, you should consider rigging up. If you have a hook knife in your harness pocket make sure you can get at it fairly easily. It is a good idea to wash the knives off with freshwater after riding sessions and to coat the blade only with some light oil.

Or ...

you could always break that 600 lb. line with your hands or teeth!?
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