Pass a Grille and riding there

Let's not forget this was a one time deal (so far) and that Mike stopped immediately when asked. That's actually why I never even mentioned it. I am confident it will work itself out. No need to get too worked up (yet). If it goes on, I think we should get worked up, though, and I will myself contact Eckerd.

After having said that, I really appreciate all the inputs and concern on this. I am glad so many people care enough to speak out.
I think it will be more clear to Mike and Matt how much responsibilty they have in their roles as instructors and riders and that others listen to them and look up to them and most likely will follow their lead.

[toby wilson]

This is just my point of view but I think trashing any one individual or group of individuals for something that can be discussed verbally, especially where a club that could easily be shut down is every bit not as cool. These are posts that stay out for any and all to read for an indefinite period of time and could easily get the club shut down should the wrong people read them and misinterpret them.

I 110% agree that riding should not be done near swimmers because it can be a hazard to others, especially where newbs are concerned and that is why Erick, Roy and I rode Bongos where it is less crowded with beach goers yesterday. But basically pointing the finger at a college club instead of calling or sending a PM to a representative of the club and letting them deal with it isn't cool.

Lets get off the drama kick and focus on educating at the beach. We should all be using common sense but if you see bad judgement being used, educate in numbers, have a GROUP of people approach and tell them what courtesy is expected. But lets not point fingers...

[robertovillate]

I do not see this being any issue between individuals nor will it necessarily be solved as such. Personal issues - which seem to spring up on this forum all the time - should be handled privately I agree.

However, this issue potentially effects the entire kiting community here and beyond Tampa Bay.

Scott is one of the most highly respected riders here - and for good reason - he is interested in the common good for all riders. I support Skyways Scott's way of handling it. He has been fair with his information and he has wisely informed people involved and people who have an interest, or who may be effected.

I believe (and Rick I please correct me if I am wrong) that this forum was partially intended to handle issues like this.

[toby wilson]

If it didn't get personal then why were names and the mention of the club involved? You are here for about 25% of the year tops Roberto (due to your travel of course) so you don't really get to see that I am actually pretty good friends with Scott, my post is not an attack on him or anyone else. My post is stating that it is fine to educate and discuss safety but that singling out the club was not cool in my opinion. A lot of time and effort was put into forming that club by one person. It is MUCH easier to destroy that work than I am sure it was to build it...

I wasn't there, I didn't see what went on. But I think it could have been handled a little bit differently with names and associations omitted.

Originally Posted by toby wilson

I wasn't there, I didn't see what went on. But I think it could have been handled a little bit differently with names and associations omitted.

I understand what you are saying and you have a good point... but bringing flowers and apologizing for making them uncomfortable when we asked them for the fourth time to stop riding in the swimming area would not have had the effect we were hoping for. (joking)

I chose not to mention names, but the fact remains that these were club members using club equipment, and we asked them to stop and it had little effect. Scott even intercepted one of the riders in the water to get his attention and was basically told "no i don't want to" upon suggesting that he ride further north away from the swimmers. Not sure who this rider was (but it was not Mike)... as Scott said, Mike did the right thing and moved a soon as he realized what was going on.

Hopefully he will set the example out there next time and encourage everyone to ride away from the swimmers.

Toby, please read my initial post thoroughly. Not one name was mentioned.
People were talked to out there Toby. It didn't have much effect on some (excluding Mike and Al), so I was hoping a post would draw more attention to the idea and those involved would get the message.
You have been much more verbal over much less of an occurence (Skyway line tangle in 9 knots).

Let's just focus on maintaining access and doing the right thing.
In terms of friendships, in the modern era, people can maintain them long distance with stuff like email and phones.

[TritonKiteboarding]

First off there were no instructors for Watersports West out there, Steve-O is the only instructor around who works directly with the shop. They weren't involved and their name did not need to be dropped so harshly, they are one of the best resources around for kiting and thats that.

Now let me apologize for any of the riders in my club that may have been riding in potentially dangerous ways, such as a close to people or in the "illegal swim zone". The only reason i started the club was because i saw their were college kids getting into the sport and i knew they would hit the beaches in numbers with kites. I have been riding here for two full seasons now and wanted to bridge all the gaps between college riders and local riders, i do not want any college rider ever being responsible for a beach ban or an injury to riders/spectators.
Since our beginning i've actually posted this and our goals as well as all my contact info, asking locals to not hesitate to call if they saw anything wrong with college riders on the scene. We've hosted two beach clean-ups this year and are planning a third, we're also working on getting air-compressors installed at the skyway and a sign made for the bird nesting regulations against watersports on all gulf facing beaches at fort desoto through august. This forum is great but a problem can be solved much better directly rather than posting names and obnoxious comments like

"Will the kite club survive when the complaints start rolling in to Eckerd College?

Would either WSW or Eckerd College kite club survive the lawsuit if there were an injury?"

Scott thanks for posting this in the first place and doing it respectfully, tom appreciate your input, 203 918 6637, thats my number, dont hate. Rather than complaining to cyberspace call me personally and i will set the kid straight who you deemed as potentially dangerous or reckless. Toby thank you for defending us a bit, i'm aware of all risks associated and to bring up the club in this issue is not cool. We're going to survive and were going to be safe and beneficial to the community.

I'm trying to do the same thing as everyone, ride as much as possible, get better every time, promote kiting as one of the best sports in the world, and preserve our riding locations through safety, regulation awareness, and environmental sensitivity. We just moved into a house off of 20th ave in PAG, we're pretty stoked that we would have another way to provide local riders with perks, like a grass to kill your kite, outdoor shower, elevated balcony, air compressor, and just a general locations to start/stop downwinders. We also have handle pass/trampoline/and slack line, unicycle, indo board, surf ball, and standup paddle boards for cross training.
The guys got excited about the house and i guess rode out in front rather than walking up two blocks, dont worry this wont happen again. I was guiding a downwinder from north st. pete beach and was not on the beach untill about 6:30
I am a PASA Certified instructor, my paperwork is being reviewed right now, i've taught windsurfing, sailing, and wakeboarding for six years now and know all about safety protocol and eliminating negligence on the beaches and with beginners. I will be an IKO instructor as well by the end of this month. We're just trying to help and get our names out there to hopefully get sponsored.
We've taken leaps and bounds forward this year and won an award last night from eckerd college as the most improved/outstanding club of the year. If you have problems with us tell me and i'll solve it. I'm workin my ass off to make the scene around here a bit more organized, have some kiter parties this summer, organize owc trips, obx trips, and even one to brazil. I'll be living here all summer in order to plan for next year and plan with the bars/ promoters try and get us a better kite hangout, like ft. lauderdale and key west have. We're also trying to set up some other local boarder-x and course racing but were a bit hesitant because of the complaints from last years that came up. We're trying to keep things moving forward. If you dont like the sound of any of this PM me and i'll be sure to not send you the memo.
In the end sorry for my riders riding close to shore and around people, i've talked with them and they were doing it because the kids in the water and the spectators were asking them to and cheering them on. no one other than other kiters had anything bad to say about them, most were pretty stoked to see guys landing new tricks and what not. I told them regardless they need to be out of there and just walk farther north between the don cesar and PAG where there are no people. Hope this issue is squashed and sorry if any feathers were ruffled
-matt sexton
President of Eckerd College Kite Club
TritonKiteboarding.com
sextonmg@eckerd.edu

I removed the WSW comment as soon as I realized it was incorrect. As for the statements about potential complaints or accidents, I don't think they are based far from reality.

Not all of the spectators were comfortable with what was going on (they told us so before we confronted the kiters).

BUT, regardless of all that, you are obviously concerned and are willing to make every effort to prevent it from happening again in the future, and that is good enough for me and probably everyone else for now.

Thanks for taking the time to respond and talk with your members, and the fact that you are going through great efforts to get certified and do things right means a lot. Should anything else like this happen in the future I will just notify you directly.

Thanks,
-tom

btw, I must have ridden past you guys setting up when I was doing my down winder from T.I. (green waroo)

[RespectfulKiter]

Hey everyone, I just joined this forum because of what has been happening in the past two days. My name is Alex Moore and am of the triton brethren. The initial comments regarding PaG are obserd. They were absolutely threats of getting an organization shut down. An organization may I add that has dedicated its existence to spreading the sport of kiteboarding in a safe way to all who want to try. All so that you "core" can claim to "care about the common good of all riders" by threatening to try to get a progressive, educational club shut down. I do agree we should not ride near people who are not comfortable with the sport. However I would like to point out that the five houses in front of that beach are college rented houses and most of those in the water were the friends of the riders. While riding that day I also had never recieved so many friendly and supportive comments from those bathing on the beach that actually wern't college and high school kids. It felt great riding into the beach and having three different mothers approach me, smiles glaring, asking me how long I had been riding for and when their kids would be old enough to try. Kiting near bathers is dangerous and a risk not worth taking. But when it happens once it does not need to be addressed like the yacht club trying to ban jet skis. Thank you.

A couple of things here. First, to think I made this post to shut a club down is disheartening. When Mike told me he was associated with the club, I was literally over joyed. Mike is a great guy and I know he simply loves watching people learn and progress at kiting. That's more off base than you will ever know, Respectful.

Second, it really doesn't matter if 90% of the people are cheering you on to jump 5 feet from shore, use judgment and don't risk injuring a beach goer. Most beach goers don't realize that the lines can tangle around a little kid and injure him, etc.
We always gets praise and hear "wows" no matter where we are out there. Its the complaints that are spoken at high volume to the authorities that matter.

Lastly, and again, several riders were approached out there that didn't respond. This post wasn't made prior to that. Many of the riders continued to ride for hours in the swim zone.

I am very grateful for Matt's response and am hopeful that he will do all he can to spread the word about the area.
I don't think I saw him out there that day or I would have approached him. I know we can all cooperate on this one.

It's a tad off subject, but in terms of future events, right in front of the Hurricane would be the place.
I talked to the owner about it 2 years ago and he and the concession stand person were in to it.
The problem arose when I looked into the cost of event insurance.