What not to do

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windhorny
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What not to do

Post by windhorny » Sun Aug 24, 2008 7:30 pm

Today, as usual, a yellow cabrinha kite displayed absolute disregard for anyone on the beach, including myself. It was a warm weekend and light winds, the beach is full with people. This guy tries to come in right in the heart of 3-4 families. So i jump up from deflating my kite and run over to help land him. He then tells me he doesnt want to land and flies his kite right over to the otherside, pulling him even further downwind in the heart of kids. So i watch. I am yelling at him " you are the fucking reason this beach is gonna get shut down!" I guess he didnt hear me. but a few people on the beach did and as i explained to one couple who asked me "did he do something wrong?" I answered "yes, everything, you see, we have had this big issue with beginner kiters who are not experienced in landing their own kites swipe paths through the busy beach." I followed to explain to them why i was so angry after being denied twice to land his kite. So i grabbed my camera and thought i would make an example. Apparently Max got a cut fromt his guy landing on him and everyone I talked to at the shack seemed to be able to identify him as "the guy with the yellow/green cabrinha."

So here's where he went wrong for the beginners that are wondering what not to do...

1st off, light wind, populated public beach, not able to wrap lines up in water safely, high tide...all a bad combo. It is just a matter of time before another kid gets their ear taken off.

2nd, when a kiter offers a hand to land you when you need it-TAKE IT! Dont procceed to struggle to get some wind in your kite so you can divert it from the person helping.

3rd If you cant confidentally fly your kite to a safe spot to try and land it yourself, either dont go out at all or find a open area to play with the kite. Finding the most densly populated part of the beach is not the right area to practice self landing and arrogance.

4th People assume that you have control of your kite. They will stand there and watch. If you think you dont know how to make your kite travel away from land, take another lesson or ask somoen who has been kiting for more than a week. Kids that play in the water have right of way. Everyone has more right of way than us.

5th, if you are going to be an asshole, dont come back to the same beach and do the same crap again, you are being watched!
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recoprianto
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Post by recoprianto » Sun Aug 24, 2008 8:23 pm

This is a good post, hopefully this person will recognize themselves and out of pure shame of being singled out...seek some help next time.

Know the rules, or ask someone for the rules. We all make mistakes and experience lapses in judgement from time to time.

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kitecrazy
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Post by kitecrazy » Sun Aug 24, 2008 9:48 pm

Perhaps in situations like this where you know other people at the beach are at risk it would be wise to ignore the intentions of the irrational and stupid kiter and grab the kite and land it.

When all else fails, theres a hook-knife.

Preserve access and preserve eachother.

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Post by perukite » Sun Aug 24, 2008 10:23 pm

seeing this really makes me sick to my stomache. I've seen it all before at Alameda but actually seeing this captured in pictures with the little girl with daddy and the ice cream cart dude rolling by makes it so real.

The other weekend at Sherman during the waiiman demo and party, I remember watching the incredible sunset, music blaring from the sound system, huge BBQ fired up and people kiting in to the boat ramp and walking over to grab a beer from the keg before even landing their kite and thinking "this is great, I just hope we never find ourselves talking about the old days before out sport was tottally regulated".

This green Cabrinha guy could be the catalyst for our sport going south real quick and not only getting the sport banned at Alameda but it could bleed over to other areas with the help of bad press. Like the video of that guy in florida flying across the highway which ened up on the BBC and CNN!!

I think it's time to stop saying "bro", "hey dude" mr nice guy stuff and really put our foot down when we see people like this being so stupid with blatant disregard to the public.

WE have all been there at one point in the learning process before, at Alameda. But I remember my time there perfectly and how freaked I was about getting in the way of anyone else since I was a newbie, mostly other kiters in the water. But when you blatantly just don't give a shit about daughter and daddy strolling along the shoreline and the ice cream man.....it's time to take action. Thanks for getting these shots Yuri.... lets all do more to stop this supidity.

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KirkTalon
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Post by KirkTalon » Mon Aug 25, 2008 9:19 am

That deflate valves works wonders also...and it is so conducive to dialogue...you know??? Hey...why did you deflate my kite...Cause idiot...(i mean bro)...you are not paying attention...and so on and so forth...

Thanks for the post and the pix Yuri....

Back home on Saturday, hoping for wind on Sunday...

Kirk
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Post by average_male » Mon Aug 25, 2008 1:54 pm

Great pictures, perhaps next time a zoomed-in shot of the guys face. Then we can post flyers at the shack just like they used to do in the wild west days.

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windhorny
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Post by windhorny » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:01 pm

I did zoom into his face and decided at the last minute to not go that far. If he reads it, thats good enough. And unfortunately it is not just one person. I am not out to start a war. Pretty upsetting to watch though.

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Post by reyrivera » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:30 pm

Yeah, no sense on escalating things, unless the guy does it again.

Anyway, for the rest of the beginners out there, this would be a perfect opportunity to analyze what to do.

If your kite ends up in the water similar to the last image (IMGP0040.JPG), please don't try to re-launch it if there are people on the beach, you can easily knock somebody out unconscious. Instead, that would be a perfect time to practice your self-rescue technique.

Don't let the bystanders try to secure the kite unless they have given you the signal that they know how to handle your kite, since most of the people walking by the beach do not the dangers of a downed kite. If I'm approaching a downed kite, I let the rider know that I'm a kiter and then I give them an assist. Flag your kite and see if you wrap your bar neatly without creating a spaghetti line setup.

It is a better alternative compared to having to hire a lawyer to defend you after you have injured a beach goer.

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