Nasty accident at 3rd Ave upper today - guy got airlifted

[biba]

Nasty Accident at 3rd ave today - Dude got Airlifted in coma.

So, it was around 3-3:30pm nuking 30+ kts gusting 40+ (see pic). I landed my 12m when the wind dropped by 2 and i was waiting for this blast to calm down to go for a second sess.

This guy rigged a 12m Liquid Envy. He is 45-50 years probably, I don't recall to have seen him before. He asked me about his choice. I said it's nuking and I am waiting for it to come down. He asked me how much I weigh, I said 200 he said he's 240.

Not sure how handy he was with the 3rd Av upper launch especially in gusty conditions. For starters, there's a wind buffer there due to the golf course net, frequent lofting happens, lulls and gusts as well. Those rocks at the edge of biking trail are a death trap zone.
So I see him launching (I didn't launch him), he was not properly positioned at the edge of the window, probably a bit too forward because I saw the kite rolling backwards in the wind window and then instantly powered.

Net effect, the guy got dragged on the ground pretty fast for about 30ft, he didn't get airborne, he did not eject, and he ended up smashing in the rocks at the bike path.

We called 911, the guy was breathing but completely unconscious. He remained unconscious for another 15 min until EMR arrived and took over, he ended up getting air lifted from the golf lot. He was wearing a helmet however he was slowly drip-bleeding from under it. I didn't see any open fracture or anything.

No phone number on his equipment, or any id or anything. We don't know who he is. I hope he will recover. it didn't look good at all.

[le noun]

Whoever gave him a launch on a 12m is an idiot.
I know it's tiring to explain to people not to go out on big kites when it's nuking BUT WE NEED AS A COMMUNITY TO STEP UP TO AVOID THIS KIND OF ACCIDENT.
Hopefully the rider is ok...

[demo243]

Im not trying to be mean… but it was gusting over 40 today… no one… and i mean no one can ride a 12 in 40+ … you'd have to weight 500 lbs...

[guidoz]

It sounds like a terrible accident and I really hope the guy will be ok.

But I have to agree with the other 2 comments: launching a 12 in today's conditions is just, well, stupid, wrong, dangerous... I was out on a 7m and I am a 3rd local, been kiting for more than 10 years and I am telling you it was a very advanced day. The wind was all over the place with big nasty lulls and powerful gusts. Something like this basically happens every year in spring, people just think its back to summer and can go out in what ever kite they have. Its freaking spring and the conditions are advanced. If you are not advanced wait for a better day!!

[waves are good]

I hope the kiter involved in the accident is OK. It sucks when folks get hurt.

However....why on earth are people kiting on 12m kites when it is gusting over 30. Probably not fun, dangerous and shows a serious lack of skill and decision making. Bust out the 7 and work the holes.

Kiting is a relatively safe and easy sport if you make good decisions throughout your day. Obviously poor kite choice and lack of clear input from experienced local kiters onsite contributed to this easily avoided accident. Beyond lame.

Sounds like this unfortunate kiter made some bad decisions that ended with him in a helicopter with a head injury.

Come on people, try thinking a little bit. The hospital is not all that cool.

And to the original poster and whoever launched the injured kiter ......really guys?

Take a role in your kite community.

[kitenaked]

We can call people idiots and stupid...however for those witnessing and not stopping this, can be to blame as well. Yes we are all eager to get on the water and have our "own" fun but helping someone from getting hurt and promoting safe fun makes our sport even better.

I'm not down on the people who were witness to the accident, we just need to be vigilant as a group to protect people's safety and sites and spectators.

I am sure the victim would now have preferred some kite brothers and sisters talking him out of launching vs going through this.

[guidoz]

yes, there is no doubt people should have stopped him. But I am not blaming anybody here, I hope it did not come over that way. I know how difficult it is to tell somebody that he/she is not up for it and should stay on the beach. I did this so many times, and 80% of the time these people were pissed at me and thought am an arrogant a-hole. Its very difficult, but its also absolutely necessary!

Maybe the best thing you can do is to refuse to launch somebody. Explain why and stay firm about it. Also stop others from launching such a person. I always try to explain, sadly most of the time people will not want to listen. But if nobody launches them, it might save their butt in the end.

We really have to be more committed about this

[ino]

Hopefully he's ok. It was a windy day , Hopefully he heals very quickly, and returns to us safe.
it seems like there was a problem at the launch, the ball stopper can really be dangerous if it was stuck at power. These are all guesses but,
As he was launching if he had tripped over a little rock
Slide on the Mud
Or simply got stressed out and steared the kite to the window too fast
Or fully powered naturally as reaction ( which happens while learning stages)
Even at 40mph if it got too intense still it s possible to land it back down if the control system is working well.
A small kite is a way better option but if the ball stopper is stuck or any of the stuff listed has happened it s possible that similar incident can happen at almost any size.

Hopefully our new family member is well and returns to us safe.

[biba]

Ok, if you haven't been at upper launch when it happened then you can talk all day about should've could've. The conditions were very treacherous and misleading. I can see why the guy that got injured misjudged the situation.

I was there from 1PM, I kited on my 12m until 1:45. Then wind died a bit so I landed and took a break. Then the wind started acting erratic, insane gusts for like 1-2 min then calm for another 1-2. By 2:15pm I was considering going out for another sess on my 12, so no, I'm not a beginner and I evaluated the situation. As I launched, fully depowered, and rigged on last low-power knots, I felt the kite in the air, unstable, pulling too much, then lulling and I decided I will land it and wait it out. Which I did.

Those few burst periods of calm are VERY misleading, I can see why the guy launched in a short calm period thinking all is ok, to lul the kite and then have a blast hitting you. Plus the wind was shifting WSW then WNW.

Again, you can bash all you want at the OP (me) or whomever launched him, you haven't been there, I don't completely blame the kiter for his mis-judgement, at 2:30-3PM w/o checking the wind sensors, you could not realistically appreciate what was going on especially if you just arrived at the beach and pumped up and were ready and excited to go.

If you look at my picture I posted, you will see the wind suddenly calmed down around 2:45 which seemed ok, but blasted back up 5-10 min later.

By 3PM it was obvious to anyone the wind was gusting over 30Kts and none went in with things larger than 9m.

His downfall was mis-launching in gusty wind shifting conditions and not ejecting when he got dragged for 30 ft to the rocks. I can associate this to same symptom of first snowfall in northeast cities and amounts of crashes, people are not used to appreciate the conditions at the beginning of the season.

[ino]

Sounds like it was very strong gusts, I rode Alameda yesterday on a 9, can only imagine how much stronger it must have been. I think everybody in this forum want to best for eachother, it sounds like they re upset because one of us got hurt.
Hopefully he 'll be ok. Anybody know of his situation, and what we can do?