Oceanus EEL - anyone got injured?

[biba]

I saw a decent amount of peeps at 3rd and Alameda having one of those Oceanus board leashes attached to their harness. I was considering getting one while I am practicing my carving turns and small jumps. While I'm good at body dragging, I'm NOT looking forward to it every time i get separated from my board, when there's 5 ft waves and i got yarded off and God forbid if I drop the kite too. It's not a simple fall off the board exercise where your board rests like 6 ft from you.

While carving, especially toe side, i get separated a good distance if i fall. Each body dragging exercise makes me nervous cus i lose sight of the board and waves are up and down and all the time etc and i spend a good time hunting down for my board than I get to practice my riding skills.

So, moving past the advice "learn to body drag better", the actual question is:
What's your negative experience with it? Has it pinged back at you ever? Did you get hurt? How's that 270lbs breaking clip? I suspect it's supposed to break to avoid pinging?!

Thanks!

[ozchrisb]

Learn to body drag better.

[TomAUSTRIA]

Learn to body drag better.

+1

[nathaniel_e]

Learn to body drag better.

+1

+1

[nathaniel_e]

In all seriousness, sometimes when I fall i don't immediately see my board.
right when i fall, i just immediately start body dragging upwind and start looking for the board once i KNOW im upwind of it.
It's much easier to find a board when you are upwind of it.

[KGB Kiteboarding]

+1 Don't do it! They are very dangerous, especially for jumping. I have seen heads and faces wrecked from them.

I personally had a bad experience myself when I used one as a newbie trying to solve some of the same body dragging frustrations that you have mentioned.

While using the reel leash I had the board dig in and anchor off behind a rock in shallow water. After the crash the kite was pulling me downwind and the board leash had my board anchored off upwind. I was lucky that day that the board didn't retract as it would have come shooting back at me for certain, as it had in previous crashes. Since the leash was fixed to my harness something had to give so after a few moments my harness ripped apart where the leash was attached. The clip didn't work and it should have as I am a big guy.

I took it off that day and learned to properly drag and also picked up a pro tip along the way that made it even easier...see below.

Most newbies get separated from the board because they instinctively hang onto the bar as they start to fall. This causes the kite to power up and will drag them downwind fast. If you want to avoid having to body drag for long distances, as soon as you think you are starting to loose control/fall push the bar all the way out immediately. Sometimes you can even do this as you are actively crashing.

Your kite will most times shoot straight to 12 and you will immediately stop most of the kites forward pull. Once you settle after the crash, 9 times out of 10 you will be right there with your board or at worst just slightly downwind of it, making for a super easy recovery.

Also when dragging try not to reach with too wide an angle upwind for your board, this will only cause you to go downwind. Rather approach your tacks with narrow rather than wide upwind angles. Practice those two tips and you'll have a much better experience.

[le noun]

Learn to body drag better.

+1

+1

+1

[demo243]

No need for a leash... at least while riding.

Many people do have them on their harnesses in case of emergency though, such as in a self rescue situation. It can be very helpful to have a leash to drag your board with you while you are getting your shit together or swimming in. I keep those little leash loops on my surfboards for this reason... but I just use my kite leash in that scenario. Don't want to clutter up my harness with unnecessary stuff.

Never used a leash in the surf and don't really plan on it. To much chance of a board going over the lines and wrapping the leash around them. In fairness though surfboards are easier to spot (Always get some bright color on your boards... makes them so much easier to find in the white water) and they tend to drift pretty quickly downwind.

The risk is not worth the reward of fewer body drags.

I am amazed how many people I see using leashes on strapped surfboards at the beach.... there is no reason to ride with a leash if you are riding strapped... maybe strapless in a very sketchy area... ie lots of current or no bail out ... but even then still sketchy

And when body dragging I find it best to make big tacks... this way you can get up above your board in 2-3 tacks. short tacks tend not to gain as much ground as you lose so much in the transition of the kite. Once your think your up above the board, send the kite up to pull you out of the water a bit, then you can spot it and head over to it.

[Loscocco]

+1

+1

+1

+1

[mrnofear]

Have you thought of using a GOJOE thing on your board. I have never used one myself, but I have seen many people use them and from what they have said to me is, that it makes it alot easier to spot your board. This might be something to think about while you get more comfortable with retrieving your board.