kite-surfing accident off of the Dunedin Causeway
 

PINELLAS COUNTY (Bay News 9) -- Pinellas County sheriff deputies and Pinellas County EMS responded to a kite-surfing accident off of the Dunedin Causeway shortly after 4 p.m. Saturday.

Christopher Bryan Kenny, 16, suffered serious burns when he was pulled into power lines on the north side of the Dunedin Causeway by a strong gust of wind.

He was transported to St. Josephs hospital with life-threatening injuries.

FYI....

I hope the best for Christopher. We almost had a couple incidents at the SW. Everyone were on 13- 16m when that gust front came through. Needless to say the guy on the 16 got worked pretty good, but he is ok. He had a hundred + yards between him and the shore. The only one that didn’t get blown off the water was the guy on the 13 Ozone.

Need to watch those bursts. It gives somewhat obvious signs before it moves in. That’s what, the second time that’s happened this month? Serious injuries both times.

It's like the 8th time! It's been happening almost every day, except for the last couple days.

I think it's probably the 4th or 5th time everyone was taken by surprise. Fortunately I heard there were a couple guys out there warning everyone not to launch... Randy and um I can't remember the other guy's name?

GOOD JOB GUYS for giving everyone the heads up on the beach.

Definitely huge props to guys at the SW and Lassing today. I heard a bunch of great stuff.

I still can't believe the 16m Waroo rider (we both know who, Jeff) is launching/riding big kites in that situation.
He has been talked to at least 5 times by me and others and knows better.
Not only is he risking his own life, he is risking the lives of those driving vehicles on the highway. It's inexcusable given he facts he has to work with (seeing it spike in a heartbeat 3 times now in the same scenario).
Doing it (rigging before spike) at EB or Lassing is not a great idea, and you are definitely risking serious injury, but at least out there we don't jeopardize cars in the interstate. That just ups the stakes at the SW, in my opinion.

I am terribly sorry to hear about the incident with Christopher. He was a new rider and probably didn't have a clue about the wind scenarios we have or understand the true nature of the wind. He just wanted to practice and learn to ride.

That's why at places like the SW, we need to approach riders when we see this scenario playing out. I heard that several riders did talk to others today at the SW and Lassing before it happened convincing several to come in, or not go out. Major props to you guys!

I feel bad for Christopher, but it's getting frustrating hearing this same story, when it can be avoided. Most of our riders would hop off the water if they saw a huge shark, especially if the same one was on "schedule" and it was attacking our riders. Yet, some continue to ride when a "real" threat is on it's way, visibly evident, and has a history (on the wind archives). Unless I have bad information (I don't think I do), we have had 5 kites "get away" and two reach the road in the last 4 weeks. All of these incidents occured on an east wind spike.

Several people are currently educating others about this wind spike on scene at the SW, Lassing at EB. That's truly awesome. Let's all (cuz not all our on this forum) make a point late tomorrow afternoon and Monday night to point out the spike and explain it to others as it happens. (Clouds coming, blue sky behind them, Port of Tampa just spiked, white caps out in channel... five minutes til it's showtime).

The more educated the local crew (more than half have ridden less than a season) know about the weather, the better. Also, we really need to kill this myth of being able to depower a 16m Bow kite 100%, it's a flat out lie.

First, I'm sorry to hear about Christopher and I hope for a speedy recovery, on another note...

Big props to Billy P. at EB when swell came there were 3 or 5 lessons when it gusted to 40 something MPH. One newbie ditched her kite, after that Billy just got out of his RV and borrowed Oliver's kite and retrieve it. He came back with the kite and then helped other riders retrieving their boards.

That was very cool!

No injuries at EB as farest I'm concern.

Rock and Roll all night

I'm glad you guys managed pretty well where you were and noone else was hurt. I was at the causeway (not riding) when the incident occured and there was another guy on the far outside on a 17 who got as far away from shore as quickly as he could and then dumped the kite without incident. He was a bigger guy, but still 40 knots is way too much wind. Chris was so far away from everyone, near the end of the causeway when the gusts came through and we were booking it to him. Unfortunately, noone could get there in time. I hope Chris recovers because he fell very hard onto his back on the guard rail from 20ft as well. Its only a minor point, but I think his kite is still lost too. 12m cabrinha switchblade 2 colors yellow/red. A guy in a cat tried to pick it up and ended up getting dragged straight downwind so i think he let it go.

There are pics on baynews9 showing some recovered gear, so I think they may have gotten the kite.

I'm really sorry about chris accident
I hope he will recover soon.
If anybody has some news regarding his condition keep us posted

popeye it was unfortunately not chris gear but john's Warro an other local rider.
Chris was on a 12M cabrinha I belive a switchblade 2
The footage has nothing to do with chris accident

2nd update for the Dunedin crash. I talked with a guy who was sailing there the other day and the runaway kite hit his cat and supposedly flipped em. The guy had to cut the kite to recover and the kite ended up flying over caledesi and out into the gulf. Dont know if we'll be recovering that one.

Our prayers go out to Chris for a speedy recovery.

As far as Dunedin causeway is concerned: The launch on the north side of the causeway is treacherous to say the least. The power lines are on the north side of the causeway and there is only about 20-40' at most from the edge of the water to the power lines - absolutely no room for error. The shore is mostly rocky as well. On-shore, side-on-shore winds make it that more treacherous.

Really sad to hear about this accident. My prayers go out to Chris for a speedy and complete recovery.

Kite safe everyone.

Whoops that kite is history. Hope Chris is in better shape than his kite.

does anyone know him or know if we can find out how he is?

fox news was at the skyway and Bob took the helm and answered the questions when they needed an interview.. seemed like they were focusing their questions on the negative side.. Bob held fast and emphasized safety and lessons and knowing where to ride.

The got some footage of us kiting.. should be on Fox 13 tonight..
probably edit it to make us look like evildoers ..

yep.. focus on the negative..

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/myfox/p...Y&pageId=3.2.1

Actually it wasn't too bad... sad to see they mentioned yesterday's accident in the same article... but it was GREAT that they said "experienced kiteboarders AVOID the causeway because of it's proximity to power lines and highways"

The article was written as a follow up to the accident and that was why they were there in the first place today.
They weren't there just to show kiting as a fun sport.
Unfortunately, the article doesn't clearly connect the dots between a lofting and wind gusts/spike.
It alludes to a connection, but left the association fairly open ended.

"If you're out on the water far enough, it's not very hazardous - you'll land back in the water again. If you're close to shore and fixed objects like cars and power lines, it can be very dangerous," DuPuy warned.

The "it's" sound like kiting in general, not a gust event while kiting.
The reporter just quoted Bob without putting it in sufficient context.
Hopefully I am wrong, but I read it as if I was clueless and that's how it came across to me.

Most people don't know the difference between wind and a strong gust of wind... to them it's all just wind.

I Happened To Be At The Scene Of The Dunedin Causeway Accident And I Hope & Pray For The Speedy Recovery Of The Injured Boy.
My Wife & I Were Watching The Two Kite Boarders Launch. I Am New To The Sport And I Am In The Process Of Taking Lessons. I Was Shocked To See That They Were Launching Their Kites On The North Side Of The Causeway, With A Direct Onshore Wind, Just From The Minimal Safety Information I Have Learned. It Was Scary Enough When One Of The Kites Was Hovering Just 10 Feet Above The Power Lines. I Mentioned To My Wife That It Appeared To Be An Accident In The Making. Just Moments Later, A Northern Rainstorm Was Approaching And There Was More Than Enough Time To Avoid It.
Unfortunately, Chris Was Not Able To Avoid The 30+mph Gusts.
My Wife Dialed 911 And Now She Is Questioning My Involvement In My New Sport...

What I Didn't Quite Understand, Is That It Appeared As Though This Small Group Was Involved In Some Sort Of Lesson. One Guy, Who Appeared To Be The Most Knowlegable Of The Group (maybe Instructor?) Kept Waving The One Kiter Away From The Power Lines. Why They Were At This Spot With These Wind Conditions Is Bewildering To Me...

It's an unreal story. I feel bad for Chris, but it would seem that anyone who had a lesson should have known better.
I don't think that the majority of us know any of these kiters that were there yesterday. It's doubtful it was a lesson. If it was, that's beyond unacceptable, obviously.

Today three boaters went missing (one at Dunedin Causeway, btw). One of the Marine Patrol Sherrifs told me all they found was his boat in gear, running in circles. They never found the boater. Two others are missing from Lake Tarpon.
Fatal boating accidents are a much more common occurence than kiting accidents requiring hospitalization.
Maybe Ch 13 should run a story tonight entitled : "Boating, a Dangerous Sport"?

Several of us have been kiting for many years without incident.
I would definitely let your wife know that statistically, driving a car is more dangerous than kiting.
After having said that, if you drive with your eyes closed going the wrong way, you will probably get injured.

Jakester, tell your wife not to worry :) This sport is not as dangerous as a lot of people like to make it sound. Sure you can get hurt, but you are more likely to get hurt on a motorcycle or even a skateboard. 99% of the time, if you pay attention to the weather and use common sense, you are not going to get hurt. I've been riding for almost 3 years now and have had only one injury (which was not all that serious). As with anything, if you drop your guard and take unnecessary risks, you are very likely to get injured.

A lesson at the causeway? Oh boy, I hope that is not true. That is quite possibly one of the worst locations for a lesson I can think of. Most of us would not even consider riding out there, except for a few diehards who are stuck in tampa I guess.

Please Do Not Spread A Rumor
 

PLEASE DO NOT SPREAD A RUMOR.
IT WAS NOT A LESSON !

I agree that we all need to not jump to a conclusion..

Gui.. do you know more of what happened?

I was thinking about this last night. I wish we could send him a card or a message or something. It would be cool if he knew we were ALL thinking of him!!

A witness suggested it looked like a lesson was happening at the same time (among some other riders) ....

That would be a false assumption.

The accident has affected me greatly. On behalf of the staff at Waterports West we hope Chris a speedy recovery and our prayers are with him and his family in some tough times ahead.

Chris and his mom got some gear from us back in the early summer and headed to Lake Michigan to spend time at their summer home. They had already made plans to enroll Chris in extensive kite camps at Broneah Kiteschool. Late summer Chris called me and said he had a great time and was enjoying the sport to his fullest. He was staying upwind, doing powered transitions, and already perfecting his jumping technique. We all know kids learn quickly.

Assessing risk in this sport is the key to kiting safely. With time it becomes easier. Chris was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I have personally been to the north side of the Dunedin causeway and would never consider kiting there. The risks are too high for me personally. If the wind is north I go to IRB. If it is Northeast I head south or out on the boat. It is tough for the north county folks to ride a Northeast as the options are very limited.

I educate my students especially North County folks about the Causeway and DO NOT recommend kiting the north side of the causeway due to the proximity of the power lines. If you have never been there, imagine East Beach having power lines just across the street. They are that close. I have already spoken with some kiters in that area about placing a self ban on that side. I don't feel anyone should consider kiting there. I may stand alone with this viewpoint, but so be it. Many of us have warned locals about kiting there, and it sets a bad example for new riders making one feel safe. I know we all feel a bit more comfortable about going out when there are at least a few kiters on the water. You feel like you have some backup just in case or that the spot is an "approved" spot to ride.

Correct me if I am wrong, but this has been the worst accident in the bay area to date for kiting. This young man almost lost his life and has a long recovery ahead of him. We can't change the past, but we can change the future. For anyone considering riding this spot, DON'T. Do the right thing and travel somewhere else. It may involve a drive, or not riding at all. Get a kayak and paddle 5 minutes to Caladesi.

Just one more thing to think about, a kiter got his lines in the same power lines just months ago. Fortunately, the lines were cut and a bridge was never made. The kiter's only consequence was getting a new set of lines, but it could have been another bad accident if not death.

The sport is growing and spots are being explored, but let's do the right thing here and use the causeway safely. It is great place to ride but has about every hazard in the book. Power lines and kites don't mix. It is a recipe for disaster.

Ya.. but the guy that said that is new to the sport and might be mistaken..

could have just been a couple guys trading off a kite or one talking to the other as he was standing around before riding.. I think we have all done that before.

my only point in clarifying this 100% is if it was a lesson, to ID the person giving the lesson and ensuring that they never work in this area again.

Steve-O, any info on where we can send cards, well wishes, donations, etc?
-Roadie

just a thought ...

this is a great example of why its so important to stress that local riders get lessons from local instructors.

yes you can make a fun trip to cabarette or another exotic location and learn to kite.. but by learning from a local you get inside knowlege on riding spots and weather conditions.

Steve-O has a great class at Water Sports West; kind of the "before you go out on the water" fundamentals class. In it he packs locations and hazards, all on a CD as well as the basics you need to know before you even get out.

Had me pretty well set by the time I started taking lessons from Randy.

Amen on the local instructors, just make sure they are PASA certified.
-Roadie

Chris' condition
 

Thank you to everyone who has expressed concern regarding Chris. He is still in the ICU but is improving everyday and will be ok. I told him about how great most of the kiteboarders and people had been and he has been reading the blog. As such, please understand that Chris did have quite abit of instruction and was doing well. He should have had more local lessons and trust me it was not for lack of trying. He will kiteboard again and will have a better understanding about local conditions. THIS WAS AN ACCIDENT. THERE WERE ALOT of EXPERIENCED kiteboarders at the causeway...he thought it was ok if they were there. It does not help anyone, including my son, to keep talking about whether kiting there was 'stupid'. We have remained quiet even though the press has hounded us as Chris' first concern was that his accident not affect the sport he loves negatively and knew that things would get turned around in the press. Alot of people read these blogs...negative comments are not going to help ANYONE. Thank you for your concern, he is in the ICU at St. Joe's in Tampa and doing as well as can be expected. Chris' mom

while I am not as harsh with my words, I have to agree with some of what you are saying sandandsurf...problem is that its just so easy to feel like you have control 100% of the time.. and with the newer style kites you can handle extreme gusts with relative ease.

its the subject of most all of our forum threads and the facts are that people are going to do what people want to do in a sport like this. we can, as a community, try our best to enforce rules for safety and whatnot.. but if someone wants to put up their kite near some power lines.. no one can really stop them..

I am glad that every quote I read or saw regarding this accident emphasized the safety and education side instead of people saying "Its EXTREME man!! Its an adrenalin rush!! Lets all have a Mountain Dew and chase it with a red bull and go hit the sliders!! YEEHAW!!"...

and I alway get a kick outta someone misspelling genius.

I think I speak for the absolute majority of the group of guys and gals that kitesurf in our area that we know that accidents of this nature can (and unfortunately will) happen. Please keep us updated and let him know we cant wait to see him back out on the water..

When I heard about the accident, I had a reflexive thought of "kiting by power lines, WTF?" until I heard that Chris is 16 years old.

The guy's in high school, still growing up. I am glad to see that the post flaming Chris was removed. Let's give Chris a break and not write him off as some jerk who was bound to get hurt somehow, someway because of recklessness. Whatever Chris's story is, I am sure he is not as wild and insane as I was at his age. I don't believe that I've met Chris but it sounds like he is a pretty cool guy.

Besides, Chris is hurt. I am sure no one has the cajones to go to his hospital room and spew venom at the guy in front of his family, so why go on this forum and kick him while he is down? Some of his decisions may have been bad but personal attacks on a forum are weak under any circumstances and even worse here. Quality people make bad decisions at times. It is important for us to talk about the controllable factors that contributed to his accident so others can avoid such decisions, but there is no need to insult Chris or any other kiter around here.

Chris's accident drives home the point of why it is important to identify and calculate risk in this sport, at all levels. If Chris had assessed the situation correctly, he likely would have kept his kite on the ground or found another place to ride because he would have realized that the risks inherent at that spot at that time were too great for the potential reward. I suspect Chris wishes he could turn back the clock and decide differently.

It sounds like some other kiters dodged the bullet that day, but a bad kiting decision is a bad decision regardless of outcome. Sometimes you pay sooner, sometimes later, but if you keep making questionable kiting decisions, the odds will eventually catch up with you. Every kiteboarder who plans to continue pursuing this sport needs to think long and hard about that reality and sweep his or her own doorstep.

The sure way to avoid kiteboarding injuries is to shun the sport entirely. Given that such an approach is not acceptable to most kiteboarders, the next best approach is to minimize or eliminate risks that do not contribute much to the rewards of kiting. Riding in appropriate weather at safe kiting locations with well-designed gear that is in good repair goes a long way to reducing the likelihood of an accident. Start messing with that formula and your risk starts to go up but you are probably not having much more fun. Indeed, you are probably having less fun.

Get well, Chris. I have a stack of kiteboarding mags from the past several years, so if you want something to read while you are stuck in the hospital or at home, send a private message my way with your mailing address and I will send them to you via UPS Ground.

Very relieved to hear he is recovering quickly. I hope he is up and riding again soon.

I am also relieved to hear that he is okay.
I didn't read a flame post on here (maybe it was removed, I just got home). I feel like most of us have expressed geniune concern for Chris and pray he gets well.

However, I do believe it would be irresponsible to not learn from each other's mistakes. If we do not discuss the mistakes made, others might make the same mistake again.
I also believe that since this did grab media attention, making it clear most of us avoid that area and those types of conditions is necessary to assure the public that we are safe. I hope Chris sees it that way and agrees.

I was asked to give some inputs today on safety and the local kiting scene, to what I thought was going to be Channel 8 (I don't know now who it was, in all honestly, because I did a phone interview and then someone showed up in "normal" car).
I demonstrated our safety gear and I was asked if Chris's accident was avoidable. I did answer yes, and explained about not launching upwind of power lines. I think I phrased it "He would have lessened his odds drastically". I definitely wasn't going to answer the question with "no, nothing different could have been done."

I made it clear I was not there, and was going by what I heard.
If they edit that out, trust me, I made it clear from the get go I was answering the question based on information received, not personally witnessed. I was also asked if Chris was an experienced rider.
Again, I said I didn't know Chris, but that most of us know each other and the fact so few of us have met him and the nature of the mistake made, that I assumed Chris was a new rider (to me, less than 2 years is a fairly new rider). I answered questions regarding Chris's accident the best I could given information provided by from eyewitnesses
My answers were non-emotional and matter of fact. My single goal was to the leave the interviewer with the understanding that our sport is safe when performed properly.

Hopefully they don't axe murder it to the point of editing out everything but three words "can be dangerous".

I hope you and Chris understand some of our points of view in simply trying to keep our sport safe and educate riders as well as the public. This accident has become a focal point, like it or not, and we need to make it clear it was an avoidable accident, imo.
I don't think any of us feels anything but sad for Chris's accident and we just want to lessen the odds of similar accidents occuring in the future.

I heard you comparing kite boarding to shuffleboard.

Shuffleboard is dangerous. When I was 10 I got hit in the face with the stick. My life as a super model was over :(

Oh, huge thanks to BigAirAl for letting us borrow his gear for awhile.
He was itching to ride BIG time, and we were sitting there pointing at his kite and the bar and lines and stufff. To add insult, Bob was out riding and having a good time.
Thanks for being patient and not getting dragged on your launch in the mud on film, Al! :)

I just found the article by back tracking the reporters name on google.
The article had several misquotes from me, and imo, distorts statistics to make kiting look dangerous.
I wouldn't care so much if I didn't think it could sway public perception, but obviously it can.

One : I said most riders average age is between 25 and 35, not all riders. Heck, I am 40! Howard is 65.
Not a biggie to most, but I am a stickler for getting people's words correct and made an effort to break down the population by age, sex, etc. To me, this just shows lack of attention to detail and not caring about accurate reporting.

Two: I said Chris would have lessened his odds of injury by not being near the powerlines. The size of the kite (which I don't even know) is irrelevant and I didn't mention it. I focussed most of my discussion on location.
I also stressed that as a new rider, knowing about local weather would be very difficult and that only made matters worse and that the gust event caught him off guard. I went on to say (not related to this event) that in most situations, riding a distance offshore gives any rider more time to respond to a non-anticipated event.
I didn't say Chris in particular. It might sound like I am splitting hairs, but it's a misquote.

Third: I pointed out I didn't want to point the finger, especially to a new rider that was injured, but that I felt the accident could be avoided. Again, I focussed on the object and powerline, and made it clear new riders have little experience with weather.
The quote sounds much more harsh than I remember.

The video was edited to the best of light in my opinion (if focussing on the accident). Julie obviously wanted to focus on Chris's accident and that it was indeed an accident, not a common occurence.
We spent much more time demonstrating the safety gear (don't know why now) than talking about Chris.
I guess they have to focus on something. The accident has been in the spotlight, it was still the focal point.
I expected a little different, still naive at 40, I guess.
Anyway, just want people to know the scoop on what was said and then what was represented in the article.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/oct...?news-breaking

I am intersted, btw, accidents are on the rise?
One is one. I guess one is larger than zero?

My conclusion, these guys are in it (writing articles) for the headlines and not in it for providing accurate information. Misquoting or distorting quotes for a "better" story is wrong. I am frustrated that my effort to provide accurate information was distorted.
I was concerned about this when Rick contacted me about giving the interview (why I CMA'd on prior post).
But, I did it anyway. I won't make that mistake again.