No offense to anyone's students, but we all know as instructors, people usually get one lesson and are gone. My point is that its hard for a student to know exactly when he's able to practice on their own. The kiteboarder card solves that problem by requiring a basic skills test to verify that they have learned the basics. Every kiter I teach gets a self rescue demonstration in the first 3 hour lesson, but rarely do they return and show that they have learned it. Thats something beyond the instructors control. Create standards and the problem is closer to being solved.
Personally, I am not going to get involved in another (of many) 15 page threads of BS concerning guidelines, signs, tags, or whatever. Its the right way to go considering we now have 300-400 kiters walking on thin ice with the officals of Pinellas County, and now, IRB...
I don't think the guy yesterday was being reckless, just a new kiter who shouldn't be practicing water starts and relaunch 50' from the beach. The other 2 kiters with me said that was probably the guy this thread was originally about, but who knows or cares. It doesn't matter if they are inexperienced or just inconsiderate- a ban is a ban.
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