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#1
08-21-2007, 08:13 AM
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I think part of the issue is you can buy a kite and get a lesson right at the skyway. This is not a good beginner spot! If you are under close supervision by a good instructor maybe, but to get one or two hours and a new 15M kite and expect to ride there safely is insane!!! There is some implied permission that it is a learning spot if you got a lesson there. If you can't confidently water start and go directly upwind you have no business riding at any skyway launch unless you are under direct supervision.
I admire Randy and Cindy for working hard to create a successful business. I see them both as friends, since they don't post here I'm going to try to talk to them about encouraging their customer to practice and develop their skills at other sites. I can't imagine what kiting would be like if we get banned at the skyway, but unless we change the way it is being used it will be and soon. Oh, and having a certificate doesn't make you a good instructor and teaching is about more than making money. Having the knowledge and skills are much more important, and more so to genuinely care about the student and creating a positive outcome. 
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#2
08-21-2007, 08:33 AM
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Update on injuries
Here is an update from my friend who spoke to the family.
The rider is from Venice Florida and had a gash on his head, sprained neck, broken vertebrae, broken tailbone and several lacerations. He stayed overnight and will be released today. Hope that he is more careful next time. This does pose a serious risk of beach closure and yesterday at skyway was pretty messy. I am not sure the best answer but we as a group may need to consider something soon.
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#3
08-21-2007, 09:06 AM
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Sad to hear about this. It's disappointing that someone didn't stop this guy when they saw the deal going down. Asking for lessons, trying to ride right before the wind picks up at 7, etc. Who launched him?
So much talk about self regulating our sport and obviously it is not working. If you try to speak up instead of just giving a thumbs up you are branded as a drama queen, chastised, etc. We are getting 25 new riders per week and if we are going to be too polite to stop someone (obviously unqualified) from riding we are going to have a few more serious injuries this year, maybe a fatality. Sad, I hope he recovers and gets trained correctly.
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#4
08-21-2007, 09:10 AM
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It's pretty obvious.
We need a gatekeeper. An that person is the person who is always at the beach. Also , if that person doesn't have the time to keep the new person under constant vigilance then that new person cannot kite there until they prove to be proficient. It's also in the best interests of the gatekeeper since shuting down access also shuts him down. Otherwise we won't last another season there
__________________
__________________ ___________________________________ You don't direct ostriches, you herd them
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#5
08-21-2007, 09:29 AM
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Shocker.
Almost got jumped on the other night about half a dozen times, also watched guys jumping about 10-20 feet from the shore. Mainly saw waroo's doin it, but as everyone has one, they're pretty much hard to single out. Was pretty suprised no one got injured sunday night.
The stoke is good and its cool to encourage people to progress and jump but i'd try and refrain from cheering it on when it only takes a gust to move their landing zone to dry land. Sorry to hear about this guy hope he his recovery goes well and he's learned his lesson. -TritonKiteboarding.com
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#6
08-21-2007, 09:35 AM
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Quote:
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#7
08-21-2007, 10:16 AM
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I agree with Bob. A certification means close to NOTHING. It is easy for a "certified" instructor to get lost in trying to pound out lessons to make the most money possible or to lose genuine concern for the student due to the number of students that they teach. I am not saying that this happens locally but rather that I feel that a good quality instructor is more than a piece of paper saying that you are "certified" to teach.
"What kind of board was he on? I know a guy that showed up earlier with a particular brand board asking about lessons and had already purchased a board and seemed very gung-ho." Don't worry Scott, it wasn't one of my Skywalkers this guy was riding...  Creating drama on a forum because you are bored is something completely different than showing genuine concern for someone's safety Tom. Stop complaining about it on the forum as has been done on countless threads (not pointing the finger just at you, but at myself and others as well) and actually PROVE that you are CONCERNED by showing that concern at the beach. You are right, someone should have stopped this guy if he was exhibiting kook-like behavior...like asking about lessons and when he couldn't get them just launching. I agree a "gatekeeper" would be a good idea but that person also needs to have close contact with others in the area who have given lessons and "approved" other newbie riders or it will cause friction on our beaches. Bottom line is that you can't control this type of thing, it WILL happen sooner or later just like car accidents do. It is a fact of life and I don't see any sense in bringing attention to ourselves until the authorities ASK us to. I thought the sign with rules idea a while back was a great idea to post at each launch site but these ideas never seem to develop into reality. I think we as a community have a good track record in our area as far as accidents go, keep it what it is...as soon as you change it you will be wishing it was like it was "last season".
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http://www.airtimekite.com/map_tw.html
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#8
08-21-2007, 10:24 AM
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Quote:
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#9
08-21-2007, 12:02 PM
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Quote:
If you aren't disagreeing with me why exactly did you choose to single me out on this thread? If you actually showed up to ride once in awhile you'd see that I usually spend more time helping beginners, recovering boards and launching and landing kites than I do riding. I've learned some hard lessons myself and am always sharing stories with beginners to educate them about the dangers of kiting. You just can't agree with everything and expect to make a change at the same time. We definitely cannot promote safety by nodding and giving the thumbs up to everything under the sun while some newb launches himself into the black void. [edited, i got the Steve's mixed up] Btw, I agree instructors should be certified... but it is obvious that the training required for some certifications at the moment is not quite up to the level it should be. That IS a problem, but it's a problem of the certifying agency, not the certification itself. And of course there are some great instructors who are not certified... but that is usually because they let their certification lapse, not because they were never trained to begin with. There are still a few who are just good at teaching anything... but there is no way for a beginner to recognize that without some form of certificate. Last edited by popeye; 08-21-2007 at 12:57 PM.
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#10
08-21-2007, 10:17 AM
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Yeah I almost got knocked out cold by one of cindy/randys friends last night at the skyway. Guy was only 20 yards upwind of me (we were the only two kiters on the water b/c sun was going down), and decided to boost. Well he came directly at me like a damn ninja with his board pointed at me and, luckily, landed about 7ft upwind of me. It amazed me that he was surprised how far downwind he ended up after the jump. Tried explaining to me that he picks up speed so he can jump and continue in the same direction. I'm thinking...."WTF??!! It doesn't work like that!" So I tell him you're always going to go downwind during a jump. Doubt he listened. I also noticed quite a few other newbies out there. My take on the situation is this.....
You guys won't see me down there again....unless it's a night ride. My first time riding skyway really showed me what a f-kin zoo that place is and makes me appreciate my own riding spots. I like the riding area very much but there's way too many people there. I see the inherent dangers that exist, but feel very comfortable navigating through them. I don't feel comfortable with so many noobies out there, considering the fact that I almost got sent to the hospital and another noob DID get sent. How is it that they received instruction and don't know wtf they are doing??? I also didn't care too much for the vibe out there. A few nice people for sure. More than a few with the "my kite's bigger than yours ego" that I don't care for. Reminds me of surfing. So now a big problem exists. Lessons are being taught at the skyway and the new students are learning to ride there after the lessons. New riders will make mistakes. SW isn't a spot to make mistakes. Inevitably, it's going to get shut down b/c of riders like these and EB is gonna get all the spillover. So what's next? East beach is where those lessons/mistakes should be taking place. It's a much more foregiving area. WSW goes out of there way to teach in very safe environments and tells there students NOT TO RIDE THE SKYWAY. I wish the rest would do the same. I consider any new rider at the skyway a "cowboy." It took me since november to build my skills enough that I would consider venturing out there for the first time. Well, not again. I really appreciate my riding areas now and the people who I ride with regularly. my .02knots -sean
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