Read this, and then put your phone number on your board.

[Don Monnot]

Last year I noticed that one of my friends had written his phone number on his board, and that seemed like a good idea so I did likewise. Never thought about it again.

I was kiting in the late afternoon a couple of weeks ago (low sun angle), crashed after a big jump, and my board came off. My kite also crashed. The bottom of my board is about the same color as the water, and the fins are gray. The wind was a little light, and with the baggy-top drysuit and PFD I had a lot of trouble getting my kite back up in the air. I was dragged about 200 yards downwind before I got the kite relaunched. When I started looking for my board I couldn't see it. I bodydragged upwind, back and forth for probably 15 minutes looking for my board. Never found it. Dragged back to the beach, dropped the kite, climbed up into a lifeguard stand (no guards on duty), and still couldn't see it. The only other kiter on the beach was giving a beach lesson. When he saw me come in without my board, he grabbed his and headed out to look for mine. He looked for at least a half-hour, and never found it. I looked for about an hour and a half and never saw it. I walked about 1.5 miles downwind/downcurrent in my search, which was as far as I could go (shoreline blocked by a large water treatment plant). I was bummed.

Four days later I got a call from a guy who had found my board where it had washed up on the beach in front of his house. The guy lived 35 miles from where I had lost my board! When I picked it up from him (after handing him a really nice bottle of wine), I was awed by the fact that there wasn't a scratch on it, and the phone number was still very legible. All I had used was a Sharpie marker to write it on the board. It took 30 seconds to put my phone number on the board, and it saved my $500 board.

Don

[eldadgold]

that's a great story.
i put my Email on my board, havn't lost it though (yet).

[Toby]

Thx for sharing!
Glad you got it back!

[prayfawind27]

Good idea for real,but, we live in a world where not everyone is honest and upstanding glad that wasn't the case for you. I will put my number on my board as well.

[MrX123]

what markers are good for getting your number on the board?

[Clarencephil]

what markers are good for getting your number on the board?

[kiter147]

now that is an awsome story that you got your board back
thats a good idea
ill put my number and name on the bottom of my board

[OzBungy]

I got a phone call from a person sayinig they had found my board. I had been kiting that day and thought I must have left it on the side of the road when packing my car to come home. I did not check my car to see which board was missing and I assumed it must have been mine because they were ringing me. How else would they get my number?

When I got there it was a board I had sold two years earlier and my number was still visible written on the deck and fins. The buyer was a friend of a friend so after a few phone calls I tracked him down and returned the board to him.

I use Dymo labels to put my number on my boards. The labels don't fade or peel off. In the past used waterproof marking pens to write the number on the board, fins and kite.

The writing on the board fades a bit. The G10 material of the fins is a little porous so it takers writing very well.

For kites I write the number on the manufacturer's data label. It stays on well but can be cleaned off with alcohol when you sell the kite and does not look ugly. The white reinforcing tape on the strut ends is also a good spot.

[chemosavi]

Not to be dark or anything but while you're at it you might as well do it somewhere on your body as well.

You know, just in case you wash up in some weird place where nobody knows you.

[jmw]

I thought it was more or less thought to be mandatory to write your number on your stuff. Alot of "local" websites, state that it is a "requirement" to ride there, b/c of all the potential problems if coast finds it etc.... sounds good to me.