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Mega Jump - How high is too high?

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Toby
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Postby Toby » Thu Apr 04, 2002 6:34 pm

seen on hanacrew.com, still not believing it...

Image

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Toby
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Postby Toby » Thu Apr 04, 2002 6:35 pm

which kite is Dimitri riding?

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Postby Guest » Thu Apr 04, 2002 6:46 pm

Helicopter Pro. Limit 2000
AK

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RickI
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Postby RickI » Thu Apr 04, 2002 8:11 pm

I just called up Hana Crew to get some details about this shot. You will notice that the camera is at about the same elevation as Dimitri. I was told that the photo was taken from the top story of a shop at Cape Hatteras. The shop is on stilts and the height was estimated at 35 to 40 ft. So, congratulations to the cameraman for a well composed, impressive but deceptive shot!

I have heard unconfirmed reports of guys making it to 70 ft. and higher over in Leucate. What is the highest jump that some one has seen? The highest one that I have seen is probably 40 ft.

Rick Iossi

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Postby enzo » Thu Apr 04, 2002 8:47 pm

Rick, you're right on the money.
Have been doing a lot of kiting there, with Dimitri as well.
The Hatteras Island Surf Shop (from which the shot was taken from) stands right on the water in Salvo -NC- and there's a nice porch on the second floor just overlooking the water, perfect for pictures.
Granted that Dimitri goes huge fairly often but this shot is deceiving to say the least. The picture has also been cropped to give an "extra high" effect. Basically is much further away (from the camera) than you would think. At any rate a big jump for sure just not as big as it looks.
Dimitri is riding now for Cabrinha now but I think he was still with Slingshot when they took this picture, not sure 100%.
Also I would add that even a great rider as Dimitri is not immune from accidents. In December he was kiting in very gusty conditions and his kite collapsed when he was some 30 feet up landing flat on the water and breaking a few ribs. He's back in full action now but as he himself now admits kiting is a very dangerous sport. In His own words he said the following " What is the worst accident you've had while kiting: I do have plenty of bad memories for example, jumping and having my harness lines slide out of the bar. Then plummeting inverted from 20 feet in the air into two feet of water. Also, pinching a nerve in my back due to a bad landing. However, the worst experience was breaking my ribs while trying a very hard move in very gusty winds.
Kiting can be very, very, very dangerous. I've had friends lose their fingers and ears, get cut by their fins, and get hit by the board. I also have a friend who died while kiteboarding. Please respect the power of the kite and always have someone there to help you. " That's from his own web site...http://www.xtremekiteboarding.com/about.cfm?pg=2


Let's all think about this and play it safe. There always time to go higher.
enzo

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Postby RickI » Fri Apr 05, 2002 12:47 am

Hello Enzo,

Good points. Some of the body whacks much above 20 ft. have been painful. Going big does have a price sometimes. I chose the uncool path years ago and have always worn an impact vest. Without one I am pretty certain I would have broken rips at least twice and had the wind knocked out of me many times. I hadn't heard about Dimitri's broken ribs. I am glad that heal healed rapidly and bounced back into things. If you have any additional details, would you send them to me by private email for the new Kitesurfing Safety Information (KSI) site? I will not identify him by name. Robby Naish broke a couple of ribs over two years ago on a bad landing.

Rick Iossi
flkitesurfer@hotmail.com

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Postby eutanator » Fri Apr 05, 2002 10:18 am

Enzo Molinari - this name wake up some sophisticated memories and makes me feel more individual ... and appetite for a Sicilian pasta!


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