Postby kitezilla » Thu Jun 12, 2008 4:44 pm
On April 19, I asked the question:
"However, if the bridle does not have pulleys, and the back and front lines are separated from each other, like a SLE style kite, I wonder why they did not just use a back line re-ride safety. It looks to me that, if the IDS system does not adequately flag out the kite, that the system could be modified by converting the bar into a traditional rear line re-ride safety system."
The above statement was just a guess on my part, based solely on a picture of the line and bridle diagram, posted on their web site. It could be that the new IDS CrossBow will spiral out of control if released to a rear line re-ride safety system. I have no reason to believe that it would, but I wouldn't discount that possibility, without adequate testing.
The important question has not yet been answered, but if experience shows that the IDS 2 front line "safety" system is not a truly safe way to down the kite in the process of deep-water-self-rescuing in extreme conditions, then, I would imagine the above bar (or a simple modification to the IDS bar, to make it similar to the above bar), would be a solution to the possible problem.
First, however, it would have to be determined whether or not the IDS kite can be safely flagged out on a rear line. It would be best for Cabrinha to make this determination. However, if Cabrinha does not approve the use of a rear line re-ride safety system to flag out the kite on a rear line, then, I would bet that the user of such a rear line re-ride system would be in danger of voiding the warranty on the kite. Cabrinha could state that the rear line attachment points are not adequately reinforced to absorb the stress generated when the kite is being flagged on a single rear line. a precedent has already been set by The kite company ,Best, who has announced such a policy, where the warranty is declared void, if their Waroo kite is flown with the addition of a fifth line.
Time will tell...but don't hold your breath waiting for a response from Cabrinha on this forum. So far, they have been very tight-lipped about answering concerns voiced by KiteForum users. I would like to see a change in their policy concerning their lack of response to forum questions.