Stop reporting kite accidents/ fatality??

[BBQFish]

Lately there have been alot of reports about kite accidents and fatalities.
What happens after those reports is that everyone has an opinion about it, starts talking about what went wrong, what can be done about it, how bad it is, why it'll never happen to them, etc...

Funny thing is, kitesurfing seems to be the only sport that reports these events.
Coming from freestyle skiing and believe me, we also experienced accidents in our sport, we NEVER analyzed accidents this way.
There was also mostly one reason for getting into trouble/ hurt, and that was that the person in question had been pushing himself or the conditions to much..simple as that.
Lesson learned?
Don't think you are stronger & better then you really are...and THINK before you do something!!

Why do i bring this up?
Because due to these discussions, journalists, who also visit the kitesurf forums, blow these events outta proportion...look at what happened after the Florida lofting incident.
Local government also hear about it and right away starts to talk about banning the sport.
I have never heard about local councill trying to ban skiing after a guy having had an accident on a mountain..

Anything we can learn from that?

[ian c]

Those reports/stories/debates have saved lives and prevented injuries there is no doubt about it - through education from reading about them.

Reporting based on spin and sensationalism sucks but is part of the business and anyone has the right to reply

[BBQFish]

Have they really??
I like to think that lessons, common sense and looking out for each other on the water prevented accidents from happening.
If i see a guy flying trough the air in a hurricane hitting a building, that's not teaching me anything new..and doesn't contribute to my safety in any way..

[clydesdale]

then by your logic no one in back country skiing should have learned about avalanche risk because no one should have been sharing information.

gearwise skiing is well established and relatively simple, whereas kiting the gear is relatively complex and the evolution is still in the earlier phases. Discussing safety issues/mechanical dis/advantages in accidents only helps to better future equipment.

you are also missing the point that kiting is growing as the internet grows, whereas skiing is already a mature sport and the public/media is desensitized to ski related injuries/deaths.

[kitingkristy]

in the case it can possibly save one life it is good to make people aware in a non dramatic way but in an educational way...
compared to freestyle skiing, well its quite simple, people can kitesurf on 70% of the globe - probably more if you consider rivers and lakes - unlike skiing ( we cant ski in Ireland for instance, same for most of africa)

[bianca]

I have never heard about local councill trying to ban skiing after a guy having had an accident on a mountain..

What you're saying is ridiculous... you'll never hear about local councills wanting to ban skiing ever even if reports about accidents will sound bad because the sport is far too big and brings a lot of revenue, far too much money are at stake.
But kitesurfing is much smaller and it is more dangerous than skiing and much harder to learn as well. You won't see a 3 - 4 years old being able to kitesurf ever but you see them skiing so you can't even compare...
Sadly you need to reming people about the dangers with facts because if you just say it to them they don't believe you or listen.

[Toby]

for me personally all those fatality reports make me more aware and pre think about situations. I tr to have a list of options running if something happens.

Looking at Kevin"s lofting, I try to put myself over and over into this situation, and hopefully will be able to do what I have in mind (e.g. flying the gust, and shortly before hit release).

I'm sure those reports have already saved lives...and let other media look it up, then they will see WE are the power to make the sport safer, since we face the problems.

Without speaking about it, we still would ride without QR!

Those discussion make the sport safer, and hopefully in the future we will hear less fatality reports, due to those discussion and info!

[tungsten222]

Bis repetita non placent.

[Skyway Scott]

My take on kiting (been involved 8 years now) is that 90% of riders don't think and don't listen, let alone learn from a report.
For the 10% who do though, the reports are useful and should continue.

[RickI]

Our fatality rate is fairly low, far lower than say perhaps paragliding or even driving in the USA per 100,000. Add to that with more knowledge and care many kiteboarding fatalities might have been avoided. For every fatality there are many more non-fatal accidents with similar causes and means of avoidance. This later point is a big reason why it is important for all kiters to understand what can go wrong and how to avoid it. Knowledge is power, in a very big way, IF you choose to use it.

Today, there are fewer severe loftings and related trauma than just a few years ago. This is related to technological developments but also better awareness. We never used to have quick releases and were stuck hooked in, then we had quick releases that might not work, today we have quick releases that seem to be a lot more reliable. Kite leashes rarely were used at one time, today they are far more common. Why is that, due to lack of communication and analysis?

There is formal accident tracking and analyses in many activities like hang gliding, paragliding, SCUBA diving, free diving, kayaking, sky diving, canyoning, rowing, many aspects and types of aviation, vessel operation of many descriptions, hockey, avalanches, fishing, base jumping, swimming, bicycling, competitive sports of numerous descriptions, indoor and outdoor climbing, horseback riding and yes, even skiing and snowboarding ... this could go on for a lot longer.

Accident tracking in kitesurfing started quite a few years ago, because it was needed and the right thing to do. There was some resistance to the idea but in time some of the most aggressive detractors in the industry started to support the concept. Resistance or not, if it is the right thing to do, then do it.