This is a message I just got today from a kiter concerning the new Chicken Loop and wanted to share this with you.
Quote:
Hey Dimitri, Joseph of Ikarus here in Playa del carmen...
System looks really good man, Im ordering one to adapt an old bar and line set that I have. TERRIBLE music at the end though..i thought my computer was defragmenting with a nasty trojan virus attack! jeje..must be a Greek thing... anyway, the way the line "feeds" back through is great, but I would hope that you caution all the newbies that they need to be VEEERYY very careful in high winds that all that sharp kite line doesn't get wrapped around their fingers or their NECKS as it slides back through...I hope you tell them that they will VERY RARELY activate and re-set the emergency in the water, that normally they will be MUCH safer just letting the bar away. And that the system is mostly used if they need to do an emergency water rescue (due to broken line, deflating kite, offshore wind situation) OR self landing...where I see it to be MOST useful.
But once again, I really like the simplicity and Im ordering at least one to try it out.
Have one more question for your high amount of experience riding in WAVES Dimitri...
If you drop the kite in the impact zone and you KNOW its going to get hammered by the waves...lets say you even KNOW that you will NOT be able to relaunch and you just want the kite to "survive" the waves the best it can....but you DONT want to eject completely from the kite and lose it...would you just push the bar away OR activate the "one line safety" system? In which configuration do you think the kite will survive the slams of the waves the best?
thanx for any tips and congrats again on a nice, clean system.
Hello Joseph.
Yes you are 100% correct about engaging the CL system. The only time you want to engage the Chicken Loop is if you are in danger and want to totally kill the power of the kite, or if you don't have some one to help you land and your last option is to engage the CL system for landing the kite safe on the beach or water. This won't be an every day thing while you are kiting.
Just think of an AIR BAG in your car its there for emergencies only. But the good thing about this CL system is that you can always put it back in less then 3 seconds and have the kite back up in the air in less then 15 seconds. I know some kiters that never engage a CL in their entire kiting days.
I will do another video about the new system so newbies get a better understanding about when the CL and when to engage it. Because you do have to be careful of the lines while you are reloading the kite.
Now concerning engaging the Chicken Loop in the waves!!!! In the waves I never engage the CL, I just leave it as a suicide system so the waves can pull me and the kite towards the beach. But I do have my hand on the back of my harness where the leash is attached to in case I am getting pulled down under the water and I can't breath. This has happened to me twice in my entire kiting experience. Then I will release the leash so the entire kite is 100% off the hook. In big waves, you don't want to release the CL because if you do so and flag the kite, you will have to be careful of the extra lines that will be around you and you don't want to be tangled in these lines if in case the kite gets pulled by a wave and pulls the lines back in.
That was a great question Joseph. Thank you.
