The Art of Staying Alive
Since it is done properly, the risks of kiting are manageable.
Form my driving experience, I can tell you for sure that the risk of kiting is pretty much the same as that of driving a car anywhere in North America, not to mention the risk of driving in some European countries. That surely is an act of courage. Similar to driving, where the risk is manageable, given a certain amount of attention, in the case of kitesrfing, there will always be fatal or at least serious accidents. Personally, I have been driving for more than two decades now and I had my fair share of accidents, some minor, some not so minor, but I have never had a serious one. The following table shows the Art of Staying Alive, useful in both driving and kitesurfing:
The Art of Staying Alive |
Kitesurfing |
Driving |
Don't kitesurf in severe weather (storm, thunderstorm, etc.) unless you absolutely must do so |
Don't drive in severe weather (heavy rain, blizzard, freezing rain, etc.) unless you absolutely must do so |
When in doubt of the weather condition or equipment, stop kiting. |
When in doubt of the weather condition, the car or the road, stop driving. |
Use your "automated" (dead-man) safety devices when launching, landing or near hard objects. |
Use your "automated" safety devices (air bags, auto-locked seat-belt, ABS, etc.) |
Don't attach yourself to the kite in certain conditions (launching, landing, near hard objects) |
Don't attach yourself to the car - wear your seat-belt - in certain conditions (driving on ice - frozen lake) |
Wear appropriate protection devices (helmet, PFD or impact vest, etc.) |
Wear appropriate protection devices (seat-belt, helmet for formula-one racing, etc.) |
Go slow and be careful in crowded place (near shore, people and hard objects, etc.) |
Go slow and be careful on crowded road. |
Don't jump in crowded place (near shore, people and hard objects, etc.) |
Don't jump your car on crowded city streets (unless you are filming some action movies of course ;-) |
Be alert and prepare to handle unexpected risks (extreme gusts, other "crazy" kiters, submerged rocks, etc.) |
Be alert and prepare to handle unexpected risks ("black ice", other "crazy" drivers, objects on the road, hidden driveway, etc.) |
Take a Kiting Lesson |
Take a Driving Lesson |
Don't Drink and Kite |
Don't Drink and Drive |
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