RE: RANT [was RE: Rescuer Rescued]

From: gry1 (gry1@pacbell.net-DeleteThis.com)
Date: Tue Jun 24 2003 - 08:24:23 PDT

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From: "gry1" <gry1@pacbell.net-DeleteThis.com>
To: <wind_talk@opus.labs.agilent.com-DeleteThis.com>
Subject: RE: RANT [was RE: Rescuer Rescued]
Date: Tue, 24 Jun 2003 08:24:23 -0700
Message-ID: <000f01c33a64$b31e64c0$1000a8c0@gry1>
Importance: Normal
In-Reply-To: <002901c33070$d0ecb4f0$6400a8c0@jstrausb>

My only problem with kiteboarding is the attitude of some of the
participants. I have many friends who kiteboard. However, there are
some kiteboarders who have little to no respect for others; ie slamming
their kite down on everyone's equipment at 3rd. I wouldn't put my rig
down on someone's kite. I addition, there is this little agro problem:
aiming themeselves at a windsurfer who is walking or slogging. It's not
the sport, it's some of the #$$holes practicing it. Respect begets
respect.

BTW I'm one of those snowboarders.

Gerry

-----Original Message-----
From: wind_talk@opus.labs.agilent.com-DeleteThis.com
[mailto:wind_talk@opus.labs.agilent.com-DeleteThis.com] On Behalf Of Jonathan
Strausburg
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2003 4:32 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list WIND_TALK
Subject: RANT [was RE: Rescuer Rescued]

Kiters go to Crissy for the same reason that windsurfers go to Crissy;
it's a fun place that pushes your skills and abilities so you can become
a better rider.

A "no kite" sign? Everywhere I look in the windsurfing community there
is anti-kite sentiment.

I'm still a little hot under the collar from my recent iWindsurf
subscription. I paid over $100 for state-of-the-art wind information,
and I gotta tell you I am *very* happy with the services they provide,
but on the info page for my favorite launch they have the following
quote:

        "Also, the sandy beach downwind from the launch
        is in a wind shadow and can be OK for a beach chair
        - until the kitesurfers show up..."

Man, I just gave you $100 and you're slamming me because I need a place
to rig and de-rig my gear? I'm your *customer*. Wake up.

Ugh, not again. I already went through this whole thing 10 years ago
with skiers vs. snowboarders. Skiers were upset that snowboarders were
everywhere, taking over their mountains. Resorts that used to be
half-empty are now crowded with boarders "ruining the snow."

What the ski industry finally realized is that snowboarding brought a
new generation into the mix. The younger consumers brought a
revitalized interest in buying equipment, lift tickets, and lodge
rentals. Ultimately the skiers have had to deal with more crowded
conditions on the hill, but greater demand has meant lower costs, more
places to ride, and better facilities for everyone.

Kiteboarding is bringing more people out to the best, windiest launch
points every day. As a new, hot, and popular sport, it's pumping money
into the windsurf/kitesurf communities. It has a steep but short
learning curve, making it easily to progress quickly in the sport, and
feel good about your progress in the water. "What's the difference
between an amateur and a pro kiteboarder? Two weeks."

Kiteboarding is fun to watch. It's brought more spectators to the
launch sites. There are more companies supplying equipment, more
magazines, more wind-water-sport television programs, more advertising
dollars, and more competitions with more prize purses.

In the long run it will create more demand for better facilities at
wind/kite hotspots as well as improvements in technology, gear, and
safety equipment.

The first time I saw kiteboarding, I bought a trainer kite that day,
paid for a lesson 2 weeks later, and bought a full setup of equipment
the week after that. I'm totally hooked, I love the sport and the
entire community at my usual launch.

There are minor entanglements with windsurfers - they don't want us
rigging in *their* rigging area, or launching from *their* launch point.
It seems that the windsurfers also feel the right to park illegally
because their gear is heavier and more awkward to carry from the back of
the parking lot.

Hopefully I won't have to wait another 8 years before windsurfers and
kitesurfers can get along with each other, talk about the wind and the
waves, and swap "best day ever" stories.

-J

-----Original Message-----
From: wind_talk@opus.labs.agilent.com-DeleteThis.com
[mailto:wind_talk@opus.labs.agilent.com-DeleteThis.com] On Behalf Of Lev Brouk
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2003 3:08 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list WIND_TALK
Subject: Re: Rescuer Rescued

Honestly, I do not why kiters would go to Crissy alltogether... I had
windsurfed there for over 2 seasons quite regularly, and IMO it's got
to be superdangerous, if not so much for kitesurfers themselves then
for all vessels around them. And it can't even be that much fun! With
the irregular offshore wind, the wind strength difference between all
the different "zones" there, the choppy waters...

I guess, in the San Francisco area there aren't that many nice long
sandy beaches with sideonshore winds and no currents, so it almost
forces the kiters to launch where they shouldn't. I live in France now
and here for the most part they go to miles-long beaches with
side-to-sideon winds, and you never see them going more than a few
hundred feet away offshore.

And why would they? They don't need to since they don't need to work
upwind as hard as most windsurfers, they don't need the stronger winds
on the outside, and the smooth water between the waves seems a better
playing ground than the chop outside.

I hate regulating beach usage where it comes to watersports, but maybe
this is a rare case where a "no kite" sign would be appropriate?

Disclaimer (to avoid blame :-). I do not even live in SF any more, so
I may not know the extent of kite beach shortage. BTW, I do a bit of
kiting myself, and I think I do have an appreciation for the issue.

- Lev

--- Eyes4Hire@aol.com-DeleteThis.com wrote:
> I was windsurfing from Crissy Field yesterday. I was just about a
> mile inside the Gate when I came upon a kitesurfer who was unable to
> fly his kite due to lack of wind. He was in the shipping channel
> and there was a large tanker coming inbound toward the Golden Gate
> Bridge. It was hard to gauge the ship's exact path, but it looked
> like there was good chance that the kitesurfer would be harms way.
> I dropped my sail and pulled out my radio to make a general
> broadcast warning shipping in the area to keep an eye out for the
> down kitesurfer. I was on wave gear and barely had enough wind to
> keep myself moving in the light wind. A few racers came by on their
> larger windsurf boards, but none of them were confident that they
> could tow the kiter to shore in the light wind. The current was
> flooding and there was no way that this guy would be able to swim
> back to the San Francisco shore before the current took him on
> toward Alcatraz and Treasure Island. I got back on the radio on
> channel 16 and hailed the Coast Guard for assistance. The
> dispatcher responded immediately and said they would send help. It
> wasn't clear if they had dispatched a boat yet, but I could see a
> 47' Coast Guard rescue boat moving near the Marin shoreline. The
> rescue boat was so far out of position that I assumed they were
> handling another call. I rebroadcast our position repeatedly over a
> 10-15 minute period to make sure that they knew we were drifting.
> During this time the flood current was pushing us to the east and by
> know were a couple of miles inside the Gate. The Coast Guard rescue
> boat eventually worked its way up to the Golden Gate Bridge and
> seemed to be moving in a search pattern. I hailed the Coast Guard
> on channel 16 and asked to be switched to channel 22 in hopes that I
> would be operating channel as the rescue boat. Once I was on
> channel 22, I was able to talk directly with the skipper of the
> rescue boat and guide him in on our position. Once the rescue boat
> clearly had the kiter in sight, I radioed and advised them that I
> would start heading for shore immediately since the current and the
> light wind were going to make my return to shore very difficult if I
> waited any longer. I had already drifted over a mile while I stayed
> with the kitesurfer to make sure they could locate him. The skipper
> told me that they would prefer to bring me ashore since there was
> heavy vessel traffic in the area. I told the skipper that I would
> start toward shore and asked that he catch up with assist and me if
> I was having difficulty. I stuffed my radio in my wetsuit and
> started sailing for shore. Almost immediately, I could tell that
> the light wind and the current would prevent from hitting the shore
> anywhere within a mile of Crissy Field. I turned back toward the
> kiter. The rescue boat had arrived and they were already at work
> loading his gear. I stood off at a distance of about 30' and tacked
> my board back and forth, waiting for my turn to load up. I had not
> made any further radio call since I was using both hands to sail. I
> assumed that my return to the scene would have made it clear that I
> was accepting the offer of a ride to shore. They finished loading
> the kiter and I started heading for the starboard side of the rescue
> boat where the crew had pulled the kiter up. As I was nearing the
> side of the boat, I heard the 450 horsepower engines revving up and
> the boat started moving away. At first I thought he might be trying
> to reposition the boat, but as he moved farther away, it was clear I
> was going to be on my own. I immediately let go of the sail and
> dropped to my knees. I waved my right arm from side to side
> intending to indicate that I needed help. The skipper happened to
> look back just at that moment. He raised his arm and waved a
> friendly goodbye as the boat picked up speed. At this point I
> realized I should have waved both arms to more clearly have
> indicated distress, but it was too late. My momentary chance had
> passed. I reached into my wetsuit and pulled out the radio. I
> broadcast a call on channel 22, advising the skipper that I needed
> assistance. There was no reply. I tried again. No reply. I tried
> channel 16. No reply. I tried for five minutes to get a response
> from the Coast Guard or anyone at all. No reply. I finally
> accepted the fact that the radio had failed. By know I had been
> pulled so far to the east that I wasn't sure I'd make the City even
> if I ditched my rig and swam for it. It seemed ironic to me that I
> might be the one to swim home after dark even though I was far more
> prepared than the kiter I had stopped to help. I was glad I had a
> strobe light since there wasn't much day light left. I took a good
> look around and over my shoulder I spotted the "heavy vessel
> traffic" that the skipper had referred to. A cruise ship was headed
> outbound from the City toward the Gate. Because of the Coast Guards
> elevated port security, two Coast Guard vessels were escorting the
> cruise ship. I pulled out the one flare in my safety pack and
> hurriedly pulled the safety cap off. I wanted to get the flare off
> before while I was still somewhat in the forward view of the nearest
> escort vessel. I tugged the firing chain and the red flare shot up
> into the sky. I was surprised by how high it flew and how long it
> burned. It seemed like the performance was better than advertised.
> I watched for a minute or two and there was no response. I was
> hoping that their port security mission didn't preclude the rescue
> of stranded windsurfers. I figured that they might be worried that
> I was a diversion of some sort. After a couple of minutes, the
> smaller rescue boat peeled off and turned in my direction while the
> larger and more heavily armed cutter stayed alongside the cruise
> ship. The smaller boat was a rigid hull inflatable with a three-man
> crew. When they arrived they were very friendly. They radioed for
> assistance and told me that they would stand by until the original
> rescue boat returned since their boat was too small to handle my
> gear. After about five minutes in the water, the original rescue
> boat returned. With four crewmen helping me out, we were able to
> get my gear onboard quickly. They held my sail across the bow of
> the boat with the clew pushed up against a bulkhead. The skipper
> powered up and headed for Crissy Field at full throttle. As the
> wind pushed on the sail, the sail wanted to flutter with the clew
> downwind, but the tail was trapped against the bulkhead. As the
> wind sail pushed into the bulkhead, a fitting on the bulkhead tore a
> small hole through the monofilm. I climbed up the ladder to the fly
> bridge and asked the skipper if he could ease the throttles back so
> that the sail wouldn't be damaged any further. He was glad to
> accommodate me, and I finished my adventure with a leisurely ride
> back to Crissy Field.
>
> Peter
>
> [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor]
>

Next message: Jonathan Hahn: "Gorge accommodations"
Previous message: Nick Martin (nickmart): "Lost a europin chinock downhaul crank at Crissy last Thursday."
In reply to: Jonathan Strausburg: "RANT [was RE: Rescuer Rescued]"
Next in thread: Eyes4Hire@aol.com-DeleteThis.com: "Re: Rescuer Rescued"
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