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Opinions on strapless+leash at the coast
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Post new topic   Reply to topic    Northwest Kiteboarding -> Gorge / Portland / Oregon Coast
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LapDog

Since 19 Dec 2008
66 Posts
White Salmon
 



PostTue Jul 15, 14 9:04 am    Opinions on strapless+leash at the coast Reply with quote

I like to ride strapless in the waves, but do loose my board more often than I'd like. I've started using a surfers leash. Have used the leash for three days in small waves. Seems good so far.

Anyone have experience with strapless+leash in head high or bigger waves?

... Or any ideas about how to reliably make it through biggish shore break, strapless, without a leash. Perhaps a good chicken jibe and good pointing skills on the outside is the simple answer.

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blowhard

Since 26 Dec 2005
2023 Posts

Windward



PostTue Jul 15, 14 9:50 am     Reply with quote

a surfboard is a class 1 safety device,

a helmut and a leash velcro to my waist
when head high or over
for me

and a very good chicken gybe

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Gman

Since 11 Feb 2006
4907 Posts
Portland
Unstrapped



PostTue Jul 15, 14 10:01 am     Reply with quote

good question

being an expert at body dragging is a key skill to both strapless and strapped riding: upwind, thru waves, under whitewater, bodysurfing sans board, in ripping current, etc...

dialed jibes and finding the seams thru overhead surf just takes practice, I am always surprised at the size of the things you can sneak thru but it just takes one mis-timed shoulder high impact and you might be limping around for a while...

Surf leash at own risk + helmet
just started using a board leash on bigger days - only had limited experience with one 4 years ago in some barreling surf in Peru where the board would not return the beach and the impact zone was hideous place to be body draggin around.

Most beaches around here are sandy and the waves generally push the board back to shore - no leash really needed - most wipeouts i can usually catch up to the board as i chase it down bodysurfing long before it gets to the beach

But some spots have a rocky shore and the board might end up on top a double overhead wave detonating on rocks/Jetty/piles - board leash on big days can help here but also might destroy you. I have had the board fly thru the air and shoot thru the kite lines with the leash draped around (not easy to undo and pull thru and sort out) or more common have the board "bass plug" to the bottom as you try to drag thru a wave slowing you so you get nailed by the wave and then the board releases gettin you.

not a slamdunk

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LapDog

Since 19 Dec 2008
66 Posts
White Salmon
 



PostTue Jul 15, 14 10:13 am     Reply with quote

bodydragging/bodysurfing... Good point, could probably catch the board a lot quicker/closer, if I pursued it aggressively immediately after a wipe-out.

The board popping up through the lines is something I hadn't considered. Perhaps releasing the leash from ankle would be best in that case, if possible.

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dangler

Since 26 Feb 2006
1742 Posts
WINDY SPOTS
XTreme Poster



PostTue Jul 15, 14 10:25 am    ditching your board Reply with quote

LapDog wrote:
bodydragging/bodysurfing... Good point, could probably catch the board a lot quicker/closer, if I pursued it aggressively immediately after a wipe-out.

The board popping up through the lines is something I hadn't considered. Perhaps releasing the leash from ankle would be best in that case, if possible.


I like Blowhard's idea of waist release. Try getting to that ankle release when a kite is looping you into the jetty or your board gets swallowed by Whitey and he takes you for a ride!

HEY BLOWHARD, How do you have it attached, I would think attaching a board leash to a kite leash would work. You mentioned velcro?

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sfbomber

Since 27 Jun 2012
112 Posts

Stoked



PostTue Jul 15, 14 10:54 am     Reply with quote

Keep the leash short, like 1.2 M, with no shock cord. A quick release is recommended.
I personally don't like leashes as it is more stuff to get tangled. When the surf is big I don't mind ditching the board. Keep riding strapless, it makes you a better rider. In offshore currents, I would use a leash to prevent losing the board.

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ShiverMeTimbers

Since 26 Feb 2013
381 Posts
Gig Harbor
Obsessed



PostTue Jul 15, 14 12:28 pm     Reply with quote

From a surfing perspective, a short leash is going to have a quicker "snap-back" that could make the board hit you in the head. I would use an 8' leash or longer if anything... it will keep the board from hitting you as easily, but it is also more crap to get tangled. Also, don't use a "comp" surfing leash. They are thinner, which is great for eliminating drag when surfing, but for the speed and abuse a kiter puts on their equipment a regular thickness leash is fine.

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blowhard

Since 26 Dec 2005
2023 Posts

Windward



PostTue Jul 15, 14 2:01 pm    Re: ditching your board Reply with quote

dangler wrote:
LapDog wrote:
bodydragging/bodysurfing... Good point, could probably catch the board a lot quicker/closer, if I pursued it aggressively immediately after a wipe-out.

The board popping up through the lines is something I hadn't considered. Perhaps releasing the leash from ankle would be best in that case, if possible.


I like Blowhard's idea of waist release. Try getting to that ankle release when a kite is looping you into the jetty or your board gets swallowed by Whitey and he takes you for a ride!

HEY BLOWHARD, How do you have it attached, I would think attaching a board leash to a kite leash would work. You mentioned velcro?


Ocean Rodeo kite leash, one end a quick release velcro and the other has a carabiner,old Ocean Rodeo chicken loop 1' or so in length on board. Snap on with a carabiner to board via the chicken attached to the board ,(this makes handy for strapless people to retrieve your board with about a foot hanging off your board) and velcro the other end to my harness loop on my backside which has a handle there for re-ride ,
just long enough for about a 1' of slack(that will get me in enough trouble)

and then DO NOT send the kite Confused

The last time I had a Board bonk on me the head, I had no leash,no helmut either and it hurt


HAHAHAHAA Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil

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Locke

Since 16 May 2012
19 Posts
The State of Jefferson
 



PostTue Jul 15, 14 2:41 pm     Reply with quote

When the board blasts through your lines, don't count on solving your problem by releasing the leash ... half the time the damn thing will then just flop around and get more tangled.

If surf is big and short period/messy, I'm more likely to go strapped on a surfboard than I am to leash it. I *hate* straps but I've had my board fouled in my lines enough times that I don't even consider a leash.

The stronger the wind, the more likely there's going to be leash-induced mayhem. Just use some patience: stall inside while the wave first crashes and then get a little headway and pop over the whitewater, or be willing to blast downwind to make it over a shoulder. Patience is also rewarded if you study the break and spot the channels before you go out. Channels, as in surfing, are your ticket outside.

Ironically, a surf leash is only appropriate once you are expert at kiting in the surf, and by then you usually don't need it. If you're in a spot that will eat your board, that is an exception, but even then you've got time in most cases to drag in and get it. Boards are ephemeral property & are meant to be sacrificed. Better it than you ... and probability says a leash is way more likely to cause problems in the surf than its going to solve.

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Gman

Since 11 Feb 2006
4907 Posts
Portland
Unstrapped



PostTue Jul 15, 14 4:36 pm     Reply with quote

Locke wrote:
Boards are ephemeral property & are meant to be sacrificed. Better it than you ...


Words of Wisdom Thumb's Up

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LapDog

Since 19 Dec 2008
66 Posts
White Salmon
 



PostTue Jul 15, 14 5:51 pm     Reply with quote

I've been using a standard 8' Dakine surf leash. Drag is perceptible but seems insignificant. I bet I can set it up so the Velcro cuff opens with a hard tug.

I also plan to try the calf and waist attach points. Curious to see if the leash line gets underfoot more or less than with the ankle mounted cuff.

Ideally, by the time I'm ready for bigger waves, I wont need the leash any longer!

Thanks for all the great comments!

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surfer

Since 02 Aug 2012
51 Posts
westport, wa
 



PostTue Jul 15, 14 9:26 pm     Reply with quote

do not wear a leash! unless at a reef break. in so case you will not be kiting a reef break unless your a complete ripper. If your a complete ripper then maybe you could pull it off. remember the leash pulls the board at you backwards. the fins hitting you at 30 mph backwards could take your face clean off . A friend had this happen surfing here in westport. it was fckd up. getting worked by a powerful wave or failed big airs, the last thing I care about is my board, I hope its far away. + body drag surfing is quite entertaining

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kitezilla

Since 22 Jun 2006
453 Posts
gorge
Obsessed



PostWed Jul 16, 14 8:26 am     Reply with quote

Here is a picture of a "surf" kite leash which was designed to cover most of the problems inherent with board leashes... it has a manual quick release on each end along with an automatic strain release calibrated at about 70 pounds of force. Also, is a picture of the "guts" of the automatic release mechanism.

No sense "reinventing the wheel", but maybe after reading through these 2 threads, you will be inspired to add to the discussion or maybe use some of the ideas to advance the cause.

In the past 10 years, there have been a number of threads on KF on the
subject of "board leashes"... each one more and more enlightening that
the preceding one. Here is a link to the most recent discussion.

http://www.kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2363763

Here is another one:


Leash for Kite"surfing"

http://www.kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2381449

Soooo, why do some kiters bother with a board leash?


Here is a copy of a bunch of comments posted on other kite forums. A
lot of ideas are presented here, and hopefully, some of them will be
of value in helping you to realize why board leashes are used, and to
help those contemplating a decision about …if…when…and where to use a
board leash.

Here they are:


“One could make a case for other "health safety" issues, related to
body dragging in various waters concerning:

(1) Pollution: I know of one popular kitesurfing location, just
downstream of a sewage treatment plant..

(2) Allergens: For example, a lot of kiters get "River Nose" from
dragging in the Columbia River in the Gorge...probably related to the
various pollens floating on the surface of the water.

(3) Hypersalinity: Shallow 'Bays' or 'Sounds' tend to concentrate the
salt in the water, resulting in solutions, that are highly irritable
to a kiter's eyes.

(4) Jellyfish or Portuguese Man of War: Your lycra top or wetsuit may
protect you from the trailing stinging "nematocysts", but just wait
until you get a string of the stuff across your face or into your
eyes.

(5) Time of day: Lets leave it off here, and not start talking about
what a couple of fast gliding bare feet, look like to a shark, in the
fading light of day.

(6) Extremely cold water

(7) Use as a tourniquet: shark bite --lost arm--stop bleeding:

In this article a Surf board leash is used as tourniquet for daughters
shark bitten lost arm:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=8 ... 87,1246056

(Cool It is the LAW:

Here is a typical ordinance (law) from Bogue Inlet Pier, North Carolina:

ec. 5-54. Leashes on surfboards required. No person shall use or
operate a surfboard or other similar device in the Atlantic Ocean
unless a rope or leash having a minimum length of four (4) feet is
physically attached to the surface of the surfboard and the opposite
end of the leash or rope is looped so that the leash may be placed
around the person's ankle or wrist for control of the surfboard or
other similar device while in operation or use in the Atlantic
Ocean.(Ord. of 2-10-09, § 2)Sec. 5-55. Penalty. Violation of any of
the provisions of this article shall constitute an infraction
punishable in accordance with section 1-6.

I don't think that we have seen the last of board leashes. Why?
Because it seems that a major trend in kiteboarding is toward wave
surfing, and the requisite kite-surf-board, complete with its sharp
pointy nose and big knifey looking fin.

Let's face it, real surfers don't want us in their breaks, and when
access problems occur, and then the attendant meetings and
negotiations start occurring, in an attempt to prohibit the banning of
kitesurfers, by the authorities...Do you think that the legitimate
surfers are going to support us, when they find out that, even though,
they themselves, as surfers are required by local ordinances to wear
leashes,...that we kitesurfers feel that we have a God-given right to
be exempt from restraining our surfboards, because "they might hurt
us".?


(9) Use with strapless boards, whether they be surfboards, skim
boards, wake skates or the soon to be popular (IMHO) Alaia. I see a
lot of strapless riders putting leashes on their boards, after a
couple of sessions in the waves, where they get to kite for about 2
minutes and then spend 20 to 30 minutes looking for their boards.

(10) Use with the up and coming discipline of kiteboard racing, where
the rider can not afford the loss of race time body-dragging for a
lost board. In the future we may see rules put forth by race
committees, who determine that loose race boards are a hazard to other
participants, and therefore board leashes may be required…A precedence
has been set in the required use of kite leashes, and a case could be
made that obligatory board leashes should follow this example.

(11) Use in areas where shallow water over reefs make body dragging
for a lost board more hazardous that using properly designed leash.

(12) Use during “ultra-low-wind” sessions, where a lot of boards are
lost, during the situation where the lack of the resistance, by not
having a board on the feet, prevents the rider from relaunching the
kite…as the rider gets slowly dragged further and further downwind,
until the board is out of sight and lost.


(13): ... If a kiter wished to make the case for the "flotation" of
the board, substituting as a "flotation device", he would have a tough
time doing so... unless he was using a "board leash". Once again, this
emphasizes the need for the development of a "safe" board leash...and
I would view this lack of interest, by the kiteboard industry, as a
failure...

(14) Retrieving someone elses board...The other day, I was kiting in
just horrible conditions with a friend who was using the kind of
leash, that has been previously described, which has an automatic
release disconnect, triggered by a 70 pound force. He went flying in a
40 MPH gust and his board leash automatically released, as it was
designed to do, and his board got loose. A huge lull then prevented
him from relaunching his kite and the current took him into a big wind
shadow... as his board disappeared down stream. I was able to easily
retrieve his board, by just reaching down and grabbing the remains of
the one meter leash, and then dragging the board to safety. The wind
conditions were horrible with long lulls at about 10 MPH and then
giant gusts to about 40MPH... and I would not have dared to try to
pick up and carry his board, in the conventional manner... it would
have been very dangerous for me.


   re-leash%201.jpg 
   aaaaaaafuse.jpg 

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CrazyC

Since 07 Apr 2007
174 Posts
P Town
Stoked



PostTue Aug 12, 14 11:47 am     Reply with quote

Lots of leash

http://vimeo.com/14235525

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LapDog

Since 19 Dec 2008
66 Posts
White Salmon
 



PostTue Aug 12, 14 12:21 pm     Reply with quote

After riding with a leash (strapless) in small coastal waves quite a bit this summer, I've started riding without one, still in small waves. I don't miss it, and without the leash I'm more agile at getting back on my board quickly.

I plan to try to go into bigger waves without the leash and see if I can continue to progress that way. I do think using a surf leash got me over some kind of learning curve hump in the early days, when I was using a lot of my energy each sesh just chasing the board in the shore break.

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blowhard

Since 26 Dec 2005
2023 Posts

Windward



PostWed Aug 13, 14 6:37 am     Reply with quote

On my former post ,I never intended to find my board,My intentions was to save my life Rolling Eyes

kiting with a leash on IS very dangerous,,
I didn't do for my first 10 years of kiting

after my first month of kiting I was held under the water with dog leash on seaweed while my kite was looping away Evil or Very Mad Evil or Very Mad Evil or Very Mad

I just don't like being underwater with with no breath Very Happy

A surfboard IS A CLASS ONE SAFETY DEVICE,
swimming though 10' surf ,I hope never do it again,I did it twice

maybe third times the charm Confused

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SpaceRacer

Since 04 Nov 2007
434 Posts

Obsessed



PostWed Aug 13, 14 4:14 pm     Reply with quote

Just make sure your board leash does not accidentally get wedged in your fins or something. Just spoke to a guy who would have died if the leash hadn't broken. Kite board and he were death spiraling because of this until the leash broke. His kite and board continued on through the ocean and on to shore, through a crowd of people and into the dunes until the amalgam of gear decided to take a break. Board leashes are dangerous.

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