Safety

As a Club we take safety very seriously. The current Club Chairman, Simon Mudd, is the BKSA Council liaison officer and has worked with Southend council and local Kitesurfers to make the sport safer for both riders and other beach users. This page contains general safety information for kitesurfers AND other beach users.

Useful Information for the General Public

Kitesurfing maybe classed as an 'extreme' sport but in general is safe and fun to watch for other beach users. Riders use a kite to generate power enabling them to ride on a small kiteboard across the water. There are two main types of kite used in the sport.

LEI - Leading Edge Inflatable. This is a single skin inflatable kite in the shape of an arc
Foil - Sometimes called a power kite. This is a double skin kite that often looks like a mattress when in the air

Kitesurfers often debate the pro's and con's of each type of kite. As with most sports equipment both have good and bad points.

Avoiding kitesurfers

OK, not everyone loves kitesurfing / kitesurfers so here are a few useful tips to avoid us

Come to the beach when it's not windy - Kites need around 10 mph+ wind to be usable. If it's not windy then we'll probably be down at Wet 'n' Dry, the local kitesurf store, talking about what we'd do if there was some wind.

Use a beach with an offshore wind. Kitesurfers generally don't use beaches with an offshore wind, although at low tide in Southend we do sometimes go out.

Use a beach we can't use. Beaches with lots of sharp / hard obstacles or lack of space are usually avoided. Check the Beaches section of his site.

Stay out of the designated kitesurf areas at East Beach and Chalkwell. These are signposted. There is plenty of space at East Beach at the Cafe end. Kitesurfers use the patch of grass / beach East of the foreshore office

What to be aware of when Kitesurfers are using the beach

Many beach users love to watch our sport. It's fast, fun and some of the gravity defying tricks are just incredible, BUT, there are things you should be aware of.

Kite Launching / Landing : Our kites are usually flown on 4 x 30m + lines. They are very thin and can be hard to see. Please keep well clear when kites are launching and landing.

Stay upwind (behind) the rider : Kites always fly downwind of the person they are attached to. The safest place for you to be is upwind of the kite flyer. If you want to walk past someone flying a kite go behind them. More information can be found here

Assisting in Launching and Landing a kite : Kitesurfers will typically ask other riders to help them launch or land their kite. If the beach is empty or the rider has a problem you could be asked assist. Unless you have been shown the correct launching or landing procedures it's not recommend you do this. Riders in difficulty should usually use their safety mechanism and 'leash out', before getting close to the beach.

Flying lines : Riders will lay out their lines on the ground when rigging their kite - this means that there are 4 x 30m lines stretched out across the ground. If you are walking near kites please be aware of this and look closely to avoid tripping over them.

Never grab hold of a kite line when the kite is flying - especially when a rider is launching or landing. This will cause an immediate loss of control of the kite.

If you need to handle an inflatable kite always hold the largest tube on the kite - which will be the leading edge.

Complaints

The club has a code of conduct and we try our best to ensure members and non-members alike obey a common set of simple rules. Occasionally things do go wrong. We take complaints very seriously and will do our best to resolve any issues caused by kitesurfing in the Essex area. To help us help you we ask that you try and get the following information:

Type of kite LEI (inflatable) or Foil (mattress)
Colour(s) of kite
Make / model / wording / logo on kite - any text printed on the canopy etc
Description of rider e.g. Height, build, hair colour etc
What was the rider wearing e.g Orange EKC rash vest, shorts, wetsuit or drysuit
Colour / make of board
Riders vehicle e.g car van / make & model etc
Riders name / nickname

Not all kitesurfers riding at Southend are club members. We get many visitors from London and futher afield. You may want to raise your issue with the rider directly but, depending on the situation, it's probably best to avoid a difficult confrontation.

Please contact Simon Mudd, club Chairman, with any concerns, complaints or queries you may have via email or phone 07751 705558

The club continually works with the council to ensure the safety of the public and riders alike.

If you have any comments about this page please contact the EKC webteam here

Last modified March 06 2008 22:29:40