Yesterday on the beach in Rockingham WA, I met the local "council" kiter police! I have heard from others that every beach tends to have one them!
Anyway, he was trying to run beginners out of town, and he exact words were "Don't f**k**g come back". To back him up, he kept quoting the local council and a sign board that doesn't state waht he was trying to enforce; No Beginner!
We were not doing anything stupid and stayed downwind of him and his mates filming each others. However, I found out that we were in the designated windsurfing area and vacated it immediately. In the spirit of pot calling kettle black... this guy and his mates were crashing kites doing tricks upwind of windsurfers.
Have you any such experience to share?
FYI if you are a total beginner you were definitely in the right, and seem to have a great understanding of whats right and wrong. as for stories to share, i was myself throwing down between the troughs of waves as it was the only flat section out there when a beginner kited straight into me as a turned away from the beach creating a huge mess of lines and kites. long story short I ejected walked in and helped the overly apologetic beginner sort the mess out........WE all started kiteboarding at some point people, try remember that.
But.. If there are advanced riders kiting an a particular area and YOU CAN kite a bit further downwind of them, please do.
Just to clear things up. I was never trying to run beginners out of town. I told you that local etiquette was to not teach in the "pond". But that it was perfectly fine to teach out the back of the sand bar, or around at pengos.
It was a busy day down at the pond and not a safe place to teach. especially as you were teaching him 30 metres off the beach with onshore winds. Not safe on any beach IMO.
I am not normally one for being aggressive, and only swore at the end after you continually told me that you would teach there regardless.
Every beach has its local etiquette, and it takes very little effort to ask around and make sure you are not doing the wrong thing. These rules are set up at the pond so that we can continue to share the spot with the windsurfers.
The local shop teaches on that very same beach. Granted we were a bit more downwind of where they normally setup but that left room for your filming. We were totally out of your way but that wasn't enough for you. And we did have a read of the sign you pointed out but couldn't find any reference to "No Beginner".
As for windsurfing zone, my bad, we were there and won't happen again.
I feel we would have offended you even more if we went further up wind and into your shots.
Same thing I told you the other day... you being more advanced perhaps can kite further out and let beginner have a go in your pond.
Happy to respect "local etiquette" if reasonable.
"This is a local shop! For local people, we'll have no trouble here.... Tubbs!"
"yes Edward, I think there is twelvty"
whats with the pig noses in the video? the two shop keepers had pig noses? and the troll in the vid should of bashed em up
they were giving him alot of crap
"Siwalker": uses real login, admits it was him and explains the situation
"stoplocalism": uses fake login
I know who I'd believe.
Can someone please discribe " troll " in this context .
sorry but this used to be a little rubber toy doll with no cloths and long black hair!!
I may have just crawled out from under my rock, but help!!!
they were giving him alot of crap
Someone who gets pleasure by typing annoying/controversial/offensive words at strangers on internet forums, for them to read
I generally stay away from this type of s#%t but after a sail this afternoon at my local Iam about to vent.
Tourist/Euro Kiter and his mates rock up. Whats the wind like?? He says. No how ya going mate, No name intro, No Asking where they should stay Nothing, but arogance.. but we are used to this from visitng kiters down here.
BUT
After walking down 100 meters of stairs carrying my kit, They bloody rig their kites at the bottom of the stairs. Strings and Kites everywhere. Oh well walk straight over i do. Why. Cause theirs no where else to walk. 800m of beach and they rig at the bottom of the only entrance to the beach.
Would of been hard for the mum with 4 young kids trying to get down to beach as well..
Rant over....[}:)]
Well i think everyone else had an absolute ball out there! shame there wasnt another 10 knots.
few tourists down there but hey if they do the wrong thing and its annoyn educate them rather than make them feel unwelcome.
avoid the pool altogether and go out the back
images from crap water cam on sun
it get alot busier than that aswell. Whats the big attraction to the pool anyways are you kiters scared of sharks or do you need flat water?
seems like advanced kiters should stop showing off and go into advanced water swell and chop?
They want to be seen, especially on 3sqm of butter flat. They take many pics to send back home. They are almost all really cool and colourful. Some only speak English if it is to their advantage. Most are friendly and nice, but need educating. I feel sorry for them, but there are too many of them...........people that is. They come from a dark crowded disneyland, the poor kn EFFEFL.
Can't everyone just get along.
I was windsurfing there before the island got connected and there even was a pond, and i'm only 25!
I don't see why everyone hates others from the other discipline.
I've got mates who kite and it's awesome fun going out and cruising next to them.
Sounds like people need to relax
they were giving him alot of crap
I was there that day and seen Mr Stoplocalism teaching in the pond. Ummmmm the way I see it is... obivously he wasn't aware that there's some local etiquette to follow sooooo someone kindly went over and let him know. If Mr SiWalker didn't let him know I guarentee someone else would of.
Yeah farout, regardless of anything... what you doing teaching your niave student on the northern side of the pond anyway? There's a beach, fence, path with pedestrians and road there. I've seen a few learners get dragged as far as the road!!
I should of I done what Mr Siwalker did and told them to go over the back until they're competent enough to ride in there or go to shoalwater where it's crossshore. You'd think the guys teaching would know this.
Thanks for all your feedback, some more passionate then others.
As a general response to posts, I did check in with the local shop about kiting in the area before going out and assessed the spot we used to be reasonably safe for the kiter's kite control skill level. We were trying board starting in water after a lot of work on more spacious beach elsewhere. We made a point to do short runs and back up as far as we can without getting into other kiters' way, also noted that most windsurfers didn't like dragging in the shallow part.
If theres a point to be made here, its not to expect first time visitors to know the rules you have made up, especially if it is not on any sign board, and not to be so offended if your rules are not followed as a result. I do understand the motivation just not the delivery.
Some of the posts suggest a lot of negative sentiment toward visitors. I don't want to fuel that nor do I want any beach banned for kiting so happy to respect any reasonable local rules if I know about them.
Seabreeze: If you don't already, could a section, perhaps a sticky forum, to allow dissemination of such information?
Doggie, what i say and what i do are often poles apart.
Just ask anyone who knows me
LOL
