accident in merimbula.....

This was in the local paper 2 days ago! its a bit confusing.....

Happy to be alive
STORY DENISE DION
20 Jan, 2010 09:47 AM
A fun afternoon kite surfing off Merimbula’s Main Surf Beach was minutes away from tragedy as Melbourne holiday maker, Marcus McDonald, lost control of his kite and wrestled to stay alive.
Were it not for the help he received from passengers and staff of sight-seeing boat, True Blue, Marcus believes he may not be here to tell the tale of how fun turned to fear as his kite took on a life of its own, lifting him up and dumping him continually in the increasingly choppy sea.
It was Tuesday, January 12 when Marcus and his friend, Darin Lovitt, set off for the beach, after arriving from Melbourne with their families the day before.
Both men are keen on water sports and had taken kite surfing lessons before their holiday.
Marcus said they sat on the beach for about an hour going through the safety checks before venturing into the water.
Marcus said: “I wanted to take advantage of Merimbula’s gorgeous beach. The winds were near perfect, not too strong, for us as beginners. We took our time and didn’t go out together.
“I was just practising and didn’t take the board out because I wasn’t confident and just did some body surfing. I started to let the kite lift me out of the water and have some fun.”
It was while he was having his fun that he landed quite hard and it set off one of the safety triggers on the kite which is attached to the body harness by four lines.
As it is designed to do, the kite deflated and Marcus was tied by just one line.
He found the control bar and got his lines re-attached but before he could gather his wits about him, the kite took off.
In the process of re-attaching the lines, they had become tangled around the harness hook and his left arm. Somehow the lines, although tangled, were all of equal length and so no safety triggers were activated.
With Marcus’ arm tourniqueted by the strong, thin line, the kite launched him out of the water.
They call it tea-bagging because you get lifted up and dunked into the ocean just as though you were a tea bag in a cup, Marcus explained. Happy to be alive

“Suddenly I was lifted up about 20 feet, it seemed terrifyingly high, I had no control and then I would get dumped.
“I didn’t want to loosen the lines on the harness before sorting out the line wrapped around my arm. I was worried that the rope would cut through my arm.”
Meanwhile, back on the beach, Darin was unaware of Marcus’ plight as he had disappeared from Darin’s view.
But out at sea, Marcus was under observation by sight-seeing boat, True Blue after alert passengers became worried by what they saw.
Marcus was starting to run out of energy as he got lifted up and dumped, hitting the water with enough force to give him black eyes, whiplash, bruising around his forehead and a cut and bruising on his left arm where the rope was cutting into the flesh.
In a brief lull, the kite fell into the water and Marcus managed to work the string from around his arm. Feeling more confident he tried to disable the entire kite but the wind lifted and so did the kite.
“It pulled me out of the water with such force that I had to concentrate fully on trying to get my body to land in the water a lot better because it was really hurting. I was also worried that I would knock myself unconscious.”
All this time True Blue was watching but couldn’t get closer because of concerns that they would get entangled in the kite.
“I ended up running out of strength and flopping around like a rag doll. Then my body went into shock and I couldn’t control my breathing. I really had no control and I was ready to say my goodbyes,” Marcus said.
He recalled just having enough control to keep his mouth closed as he was dropped into the water again and again.
“I remember being dumped a long way down and the kite pulling me through the water.”
Somehow Marcus managed to get free of the kite and started to drift in the water.
True Blue was then able to approach Marcus and get him safely ashore where he was met by an ambulance and his frightened wife, Michelle.
“I was in shock; Marcus was only just able to talk and the ambulance crew were working on him. I was pretty freaked out,” Michelle said.
The ambulance drove him to Pambula Hospital where he spent a couple of hours in observation.
Three days after Marcus was rescued, he was still having trouble with his balance but is eternally grateful to the passengers and crew of True Blue, the surf lifesavers and the ambulance crew.
True Blue had to refund all the tickets for the sight-seeing trip and Marcus offered to refund True Blue the money but he said that they wouldn’t take it.
As for kite surfing, Marcus said that as much as he loved water sports, he’s be giving it a miss in the future.

what brand of kite was it ?

I think its out of the new range promoted by Mike Tyson

But on a serious note, do instructors / shops advise the carrying of a box cutter in harnesses ???
Maybe have saved this guy a lot of pain.

I never think about this cutter being in my harness, (hence the small amount of corrosion) but hope that if I ever needed it I would, either to save myself or to help another kiter.

That article is trash. Bad writing/reporting fueled by what was obviously a beginner without the experience to get himself out of the trouble he got himself into in the first place.
Powered up deflated kites, reattaching lines after an accident, mild winds, AN HOUR GOING THROUGH SAFETY CHECKS BEFORE GOING OUT!! COME ON!!!
This article has done nothing good for the public perception of kiting This guy seems to enjoy a little moment of fame "my body went into shock and i couldnt control my breathing, i was ready to say my goodbyes" What next? write a book about your ordeal?
The only thing i hope old marcus macdonald says goodbye to is his kites, or at least next time leave them in melbourne.
Im givin ol marcy mac the big thumbs down.

Dead right it is a crap article written by a goose who has no idea about another goose with no idea.

We are preparing a response for our local rag, and a rag it is!

Who said Ford Oval in a nor easter is a good place for a learner anyway? Gusty as all fark with the chance of being blown 5 ks cross shore before you get blown in.

love the way you guys pull together to rip s++t out of him.
Is there any solidarity in kiting?
Been reading a little thru the kiting section and I reckon about 1/3 or more of posts/threads are conflicts, accidents and flames in amongst the associations.
In the west mostly the kites and windsurfers get on, with a bit of friendly banter (other than maybe the odd euro-of either discipline!).
But on your side of oz seems to be alot of agro?
Is it like that at the beach?

Welcome to the forum Shortpoint. Not a very compassionate lot are we.

I can't agree with you Greenpat.

Any good journalist who doesnt know anything about the sport would check the facts with (or get opinion from) someone who does.

The article has caused panic round here with people who will look for any reason to dump on the sport or to use the article as grounds to restrict access.

I called Marcus a goose because he stated facts which are untrue and of which he has no knowledge. I probably should have called him ignorant of the facts but that does not make me a hater.

No effort was made by the journalist to approach any of the many kiters in Merimbula nor to speak to any member of the Merimbula Sailboard Club to verify some of the things that were written.

For these reasons the article is unbalanced and I believe was calculated to sensationalise. The author deserves to cop flack about it.

I stand by my comments.