Wear a helmet?

Select to expand quote

Gazuki said..

How many people die per year kiting? There can be many I would imagine. Once again I assume but I would say if any they would be old guys stroking out/cardiac or drowning. I have only heard of one personally that died through blunt head trauma.

jpungar said..

Not many people have died kitesurfing, Do you have stats on kitesurfing deaths and wind strengths?

How many people die per year? So far this year I believe we are up to 5 deaths world wide.

Do I have stats on deaths and wind strengths? No I do not keep a database of stats. But Rick Lossi in Florida does. He calls himself RickL on kiteforum. Probe him for details.

Not many people die from kitesurfing???? really. ?5 ytd not many? I bet if one of your buddies had been one of them the answer would be too many people die......


I don't compile and archive the facts. What I do is research each instance for a probably cause. The most common kitesurfing death goes like this.

Victim rigs up on a gusty wind shifting day a kite that is too big for the maximum gust of the day.
He/she then is looses control and is lofted/dragged and hits a hard object.
He/she typically is not wearing a helmet and dies due to head trauma/internal injuries or drowning due to being knocked out in the water.
Most accidents happen on or close to land during launch/landing.
Most often the wind is within what we consider a normal range. 15-30
Most instances the victim would have had a better chance of survival if he/she wore a helmet.

Of course there are deaths that occur that a helmet would not save you. One thing is certain. I helmet can save you in some instances. Most certainly it is more safer than not wearing one.

Is not wearing a helmet the number one cause of kitesurfing deaths? No. That would be incorrect kite selection.

Select to expand quote

Plummet said..

... helmet can save you in some instances. Most certainly it is more safer than not wearing one.

And even safer is not to kite at all...

It's all about managing reasonable risks and ultimately personal choice.

I've consider wearing a helmet many times, but ultimately haven't found any solid evidence they would have any significant benefit. I think I would wear an impact vest fist.

People dying is of course a really bad thing...

However, I don't think the risk of me dying kiting with a helmet, vs the risk of me dying kiting without a helmet are much different.

This is even before considering the potential risks of actually wearing a helmet. I know of at least one case of someone getting a serious neck injury due to the effects of the helmet while crashing in the water.

Like a said... it's personal preference... I decide not to wear a helmet.

Select to expand quote

evila said..

Plummet said..

... helmet can save you in some instances. Most certainly it is more safer than not wearing one.

And even safer is not to kite at all...

It's all about managing reasonable risks and ultimately personal choice.

I've consider wearing a helmet many times, but ultimately haven't found any solid evidence they would have any significant benefit. I think I would wear an impact vest fist.

ultimately haven't found any solid evidence they would have any significant benefit.


WOW

Never worn a helmet for anything other than speed kiting (doing >45kts tends to change the way water interacts with one's head). Always thought helmet wearers under average kiting conditions were just looking to impress themselves that they were doing an 'extreme' sport. However, after having a BCC (Basal Cell Carcenoma) cut out of my head I now wear a hat; which of course makes me look like the greatest dork in christendom. There doesn't seem to be a single surf hat maker capable of designing a surf hat that doesn't make you look totally unf@#kable to the opposite sex). Therefore, the helmet, just between high UV hours 11-3 might have to be the thing for protecting my noggin from the surgeon's scalpel.

Select to expand quote

Loftywinds said..

Plummet said..
This forum has been a little boring of late.

Lets spice it up with a lively debate on helmets.

As the title suggests. Stop being a dick and wear a helmet when kitesurfing.

If you wear a helmet. Good onya. Carry on.

Are you missing me guys!?

I think, if you want to wear a helmet then you should - good on you & stuff what anyone else thinks.

Also if you don't want to wear a helmet, don't - we don't all have to look like girly boys.

People die every day, it's a fact.

Its quite clear you all kite in nice warm climates

Next someone will be advocating not wearing wetsuit boots or having a wetsuit less than 5mm for the summer season.

Helmet in the summer for warmth. Neoprene hood under the helmet in winter when it gets cold.

I had a bmx style helmut on while getting dragged underwater , I noticed my head getting pulled back more as the helmut caught the water pulling my head back ? ouch .

Select to expand quote

NickT said..
I used to barefoot waterski and have cartwheeled many a time at 55 mph. I would've hated to have a bucket on my head to catch the water at that speed.

Each to their own really. Some backside edges ive wished I was wearing a helmet though.

Would a helmet not make a backside edge worse? Wearing a helmet would result in the sudden stopping of your head when it makes contact with the water due to the greater surface area and buoyancy which would result in a greater chance of a head injury. That is my theory and maybe why you see no pro freestyle riders wearing helmets (plus maybe style as well lol).

I wear a Gath Gedi. Always. It is an awesome helmet.
It's lightweight, your sunnies stay on, your eardrums stay intact when you slam into the water, in winter your head stays warm and in summer it doesn't get cooked.

Yes, your hearing is impaired but if I burst my eardrum my hearing will be impaired 24/7. It's a no-brainer for me.

Select to expand quote

NickT said..
I used to barefoot waterski and have cartwheeled many a time at 55 mph. I would've hated to have a bucket on my head to catch the water at that speed.

Each to their own really. Some backside edges ive wished I was wearing a helmet though.

barefoot waterski'ing with nothing to come and smack you in the head is totally different to having a missile attached to your feet .

I wear a helmet because I do ****up, and it has made the difference between being out there again tomorrow, or being injured in the past. I've also seen it make the same difference for others.

My thoughts are if I'm wearing a helmet, a knock to the head shouldn't stun me enough to NOT pull my safety. As well as give me a small amount of protection from events beyond my control - ****ups of others etc.

I believe that people should wear helmets, or at least encourages newbs to do so, since 90% of the ****ups where a helmet would help occur to those in their first season or so.

Select to expand quote

edhead said..
There doesn't seem to be a single surf hat maker capable of designing a surf hat that doesn't make you look totally unf@#kable to the opposite sex

As to the way it makes you look - If your stomping big jumps, doing great tricks or slicing a wave up like a boss, then come in and can't step to a chic feeling like a ****ing BOSS, a helmet won't make a ****ing difference to you.

and lastly,

Tbh think we are way over 5 deaths globally this year .. theres been at least that in Europe alone.
I know of 3 or 4 guys locally who have been knocked out Kiting , all of who had least 3-4 year minimum under their belts on the water.
As far as kiting fatalities goes basically everyone has a initial impact or incident that results in the kiter becoming unconscious and unable to use the release and ends in a second impact or drowning , its simple to understand that wearing a helmet drastically reduces the likelyhood of being knocked unconscious and therefore is a potential life saver.
I wear a helmet because I work for a local kite school ... but the real reason i wear a helmet is because I had a baby girl last year and I want her to grow up enjoying the water and the outdoors with her Dad.

For sure helmets have there place and can offer excellent protection, no question about that.
If you are kiting, and are likely to hit the beach, rocks, other people, your own board, or the Whitfords sea rescue boat, its a no brainer.
However IMHO there is more to it than that. Most of the reasons for wearing a helmet focus around being knocked out, and if you hit something hard or sharp, then for sure it will help, but it will only help, it will not always prevent an injury, and certainly wont always prevent a KO.
I've knocked myself out twice now, not something I'm proud of, but it happened. Both times were from hitting the water too hard and fast, I didn't hit anything else.
From what I understand, I knocked myself out because my head was stopped quickly by the water and my tiny brain hit the inside of by skull too hard and coursed the trauma. Interestingly enough, one time I was wearing a helmet and one time I wasn't. The time I was wearing the helmet, took longer to recover from and I had more whip lash. So I suppose there is the argument that my head stopped quicker after impacting the water with a helmet, coursing more trauma to my tiny brain and neck muscles.
At the end of the day, to each their own on this one, we are all responsible for our own actions, and if a bit of plastic on Plummets head gives him that bit of extra confidence to try something new, it got to be a good thing.
However as I'm sure Phillip Hughes family will testify, helmets will not always give you the protection they should.