Pros & Cons of Kite Surfing

So what is going on around here and where does it happen? This section is for discussion on local events, festivals, and holidays as well as activities and things to do.
Gregjam
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Re: Pros & Cons of Kite Surfing

Post by Gregjam »

My only experience of any kind of surfing was trying to wind surf on a fairly calm new years day on Hua Hin beach. Comical is probably the best description and more entertaining to any onlookers than dangerous as I was hardly able to stand up let alone move in any direction. It did however make me think about how to manoeuvre away from any swimmers and the danger this presented. I have rented a jet ski in the past and kept well off the beach being aware of the threat. The old outboard type jet skis you could rent many years ago in Pattaya were so much more dangerous to swimmers than a water jet modern one. Often when I have walked down the beach I have thought that I would like to try the kite surfing as the kite might help keep me from falling over. I once sat on the beach on a winters day in Long Beach harbour and watched some good surfers in windy conditions showing how it is done and it certainly looks fun. No swimmers there and no problems either.

So far the comments tend to point to moving the kite surfers away from the beach which makes sense but is there a middle way. Is it the learners that are the hazard or all of the surfers. I can understand the school wanting a presence on the beach as this is the main way to access their potential customer pool. Perhaps potential students would be happy to enrol for some lessons and put up with a ride to a more suitable location to be taught away from the swimming beach which would also mean they do not have an audience to their mishaps and more importantly any casualties as a result of them.

Providing a channel for competent surfers, jet skis etc to use to clear the swimming areas would serve to concentrate them in one area which may also be beneficial to the punter although unattractive to the business operators as prices would have to be competitive. On the flipside, as most Thais (Hua Hin is still a big Thai resort, not just foreigners) ignore even the best intentioned safety controls would a marked launch recovery area even work?

Just a few thoughts on the subject although it is unlikely anything will change until more deaths occur and then a ban will be imposed forcing operators to move. No harm in dreaming and when the ban comes I can say that I did put forward some ideas.

And one day I am sure I will have a go but in a quiet area for sure.
VincentD
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Re: Pros & Cons of Kite Surfing

Post by VincentD »

A personal opinion from a personal experience...

Years ago, when the kids were much younger,we got a nice beachfront hotel in Pattaya. This was way back when things were quite haphazard and not regulated.
We had set up a mat about ten meters up from the waves and were moving around when a jetski, driven by a drunk guy, came straight up the beach, and onto the mat, missing my son by inches.

My personal take on any sport that requires a large amount of space, like jetskis and kitesurfing, windsurfing, yachting et al should be in an area away from where families want to just laze around the beach front or just venture a little into the water.

While a tragedy of the sort that happened is sad, it needs to be pointed out that the purpose of the buoys was to exclude this very sort of activity, something the kitesurfer chose to ignore, plus the weather conditions were also not officially conducive for beach activity on said day.

To those who enjoy the thrill of extreme sport, fine. There are nice, reasonably unpopulated stretches of beach conducive for this sort of thing within a short drive from HH. Please consider relocating the activity further out from where the families want to have a bit of a walk on the beach and maybe dip their toes in the water a bit without having to worry about being run over by a stray surfboard. That is the allure of the beachfront hotels for us, the weekend visitor.

For those of you who do have a business to run, do consider including the cost of transport to and from a place where you can surf to your heart's content without endangering life or limb of others.

I am inclined to understand that in some beaches in Oz, safety zones (buoys, nets)are set up for swimmers to keep sharks out and the swimmers safe?
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Re: Pros & Cons of Kite Surfing

Post by Big Boy »

In my opinion, this is a typical Thailand discussion. The authorities have drawn a line in the water, swimmers this side, surfers that side. However, the 'Me First' attitude within Thailand seems to be prevalent in this case i.e. unless the surfers are ignoring the line that has been drawn, why is it a problem? If they are getting tangled because they can't control their boards, it simply justifies the authorities drawing the line in the first place,
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Re: Pros & Cons of Kite Surfing

Post by KiterBBK »

Have read this thread and my comment would be that Hua Hin is a Kitesurfing Destination and has been since 2004 .
To ban Kiting in Hua Hin, would be like banning skiing in the Alps because it is not convenient for those who do not ski.
There is enough space to launch and co-exist with swimmers and beachgoers on the very large stretch of beach.
My message to those who feel so negative about kitesurfing and kitesurfers on this thread is maybe you should give the sport a try , it will change your life ! For fellow kiters please practice the sport safely for yourselves and others and respect beach goers . There is more than enough space to co exist .

Some signage and rules should be posted on the beach and enforced accordingly. Perhaps a designated stretch for 'kiters only' would also work. Regardless, kiters should follow safety rules when launching respecting swimmers and beachgoers, applying navigation right of way, for fellow kiters. This is applied everywhere in the world.
Kitesurfing is the fastest growing water sport globally now with the introduction of kite-Foiling, you can kite from 6knots of wind. The sport is here to stay. It is actually great for the image of Hua Hin, being a kite destination.
Athletic kiters of all ages on the beach represent an environmentally friendly, nature-loving group from all walks of life.
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