This is for the new girl Terese and anyone else new to the sport, even for us riders with a lot of experience who need to consciously keep things in perspective as far as safety goes. I wrote an article a while back that I think is worth reading:
http://www.skypilotkiteboarding.com/mod ... le&sid=173

I posted this link on the windsurfer side a while back but I'm not sure any of the kiters saw it. Pass it on to your friends who are new to the sport. Cool,
Chris

We had the article in this thread: http://www.bigwavedave.ca/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1615 BUT it's worth re-reading. I just re-read the thread & more has been added about the kiter lost in the U.S..Here is a suggested safety item from the article. http://www.boatersland.com/acr3959.html

Wow! I read this thread, followed the three links which took me to more links and so on and so on .Now almost two hours later I am feeling fairly well versed on the importance of lessons and safety gear for this sport!
BWD what a great site !
I am also a newbie to kitesurfing and have been trying to find a do-able route for learning this sport. I have researched all kinds of options and the one that I have settled on due to time constraints and other issues is a two week trip to South Pedro Island, Texas where there is not a rock, tree, building or anything at all that can come between me and my learning curve!
I am doing this trip with a friend (both of us have windsurfed for many years) and we will be camping on the beach and taking lessons. This will be costly but as has been said it will be less expensive than buying the gear and finding out the sport is not for me. If I like it than this two weeks will probably be the equivalent of a whole season here in Victoria and Nitnat!

As I said in the other thread, the answer to the "Do I really need lessons?" question should be "Would you take lessons before starting rock climbing or sky diving?" That probably overstates the risk, but not by much. Should make people realize it is an extreme sport.