Safety for Kitesurfers

How to reduce the risk before you launch, what to do if you get into trouble, and how to help someone else, compiled from RNLI, BKSA, IKO and St John Ambulance guidance. Sources are linked at the bottom.

In a coastal emergency

Call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard

For someone in danger in the water or on the shoreline, ask for the Coastguard, not just "ambulance". The Coastguard coordinates lifeboats, lifeguards and rescue helicopters. On VHF, use Channel 16.

Before you go out

Never alone, never further out than you can swim back, and check the conditions before every session.

The RNLI's kitesurfing checklist, developed with the BKSA.

  • Always kite with another person. If you go alone, take a means of calling or signalling for help.
  • Never ride out further than you can swim back. Equipment failure does happen, so be prepared.
  • Check the conditions and tides before every session; that's what this site is for. Don't go out in conditions you can't handle, and check what kite sizes other riders are using; if you don't have the right size, don't go out.
  • Tell someone you're going out and when you'll be back.
  • Never let an untrained person launch or land your kite. Train them first.
  • Wear the safety kit: buoyancy aid / impact vest, helmet, and carry a line cutter in your harness. Learn at a BKSA-accredited school.
Line illustration of two kitesurfers walking to the water together, one carrying a twin-tip board and one carrying a rigged kite
Rig together, ride together. The single biggest risk reduction is never kiting alone.

Carry a way to call for help

VHF first, a PLB second, a phone in a pouch third. Always ask for the Coastguard.

Telling the Coastguard exactly where you are is the quickest way to be rescued. In order of reliability at sea:

Waterproof DSC VHF radio

One button sends a distress message with your position direct to the Coastguard; follow up by voice on Channel 16.

Personal Locator Beacon (PLB)

Sends a distress message and GPS position from anywhere with a view of the sky.

Mobile phone in a waterproof pouch

Fully charged, worn on you. Call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard. The RYA SafeTrx app can track your session and alert your emergency contact if you're overdue. Remember: not all coastal areas have signal.

Know your safety system

Three releases, in order: let go of the bar, pull the chicken-loop release, and only then the leash. Practise until each one is reflex.

  1. Let go of the bar. The kite depowers substantially the moment you release.
  2. Chicken-loop quick release. The kite "flags" onto a single line and loses nearly all its power.
  3. Leash release: the last resort. Separates you from the kite entirely. Practise every step until it is instinctive.

And learn the IKO self-rescue: depower, wind the bar, and use the kite to sail yourself home, so a breakdown far out does not need a lifeboat.

If you get into trouble: Float to Live

Fight the urge to swim. Lean back, breathe, and let the water hold you until the cold shock passes.

  1. Tilt your head back, ears submerged.
  2. Relax and control your breathing.
  3. Move your hands and legs to stay afloat.
  4. Your legs may sink. That is fine; everyone floats differently.
  5. Once your breathing is controlled, call for help or swim to safety.

Fallen in unexpectedly?

The effects of cold water shock pass in less than a minute. Don't try to swim straight away: float first, then act.

Kit trouble offshore?

Unless it is dragging you into danger, stay with your kite and board. They float, and a 10-metre canopy is far easier for rescuers to spot than a head in the waves. Signal for help: one arm raised, waved slowly.

Caught in a rip current?

Don't fight it. If you can stand, wade. If not, swim parallel to the beach until you are free of it, then head in.

If you see someone in trouble

Call the Coastguard first, then help from the shore. Do not go in after them.

  1. Call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard. Do it first: help is often further away than it looks.
  2. Do not enter the water. Would-be rescuers regularly become casualties themselves. Stay on land, keep your eyes on the person, and note landmarks so you can point rescuers to them.
  3. Shout "Float!" Tell them to lean back and float. Throw anything that floats within reach.

Once they're out of the water

St John Ambulance guidance.

  • Unresponsive and not breathing? Send someone to call 999/112 and fetch a defibrillator; start CPR immediately. Drowning casualties often bring up stomach contents, so be ready to roll them onto their side to keep the airway clear.
  • Breathing but unresponsive? Recovery position, then treat for hypothermia: get them out of the wind, swap wet clothing for dry if possible, cover with warm layers. Keep monitoring, and be ready to restart CPR.
  • Do a course. Reading this is not first aid training. A one-day course from St John Ambulance or equivalent teaches CPR properly: the skill most likely to save a fellow rider's life.

Sources and further reading

Every rule on this page comes from RNLI, BKSA, IKO or St John Ambulance guidance. Read the originals.

This page is an educational summary compiled from the linked organisations' published guidance. Spotted an error? Please get in touch.