I would appreciate some input or suggestions from some of the more experienced kiters on this site. I am still fairly new to kiting and have found myself flying depower kites more and more in the last few months. One problem I have not resolved yet concerns the use of a leash on these kites. I fly with a waist harness and if I take the stock HQ or Ozone leash, connect it to the D-rings on the side of my harness and also at the leash attachment point on the brake line cross-over, the leash is just not physically long enough to keep tension off of the brake lines (so the kite never has a chance of launching). So I haven't been using a leash.

I have had it suggested to me by a very experienced kiter to connect the end of the leash to the hook on my spreader bar so that I buy back a little of the distance between the two attachment points. Does anyone see any problems with doing that? Or maybe someone has some other ideas?

I would really like to start using a leash on a regular basis because just this week, I had a chicken loop release on me for some unknown reason in 30+ mph winds and away went my kite. Surprised the heck out of me. After running about a quarter mile to catch up to it I was thinking the whole way "I really need to resolve the leash issue so this doesn't happen again".

Any input or suggestions anyone cares to offer would be appreciated.

I recommend a leash. I had my chicken loop come unhooked on me the first time ever this weekend. Had I not had a tight grip on the bar and a leash it would have been gone.

I secure my leash to the straps that hold my spreader bar to my harness (dakine fusion) and my leash attachment point is on my chicken loop. Attached in this fashion, my leash would only need to be about 6" long.

What are you attaching to, the landing line that spans the two rear lines? I used to do that on my access and my leash was still long enough. Do you have a short leash?

I hook mine to my spreader bar!

I guess I do have a short leash. Yes, I was trying to attach it to the landing line that spans the two rear lines, as that is what I was originally told to do when I got my first depower kite. I guess I was not aware there was a leash attachment point on the chicken loop, so will look into that. That makes a lot of sense having it run between the harness and the chicken loop (and only coming into play if the chicken loop is released).

Yes, I definitely have been taught first hand that using a leash is a good idea. I don't want to be chasing any more of my kites and then having to untangle the mess that the wind created with the lines and kite.

You might need to attach the leash to the landing line. Not all kites have rings on the CL to hook a leash.

If there is no ring on the chicken loop, you could hook it up suicide style (clip the leash to the depower loop just above the CL). This prevents the loss of the kite and will allow the bar to travel to the depower positon if you let go and it comes unhooked but it won't kill the kite - only prevents a run away - hence the "suicide" descriptor.

If the safety feature requires you to hook to the landing line do that and if your leash is too short go to EMS or a boating store and buy some suitable grade line and make a pigtail to larkshead to the landing line and clip to that if you don't want to buy a longer leash.

The problem with leashing to your spreader bar is that spreader bars can fail - either at the hook point or at the attachment point to the harness. This is why I leash to the straps that hold the spreader bar and not the bar itself - so if the bar fails, the leash won't.

Thank you B-Roc and shehatesmyhobbies for the help! Am experimenting with some of your suggestions, but important change is that I am now wearing a leash.

How about a bit of Amsteel from the leash to the attachment point on the bar?