Copied from old forum:
September 19 2001 by doomwheels
>Wouldn't ski bindings add an extra degree of safety in case of a bad fall?
In a typical day of skating, the sideways and twisting forces on the skate can be quite strong as one alternates between flat open areas to bumpy MX
trails. The last thing I want is a skate to release from my foot at high speed.
Bindings are necessary for skiing as the skis are long and can easily pop a knee as your body twists in a fall. This is not a likely action in
kiteskating. As I performed high speed crashes to test this idea, I learned that the first contact area to the ground is your hip. Once the hip has
hit the deck, the rest of the body spins equally around this point. The skates stay repectfully out of the way.
I also must say that in 10 years of skating, I have not fallen more that a few times. Nothing that compares to the amount of times I have come out of
a buggy.
And with far less injury than buggies, I must add. Reason... you are better able to adjust to gusty wind on skates by altering the amount of lean
against the kite. And most importantly, while powered up by the kite, your hip is already very close to the ground. "Crashing" is really
nothing more than a short drop to the deck and a quick stop even at high speed.
These details may sound ugly, but kite skating is safer than it may appear. Releasable bindings, in my opinion, are not necessary and in fact could be
potentially dangerous.
BC
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