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A beachgoer waits for a kiteboader to launch at Kailua Beach Park. Before hitting the water, kiteboarders can take up more than 100 feet of the beach to make sure the pieces of their rigs fit properly and that their lines are not tangled.
BRUCE ASATO - The Honolulu Advertiser
Kiteboarding complaints resurface at Kailua Beach
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O"ahu Writer
KAILUA — Kiteboarding"s growing popularity has become a thorn in the side of some Kailua Beach Park users, who recently complained to the Kailua Neighborhood Board and the O"ahu Kite Club that the activity is taking up too much beach space and the problem has to be resolved.
"One woman got a rope around her neck," said Charles Prentiss, who heads the board"s committee looking into the issue.
One of the problems for beachgoers is how the kiteboarders prepare before they take to the water. To ensure safety, kiteboarders spread their rigs out on the beach to check to see that all the pieces fit together correctly and that the lines are not tangled. The process can span more than 100 feet and make it difficult for others to pass. When the kiteboarders don"t leave space to pass, beach etiquette is breached and problems arise.
And the problems just aren"t with the setup.
