Pier Antics In White Rock

[SE2]

Just saw a video of a kiter doing a rail tap at the pier in White Rock last Tuesday. This type of activity clearly puts our continued kiting activity at risk. At present the local kiting community in White Rock is small and has a good relationship with local government but this has not always been the case. Some council members believed the mixture of kite lines and beach goers is a recipe for disaster, so we try to avoid potential conflict that could result in the closure of our beach to kiting. Of course visitors are welcome but please try to be sensitive to our situation.

[tweegster]

I rode with the rider in a fun evening Crescent session. I overheard what happened earlier in WR and interjected that he better brace for blowback from the local community. He seemed genuinely surprised and I explained some of the issues involved. He was polite and sympathetic with me and has apologized on other forums.

Some observations/questions from over the last week from my wife (teaches sup and yoga in WR) and I:

Reaction has been mostly positive to the photos and videos, including news coverage.

People are assuming it was not a local, they know no resident would damage, or risk the perception of damage to our much treasured, recently repaired, 106yr old local landmark or its users.

In some cases, I have to defend "tap" vs "grind", that no was damage done and skill/ control of the rider was high.

The fundraiser for the pier to "jump the gap" was denied due to risk, but this is allowed?

We have to politely listen to suggestions on how our watersport community could police itself.

As an isolated event, hopefully the only damage is to our local spot's WOO record. 18M!! The Gaul!!

[Patrick]

It's good that this has been addressed. Anytime the publics perceived safety is being jeopardized from the actions of a particular group, it puts that activity at risk of being denied. White Rock is a spot that does have potential for accidents to occur that could involve the public, as with other local spots. The privilege of using these areas can change quickly with one bad accident. It is clear that the footage involved is being performed by someone of a high skill level and the the riders calculated risk to the public was considered low. That being said sh*t happens fast and when something goes wrong we all pay. It is a very small community of users that sail these waters in the lower-mainland and it is best if we help each other out, rather than having rules imposed on us. Thankfully no harm was done and this can be used as a learning experience.