Tube Kiting

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a warning of a potential safety threat from tube kiting. Two people have died and at least a dozen others have been seriously injured from tube kiting.

From KansasCity.com:

Tube kites are most often round and can be more than 10 feet in diameter. The tube is hooked to the back of a boat by a tow rope. The rider pulls back as the boat travels at speeds between 25 and 35 miles per hour. As the speed increases, the tube is lifted into the air trailing the boat.

Injuries can result from a rider's inability to control the tube, the boat operator's inexperience and rough weather conditions, such as gusts of wind that can cause the tube to spin out of control.

In some cases, a boat can stop suddenly and a tube rider may be flung forward and hit other boats and stationary objects, including low bridges.

A short video clip showing one of the tubes in action can be found here. It's easy to see that the tubes are uncontrollable and dangerous. As a consequence of the identified danger, the National Park Service is beginning to ban tube kiting in some locations.