This topic is stupid.....
If you're progressing your riding, unhooking, taking slams etc you might/would have a greater understanding. And see how vital leash is, riding without is just crazy talk.
I snapped a leash this year,
It sucks chasing kites down when they take off.
There is soooo many different ways to attach you leash and different lengths etc. I guess it really depends on what sort of kiting your doing.
Ride without a leash, what a joke.
Good luck.
My old mate Slavey 
has been on about 'death leashes' since day dot... AND ITS AS CRAP TODAY AS IT EVER WAS.
In days gone by EVERYONE slammed Slave for these views - with very good reason.
There are heaps of kiters reading this now wondering who they should listen to.
Dont get tangled up in the forum banter of the role of 'SAFETY leashes' in these days of far safer kites.
Until you are at an extremely high skill level & have experience based knowledge to make a choice bw leash or no leash AND REMEMBERING THAT EVEN THEN IT IS STILL A TOTALLY NARCISSISTIC CHOICE TO NOT USE A LEASH just stick with your leash.
Dont listen to garbled messages on public "Im a Hero" forums about how twisted lines may reduce their effectiveness etc etc. Follow the common sense rules of untwisting your lines - its a piece o p**s these days - and keep yourself, those around you & (last but not least) your gear safe by using the leash the way it was designed & provided for you by EVERY manufacturer with every new kite.
If safety leashes werent worth using the manufacturers would be the first to drop this additional cost item from the compulsory purchase package of their product.
NONE - NOT EVEN ONE - TAKE THAT OPTION. inc. all the backyard, on-line & fly-by-night kite manufacturers.
Dont listen to dumb forum crap - safety leashes are ESSENTIAL.
let the fun & theoretical forum rhetoric cont........
ps.
I lived & kited right at Woodies for 5 yrs.
During that time I met & kited with just about every world champ & a heap of world champ contenders & hopefuls training in the norths off season.
These are the cream of the cream of kiters in the world & I NEVER EVER saw one of them kiting without a kite leash. Not ONE not ONCE.
Why would you even think of listening to random off-the-planet forum posters with that sort of endorsement on their usefulness.
Along with EVERY kite co. supplying them without option with every new kite.
Same dickheads same bull****. Thanks for reminding me why I hardly ever come back here. The only good thing that waveslave could do with a leash is hang himself. Anyone else think these topics bought up by the same people over and over get redundant?
Old prick must be senile.
i found this of Aaron not using his leash to make a good photo on the slider i think maybe to help it look abit more like wakeboarding
When the surf is really big i launch then unhook the leash, kite, then rehook when coming in off my last wave
Also if i do a big trip out to sea to get way upwind ill hook the leash up for that
Im a bit confused??
Short leash hooks on to the spreader bar (reinforced bit where it meets the harness) doesnt it? I dont think my harness (ion) has strong d rings on the side.
Im not skinny enough for the short leash to reach the back handle lol
Whilst I appreciate not only the skill required and the integrity of the 'unhookers' rotator cuff muscles I don't think it is as functional as most 'unhookers' think.
I think it makes for a higher pivot point body wise, bad thing, and leads to an over stiffness and one dimension to surfing down the line.
That said, Ben Wilson makes it look good, but slow down one of his good bottom turns and look at the angle of his shoulder joint...mmm not for me.
Now you've shown Felix P there.... I dare you to compare any of his videos to Ian A or Patrick R....
Yeah I hear you there Jedibrad and despite posting that photo above (whilst in a drunken state last night) I definitely recommend wearing a leash.
Guys like Felix that have been flying kites with fixed bars and unhooked for years using relatively small C kites maybe able to get away without a leash but there is not many people in the world with that sort of experience.
As far as hooked or unhooked goes well that's up to the individual, Ben W and Ian A for example both rip, yes they both have different styles but that is what I like about kiting you can take it wherever you want.
I can see advantages and disadvantages of both styles.
I personally usually kite hooked in, because the kites that I fly are easier to control that way, when I fly my C kite I unhook more because it handles it better.
As someone suggested earlier, I use a short leash that is attached to the end of my spreader bar so the release is always handy.
When I first saw this post I thought no Slave you can't pull this one off again, but I under estimate your fishing skills. I applaud you.
Death-leashes are like tow-ropes.
They drag you up trees, over powerlines and into buildings and cars.
Tether yourself to a power kite at your peril.
lol.
Leaches protect other beach goers.How many kites would we have blowing away when there is a need to pull your safety.I don't understand why you would not have a leash.
^^^^ Is that a Toyota Cluger under the tree ?? Ban them and the leash issue will go away also !! ( Ok yep yep - this comment has as much merrit as the original post!!) LOL
You sound scared, you don't have very good kite control do you Slave?
Could I suggest you take some lessons? 
Here you go Slave I fixed your picture for ya... It looked like he was still hooked in
I've thought about this leash thing a bit lately.
If **** hits the fan, I'd rather ditch the kite in one move. If I really needed to pull the pin, damaging the kite would be the least of my worries.
I know someone who needed to use the kite quick release, during a tangle with someone else. That worked, but he was then getting dragged upside down underwater and couldn't get the leash release. He thought he was going to drown. Lucky for him his harness had a quick release system where the whole lot goes(harness,bar,kite).
On my kite all the leash does is put the bar out of reach but (hopefully) depowered.
I still have the leash, for landing and launching where I move it so it flags the kite if needed, and to keep other kiters happy...
