A Bermudian kite surfer is now working with the Canadian Coast Guard to implement new rescue techniques after his own near disaster.

Gray Robinson says the measures would prevent incidents such the one in October, where his kite got caught in the propellers of a Coast Guard boat.

Concerned onlookers at The O'Neill Cold Water Surf Classic rang the Coast Guard after witnessing Mr. Robinson's kite go down into the water.

They assumed that he was in trouble as he swam past the breaker between South Chesterman Beach and Cox Bay in Tofino, British Columbia.

The area's waters are a known trouble spot for people not familiar with the surf.

Mr. Robinson contends that he was not in danger. He says he knows the waters well as he spends half the year in nearby Salt Spring Island, where he enjoys extreme water and winter sports.

He later fell into difficulty however. His kite caught in the Coast Guard's boat propeller, the officers lost control, and everyone had to abandon ship before the rescue craft hit the breakers.

As a result, Mr. Robinson is now in talks with the Coast Guard operations to prevent a similar occurrence.

He told The Royal Gazette: "It's in the preliminary stages however one [change] is they will make sure the kite surfer swims well away from the kite and lines before getting onboard the boat.

"Exactly how far, I am under the understanding, is being worked on at present. But it should be at least 100 feet, as that is the length of the lines.

"They should definitely do the rescue upwind of the kite boarder, which they did do in this case, however the boat shifted so much with the swell that it carried the boat over the kite."

Mr. Robinson has also suggested that officers first ask if the kite surfer needs their assistance.

"They didn't ask if I needed help in the first place or [if I was] all right?" said the avid sportsman Because my answer would have been, 'I am okay and I'm almost to the beach'.

He added: "They did ask if I was tangled in the lines, and [moving forward] that will be their first question upon entering a possible rescue situation."

Mr. Robinson said Coast Guard officers will now also throw a line to downed kite surfers to help them reach the boat safely.

"It looks like they will have the person swim a safe distance [away] as it wasn't the kite lines that caught around the props but the kite itself, so they definitely did come in close."

Another option is to swap the Zodiac rescue boats now used for a smaller craft.

"I suggested that they have jet skis in key areas along this coastline," Mr. Robinson said.

"After this incident they will definitely be more cautious when coming in that close to the break in the big Zodiacs. Jet skis are far superior and can be used inside the break relatively safely."

Although he is thankful for the concerned onlookers who called the Coast Guard, he says that if they had looked closer, they would have seen that he was only doing the back stroke and not distressed and waving to people onshore for assistance.

"This area has top surfers all the time surfing the breaks right where the rescue happened, people just didn't know in this case and panicked," he said.

"There is nothing you can really change in that regard, as they did the best they could with what they knew, its just that is why the Coast Guard came in a blaze of glory, as they were under the understanding that I was drowning and in serious distress."