Yes, the kick is real. Doing flood relief, we winched the rescue crewy down to a rooftop, and he then had to load the stranded people onto the hoist each time we sent the horse collar down to him. In the drizzling rain, he got a huge kick every time the collar came down - he had to grab it in the gusty winds, no chance to let it earth itself.
He took it 6 times in that sortie, we recommended him for a bravery award at the end of the week and he was rewarded with a medal.
On the other question about a "tea-bag" when the engine fails:
The briefing was to let the tea-bag touch the ground, then use the cable cutter to let him go, so he won't get dragged away by the aircraft.
That's assuming the aircraft predicament allows enough time for the crewman to operate the cutter before other things overtake him.