16 posts tagged “kites”

More flight time on the field today-- wasn't very long, however.  I had Princess come out with me so Cimmorene

Diamond jak

(Note: this photos are not mine, but are from the Prism site - just a note for purposes of copyright)

Jazz stunt kite - spectrum colors

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So I bought a Jazz kite at REI last Friday.  I still need to fix the Nexus, but I have been too lazy to order the replacement parts I need.

(Just a funny aside: the REI employees seemed to have no knowledge about Prism's line of kites, nor even really that they carried them in particular.)

So anyways I found that the Jazz is smaller than the Nexus, and seemed a little easier to control.  But the winds were not right to keep it aloft.  That day, as yesterday, I found it easier to fly the parafoil Snapshot, but ultimately, the X-Kite delta I had (probably cheapest one in my collection) flew best under the fairly light and yet again changing winds.  It's all good, though-- as long as I have something to fly to get a chance to relax.  Helped a lot before the date Cimmorene and I had yesterday.  More about that in the next post.

Got a compliment today on the EO Atom kite :)  The fishing rod reel I use for it lost the trigger catch (it broke off) but it's still perfectly useable.  Had some great practice time on the powerkite.

Princess was out with me and was a big help.  She was mostly playing in the dust and dirt, as scruffy little gamin girls do.

After chiropractic adjustments and spending time at the gym pool thereafter up to and through the kids' swimming lessons, we made a mad dash to the Albertson's (grocery) deli to grab some food because the wind was good for some kite flying. 

The Snapshot (dual line parafoil) did okay long enough that I started getting more of a feel for control, but the wind kept changing direction enough that it still crashed a lot.  The Atom (Expandable Object box kite) did okay but the wind kept dying.  It picked up just often enough that I sometimes recovered from some spiraling tumbles.  The kite that did the best was the Flip (gyroscopic design) kite-- actually, the wind started staying consistent-- that it was very easy to keep up, even with the spool of fluorescent yellow twine.  I was able to sit and even lie down and it still stayed up.  At this point the pull was strong enough that when Cimmy wanted to go home, she helped me reel it in.

No pictures this time although she really wanted to take a picture of me flying the Flip while lying down.

Next time, baby.  Next time. :-)

There was just enough of a breeze yesterday that I went out for yet another kite adventure.   I had some nominal success with the EO Atom, but had to do a lot of walking.  Got it up higher than previously... even reached the end of the string a few times.  The wind was weak, but I at least got it up more than previous days.  Always a learning experience.

In a nutshell, here's some of the variables that affect a kite's performance, aside from one's own skills:

• weight of the kite
• weight of the string
• shape of the kite, obviously
• size of the kite- along with shape, how much of the kite is covered/available to the wind
• the wind speed and its consistency
• how much land area you have to work with-- wide open flat spaces are best (so parks- generally not so good, fields OK, beaches fairly ideal)
• single or dual lines

And with this sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't have a small weather station gadget and start analyzing this scientifically.  I figure I will have to do that somewhat if I start making kites of my own, which I am still putting off.  I guess newspaper, bamboo skewers, cellophane tape and a hole punch isn't inspiring me a whole lot.  I would like to find a good cloth to make a good parafoil single line, actually-- I just need to figure out how to reinforce the holes properly and how I should attach a tail.  I can buy a cheap one and study it although Prism's version looks grand.

Wonder how I can find and contact the local kite society.  Hmmm.  Will keep you posted.

Jak is having fun

Snapshot 1

Swerve

Flying high

We had some moderate success with the Nexus (a traditional stunt kite) but after repeated crashes, the spine broke.  (No worry-- it's replaceable.)  The Snapshot was much nicer as there was no frame to break.  We took some reels from the Koi design stunt kite and used those as the dual lines that came with the kite are still tangled.  This worked great since we could control how much length we wanted to start, although once that kite's in the air, you don't want to change it.  It was much easier to learn how to control the kite, and although the lines twisted occasionally, that wasn't a problem-- and a few times I was able to untwist them while still in flight.

To clarify, Cimmy just helped and took pictures while I was flying.  Princess busied herself with the new play garden tool set she got, using one of the sand pits for track & field events.  There's not a picture of her this time, but Cimmy did get a picture of herself and Jak Jr.

Have a bite of my apple