What did you do with your kite today?

Had a short session yesterday. The forecast looked promising, 37mph with 50mph gusts. Enough perhaps to reach my PB or better it.
Got rolling at 10am. Tide in by 11:15am, so had to be quick.
The beach was in perfect condition and I had it all to myself but the wind started to drop during the hour, and of course picks up again as the tide covers the beach.
Still, topped out at 62.4mph but I'm paying the price. My arm is killing me. It felt broken yesterday. Felt like I needed a sling support. Today is much better though. Time was an issue, so I did not bother reaching for the trim when heading up wind and just gunned it and the load on my right arm was too much. I need one of those race extension things.

Anyway, here's hoping for better conditions next time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB9yUGw0ISg

Impressive! Great video!

Thanks Randy.

Good to hear you got out.

Quote: Originally posted by jeffnyc

Sensei is a fun kite, Randy. I'd personally leave it as 2 line - it has an auto relaunch that works pretty well if there's any wind at all on the ground level. It's also perfect for handing off to non-kite flying friends and kids. It's also great for 1 handed flying. Not the most powerful kite, but my 3m pulls ok in 12knts+ on my ATB on the airport runway. If you don't feel like sewing, you could probably just sail tape the cells. My 21m Speed had that done and it's been holding up fine. (The cloth porosity is a different matter :D ) If you do 4 line it, would love to hear how it goes.

Thanks for reminding me - I already finished it. Here are some pictures. The lower one shows the original damage. Second, I have fully opened the seams and done most of the sewing and have rolled it up (inside out) into a burrito roll. The last picture is the final product.

I've already flown it and will likely keep it as 2 line. I added some attachments on my 3 M and can fly it as either a 2 or 3 line and change between the 2 quickly. The auto relaunch does work pretty well, but sometimes it's just quicker to do a reverse launch with the 3rd line and it gives a safety as well. I use it that way in high winds with my buggy and it works pretty well. For lighter winds I don't generally use the 3rd line. It is a fun kite for sure. The smaller one is quicker to turn and should be fun.

Quote: Originally posted by m00ms

62 mph!!!! hats off to you. is that an lei your using there and what size ?

Thanks m00ms and yes its a 7m lei.

Quote: Originally posted by RedSky

H Still, topped out at 62.4mph but I'm paying the price. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB9yUGw0ISg

Wow. Great run!

Thanks B-Roc

squeezing out the end of the season on the ice doing a little late day riding

I want to lift that bug away from those lines.

Quote: Originally posted by RedSky

I want to lift that bug away from those lines.

the lines were safe, the bar is to the upper right of the shot and lines run that direction. i think you are looking at some old grooves from the blades left in the ice.
But there are panic moments once in a while if there is a lull and lines droop onto the ice while still moving

I thought about starting a new thread about what things you make, but then I figured I would put it under this thread. I am always working on some sort of project whether its my kites, kite buggy or some accessory.
Whether it's welding, fabricating or sometimes sewing. So I figured I'd put some pictures here.

This is an under seat buggy part that my AQR safety system ties onto. At SOBB this year I had my strap slip off of my older shorter one. It's 3/8-16 threads and stainless tube.

Quote: Originally posted by abkayak

1.5 hrs on a 4.5 bullet...12-15 found out the easiest and most delicious way to get sand out of your teeth is to eat a mango

or simply stop face-planting. Any tips for sand in the eyes?

Quote: Originally posted by RedSky

Quote: Originally posted by abkayak   1.5 hrs on a 4.5 bullet...12-15 found out the easiest and most delicious way to get sand out of your teeth is to eat a mango or simply stop face-planting. Any tips for sand in the eyes?

if your not face planting are you really trying?
tip#2...hot tub

After getting back from 10 great days at SOBB, I still needed more so
I swapped off the bigfoots and put the barrows on my bug and headed out to a
small local playa with Motofoo86 to catch some seat time as a weather front approached.
Winds built to average 15 with lulls to 3 and gusts to 30 from 90 degrees off average.
Pretty challenging to deal with but resorted to a super small depower
trainer and still had fun.

Sewing day. I had one holder for a kite stake behind my buggy seat. I like to carry two. This new one has a top velcro loop that will hold a variety of styles. Lined with polyethylene tubing and has a sand exit hole at the bottom. The only improvement would be some non slip fabric at the top so the top loop won't slide to the side as easily.

Swapped out my 6-ply trailer tires for my BigFoots in anticipation of Fall SOBB. Whupp! Rolled the buggy up to the top of our driveway and "drove" it down. I know it ain't much, but I'm staying in the game!

With all the money I've saved by not driving to the kite field.
I'm going to put together a set of bars for nasa use. Hard to find matching bars naked.
France to the rescue (huh?). Steve used Kite Attitude, Born adopted it for awhile, meetoo.
Lucky for me the rest of the stuff I need is pretty cheap and local.
The VAT is deducted from the price at check out, A nice surprise after you've already bitten down on the bullet.

Steve the 38 is for the littlest star

It's gonna be like riding a cloud. Compared to the cinder block tires I needed on gravel.

Quote: Originally posted by Ed Cline

It's gonna be like riding a cloud. Compared to the cinder block tires I needed on gravel.

That's a fine looking upgrade Ed. You should really enjoy those. Glad too you were able to get a wider fork. Now, go fat out back!

Time to get serious about my Nasa bars. The parts are mostly here.:D



This inconsistent mess works, somehow?



The little one started life with Jim SSI as a crossover.
The middle is a Windstruck Westing special.
The broomstick is questionable, I think Coleridge wrote about it.

Quote: Originally posted by Ed Cline

All praise to Ariel. I don't do commercial work anymore, but for some reason I took this little call. Turns out they make custom robot style wheel chairs. Can you make me a fender for my kite buggy? After looking at it in my service van he said no problem, I can make whatever you want but I think diamond deck plate would be killer cool.... in chrome? Well, so do I. Can't wait till he calls me for my final fit and attachment... He's happy with the trade, hard to put a price on custom, but a midi fender costs one air conditioning repair. Happy Happy, Joy Joy. :D

Outstanding Ed. The barter system at its best. I'd love a personal custom fender. And yes, your material and color choices are spot on. Wax on; wax off.

Yeehaw.
Thanks to Erics initiative (and camp host!), a few of us descended on Roosevelt Gap between Ocean Shores and Pacific Beach, WA.
Two great days/

The beach was wide flat and firm and the sun was out!
Wind was light but smoooooth.
Perfect chance to try out my Gin Shaman2 12m.
All that I could ask for.

i didn't break it out and now its blowing onshore 12+ just coming off low tide...

Quote: Originally posted by PistolPete

I learned that (flying one right after the other) an 8m Toxic bridled aspect ratio 4.2 kite on an ozone turbo bar and 30m lines pulls a PL bigfoot easier and faster thru wet semi-soft sand than a 19m Venom2 arc aspect ratio 5.0 kite :puzzled:

Maybe the lower aspect of the 8m is sitting deeper in the window. This would give you more horse power at the cost of upwind ability.

I had a sunset session today in the dust devil bug, a serious off roader with a ton of ground clearance. Only its 4th outing since buying it new some 8-10 years ago.

The tide was on its way out and so the sand was wet and soft too. I learned not to downloop powerslide on soft sand. The short axle'd bug dug in, momentarily lifting its rear upwind wheel giving me a near heart attack. :o

Also enjoyed racing a kiteboarder upwind. We were side by side all the way up the beach just yards apart. Should have filmed it.

The dust devil is now my primary bug as the dominator is in long term storage due to lack of space.

Here's a few seconds from last week, hitting 59mph. The fastest this bug has ever gone. I don't think I've ever done more than 30mph before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCyLZJMYCZc

Nice Video RedSky!

Quote: Originally posted by Demoknight

The 8.0 is 4.85 if I remember correctly. It is the only one of the series with that AR. http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=26195&g...

So they may be a little closer in AR. The 19m is a park and ride, it is so slow to turn that sheeting in and bearing off is how to power out of the soft stuff. I think the 8m gets the upper hand with efficiency (open cell, fixed bridle, thinner wing, use of projected area/less anhedral), lighter weight, quicker turning.

Remember an old rule of thumb that the area/size of a FB is about half a DP for similar pull when riding. An Arc probably needs to be around two and a half times the FB size.

Quote: Originally posted by markite

Saturday was a great kiteboarding day followed by a nice Kite Cat session on sunday afternoon - Lake Huron, Southampton Ontario a short video coming soon

I really liked that video and in fact the whole Kite Cat vibe. We are contemplating a move back to California from Utah and will likely end up in San Diego County. I've been giving thought to how I could take advantage of the ocean breezes while avoiding the possibility of another "freak gasoline fight accident". The whole thing about kite boarding with LEIs or other super lifty kites spooks me and I don't want to get whipped up in the air ever again. A Kite Cat like the one you show in this video could be equipped with an AQR just like a land buggy!

Is this Kite Cat (or something similar) actually commercially available? Enquiring minds want to know!

Quote: Originally posted by RedSky

Love it! Really glad someone has finally done a proper kitecat video. Auto zenith and the lack of waves makes things easy yes ?

Hey Tom, the auto zenith is really good for carrying the cat into deeper water and getting into it. I rode it a bit the day before at a different bay using an LEI - the launch area was difficult with rocks and scrub bushes and then the first 30 feet of the water had scattered rocks so I needed extra hands to launch and mind the cat waiting for me in the water.
The location for the video was a better beach but it does have a quick drop in depth so it's not easy walk in and hop on, but not bad.
The arc is nice to use but I also find I need to work the bar a lot to try and keep some constant power on. And even in higher wind they can shoot through the power zone a bit too far ahead so keeping a slow sine works good. The LEI sat in the window holding power without needing as much work but it was also a higher wind day.
flatter water is nice for sure, once waves pick up then they are always slapping the bottom of the seat slowing me down.

Quote: Originally posted by Windstruck

I really liked that video and in fact the whole Kite Cat vibe. We are contemplating a move back to California from Utah and will likely end up in San Diego County. I've been giving thought to how I could take advantage of the ocean breezes while avoiding the possibility of another "freak gasoline fight accident". The whole thing about kite boarding with LEIs or other super lifty kites spooks me and I don't want to get whipped up in the air ever again. A Kite Cat like the one you show in this video could be equipped with an AQR just like a land buggy! Is this Kite Cat (or something similar) actually commercially available? Enquiring minds want to know!

Kite Cats haven't been made in many years but there is the odd one that comes up for sale. The one Aaron Saude was trying to sell located in ...Wisconsin (?) was an excellent deal and it was the last generation design on the kite cat so a very fun craft.
A buddy near Ottawa Canada has one that was an early generation, i think it was #2 of the cats built. Then one in the UK last year. I think the only thing being manufactured is the kite tender
http://www.kitetender.nl

I use both LEIs and arcs but haven't had any issue being lifted out of the cat or buggy...but there have been times in the buggy where yes it could easily happen. I don't recall exactly the safety release but if i remember it has a cable that comes up through a grommet in the seat. The kite cat seat is like a buggy seat hanging down from the frame so you would need to put a grommet to run the cable but not sure what happens below the seat. i'll have to go back and look at Jeffs set up.

um, did I mess anything, i could ramble on with more info on the cat but let me know if there was anything else specific i can answer.
Mark

Thanks Mark Hope to see more from you in the future.

Had a wonderful confluence of conditions and freedom and I was able to get in my buggy for the first time since IBX in April. Not the best wind but I was able to get some nice laps in on a soccer field under my 11m RS. Even got up on two wheels for about 10-15 feet coming out of a corner! That was fun. :D

I'm going to keep my gear in the car for a couple of days. There may be another window tomorrow. Whupp.

No August wind in Raleigh, maybe the hurricane will bless us.
Meanwhile still sharpening my axe.

Quote: Originally posted by Pablo

2 Days with a steady 10-12mph wind, couple things, I think we've finally bonded with the new kite, and well, rain and a wet mud bay, finally properly motivated to put a longer mud flap on the buggy, no more wet sand crotch.

Those beach racers grabbed my attention. I do love 'em.
I imagine they're ideal for the mud? How do you plan to keep your new kite mud free? Someone catch it ?

Quote: Originally posted by wldkrd1

I finally got my Blade III 4.9 and 4.0 up in the air for the first time today. Ocean Beach in S.F., 10-14mph constant wind. Lots of butt-scudding while I got used to the handling characteristics of each. Right now, I think the 4.0m is my new favorite kite to fly static (no jumping). It's light, responsive, and reliably powerful. Also, it's purple, my favorite color. Anyways, here are a few pics of the kites ready for launch. I was alone, so no action shots: Blade III 4.0 Blade III 4.9 (1) Blade III 4.9 (2)

The perfect scud machines.

Well, I figure after a month or so I'll have a lovely brown kite. There really is no fix for the dirty kite from Mud Bay issue. Lime green and white may have been a mistake, the orange seems to hide the dirt. Plus side, the kite is extremely well behaved for the amount of power it can produce so it isn't spending much time on the ground.

As for the beach racers, I highly recommend them. float over anything, with the grooves they are pretty grippy in pretty much anything but the organic greasy patches at mud bay. Down in Seaside I had no issues going upwind in the soft dry sugary sand. You don't slow down that much at all in the dry sand or mud.

4

Quote: Originally posted by RedSky

Quote: Originally posted by Pablo   2 Days with a steady 10-12mph wind, couple things, I think we've finally bonded with the new kite, and well, rain and a wet mud bay, finally properly motivated to put a longer mud flap on the buggy, no more wet sand crotch. Those beach racers grabbed my attention. I do love 'em. I imagine they're ideal for the mud? How do you plan to keep your new kite mud free? Someone catch it ? Quote: Originally posted by wldkrd1   I finally got my Blade III 4.9 and 4.0 up in the air for the first time today. Ocean Beach in S.F., 10-14mph constant wind. Lots of butt-scudding while I got used to the handling characteristics of each. Right now, I think the 4.0m is my new favorite kite to fly static (no jumping). It's light, responsive, and reliably powerful. Also, it's purple, my favorite color. Anyways, here are a few pics of the kites ready for launch. I was alone, so no action shots: Blade III 4.0 Blade III 4.9 (1) Blade III 4.9 (2) The perfect scud machines.

Quote: Originally posted by Bladerunner

I was going to start taking a big tarp to stage from if I got serious about mud bay.

Ken, I want to see your big white flysurfer landing on a tarp and not falling over any edges. Sounds like good entertainment. (Video or it didn't happen....)

sled ride

Happy new year.
Any last rides?
No record here, except for the most fun on that field ,
Dec. 31/ 2019

A little late... Had a fantastic last day of the year at Coney Island, then 20-30 knots at Smith Point Long Island on New Years day - no video of that unfortunately. Maybe for the best, had trouble with my foot straps on launch and almost ended up in the trees. Rest of the session was fantastic though, spray flying off the waves, ankle deep water around the small island, shot out the cut to the ocean where the wind was really howling, put on quite a few miles. Snowed a little too.

Coney:


Smith point map:

Nice video and looked a pretty "cool" session.

Quote: Originally posted by jeffnyc

Thanks Randy. Yeah a little chilly, 5/4 wetsuit and one of the best things I ever bought... neoprene hoodie. I've been super toasty this winter (taking it all off in the parking lot is the cold part).

i take it your carseat isn't waterproof...?? :D:D

Would be nice to see you again in May Ed. You do not want to miss JIBE for sure.

Stack in Progress

We need to see those all stacked up in the sky Riff....

Quote: Originally posted by Randy

We need to see those all stacked up in the sky Riff....

That's the plan :D

Hey I recognize that wind. We have a similar blessing in Raleigh. Like the spokes.

Hey Randy, what wheels are those on the board? Are you using skate board trucks?

I have a land sail board also. This is what I use for wheels. But I am always looking for maybe better ones. The 4" wheels are for pavement. The 8" wheels are for hard packed sand. The 10" wheels are for grass and looser sand.

You might look around Goodwill, Craig's List, etc for used "Sliders" or Trikke scooters or similar. You might find one for less than the price of a single wheel. Unfortunately, they come with 3 wheels so you may still need to buy another.

Randy - I looked around my local CL and Goodwill nothing available at the moment but I will keep an eye out. I am not in a hurry.

Jeff - I watched the video really cool... Where did you get your set of "granny wheels"?

I was hoping for a some good wind this weekend, but it looks like is going to be raining here. I would be ok with some snow too, I have a new toy to try out. With a kite or downhill.



But no, just lots of rain....

Quote: Originally posted by Jack.Oh

Randy - I looked around my local CL and Goodwill nothing available at the moment but I will keep an eye out. I am not in a hurry. Jeff - I watched the video really cool... Where did you get your set of "granny wheels"? I was hoping for a some good wind this weekend, but it looks like is going to be raining here. I would be ok with some snow too, I have a new toy to try out. With a kite or downhill. But no, just lots of rain....

Cool. Where did you get the blue skids? (I guess that is what you call them).