Wandered up to the neighbors' hill again the other day to take advantage of some rare kite flying weather (winter's been miserable!!) and took the
camera...thought I'd make a couple more 'how to's' for those who are unfamiliar with, or just starting out with power kites. First is a general 'how
to fly your powerkite' vid (far too long - I talk too much) and the second is a mercifully brief 'how to side launch a power kite'
Somewhere in amongst my 'waffling' I hope there's a few tips...
bobalooie57 - 17-9-2012 at 05:18 AM
Nice videos, John, very helpful. :bigok: You said that's your neighbors lot? Do you get to buggy it? Lots of room! :wee:John Holgate - 17-9-2012 at 02:32 PM
Cheers Bob. Trouble with buggying there is that it drops away pretty quickly on all sides to barb wire fences and that I'd have to carry the buggy
over said fences to get it up there. Now if I had a landboard..... (not sure if my knees and ankles would put up with a landboard)...Bladerunner - 17-9-2012 at 05:01 PM
How about those gizmos you buddy Spartan rides on ? Why not a set of those?John Holgate - 17-9-2012 at 07:01 PM
Quote:
How about those gizmos you buddy Spartan rides on ? Why not a set of those?
hmmmm.... haven't tried them yet. I reckon I could tempt George for a fly on the hill too..... Good thinkin!Proletariat - 17-9-2012 at 10:20 PM
Well, those are okay videos, but what I really need is someone who can show me how to play a bar chord on a guitar. Do you guys know anyone like
that?
Seriously though, those are great videos (as always), John. They are going on my favorites list to show my friends who are new to flying. I even
learned a few things watching them (only been kiting about a year.) Also, because you're so good at making these, I have a request for you, if you're
up to it.
I could use some video guidance about two things I struggle with:
1) consistent traction power, and 2) figuring out how to (safely) fly very different types of kites.
I recently heard that a "vertical figure 8" could be used to deliver consistent power, but I have yet to try it. Any video showing some techniques to
use for consistent traction (or intentional lift, too, I guess) would be really handy.
I have a flux, an ace, a beamer and a blade. Obviously, these are very different kites but I've seen similarities in the Ace/Blade and also in the
Beamer/Flux. Ignoring the fact that your first video now makes me want to go out and get an Imp, I'd love to see your take on flying techniques for
some other (maybe more advanced, bigger or higher aspect ratio) kites.
Thanks again. Fantastic work!John Holgate - 18-9-2012 at 01:09 AM
Thanks for the kind words! Will attempt a 'how to ' buggying video next time the opportunity presents itself. In light winds (for the buggy) I will
work the kite aggressively in horizontal fig 8's or large loops and try to keep the kite between 90 degrees (level with my shoulder) to say, 40
degrees....(with 0 degrees being straight in front of me). As the buggy starts to gain a little speed, the kite starts to see a bit more apparent
wind and I may only need to sine the kite up and down and try and keep it around the 40 degree area - depending on the kite - my Nasa wings may only
get to 50 degrees whereas your Ace could go forward to 35 or so (these are really rough estimates off the top of my head). And all that's assuming
the wind is 90 degrees on your upwind shoulder.
geez.... I hope that made sense!!
Either way, once I start to get some speed in the buggy, and a bit of power in the kite, it will start to pull and I will be able to
'parS-P-A-M-L-I-N-K- it at the front of the window and let it pull me. If there isn't enough wind to park the kite....then I need a bigger kite...
Between 6.25 and 7.00 in this video is an example of fig 8 and looping the kite to get going in light winds. Notice when I loop the kite, I turn
slightly towards it. This can help in not letting the kite start getting behind me and slowing me down instead.
As for flying higher aspect kites - and I haven't spent a lot of time with high aspect stuff - I have found they won't just sit politely at the edge
of the window - sometimes they just keep going and luff and collapse into a heap. Usually it's a combination of keeping them away from the edge by
turning them away, and the judicious use of brakes as well. But they will reward you by sitting well forward in the window at speed in the buggy
which is what they're designed to do. But my advice on high aspect stuff is pretty thin - you're best to talk to those who fly the Vapors/Yakuzas and
Combats etc.
I like the Imp Quattro mainly because it's the most docile kite I have and I'm happy to hand it to friends and family to fly 'cos I know it's not
going to rip their arms off. Needs about 20 knots to buggy with and starts mis-behaving at around 25 knots. I think there are a lot better kites out
there than the Imp these days.Proletariat - 22-9-2012 at 02:52 PM
Good god, man... you must have Triceps of steel!
That's really great info, John. Thank you. And, amazingly, I understood everything that you said. We should really figure out some diagrams at some
point. That really helps me figure out where stuff (like wind, kite, me, board)
should go, which is one of the big challenges as a newbie. I was wondering about loops.
Static, especially with the Blade and the Ace, I tend to lose power when trying to bring it around on the top shoulder of the figure 8 (either side).
I was thinking that this could be because I'm primarily flying in low-wind situations with not a lot of apparent wind (which is just the wind speed
added to the speed of the kite through the air-- in the desired direction). Once I get moving and flying in a bit higher wind I assume it won't be
difficult to keep powered up through the entire 8, but I'm not sure if that's right. Would you say that it's just a learned skill, or something that
you really just can't do while static?
It really seems (from your videos that I've watched) that you have no trouble at all keeping powered up through the 8. The Beamer is pretty easy to
do that with in lots of conditions, but the other 3 kites seem to be really finicky about having "the perfect windspeed."John Holgate - 22-9-2012 at 04:32 PM
You should be able to keep it reasonably well powered throughout a fig 8. Perhaps try narrowing your fig 8 so you don't get quite as far as the edge
of the window. You could also try reversing your fig 8 so you're downturning the kite on the upper shoulders of the 8 rather than upturning it.
Certainly a bit more wind will help - but then you'll have to cope with a fair bit more power through the middle of the window. The higher aspect
kites will produce more power as the apparent wind picks up than the lower aspect kites will. That's one of the reasons I really enjoy flying the
very low aspect Nasa Star 2's - they produce solid power at low speeds but they give you a relatively gentle increase in power as the wind speed goes
up. Unlike some kites that hardly pull at slow speeds but will tear your arms out when they really start to move...
Also, I would imagine (cos I haven't flown one) that the Ace may have a much wider window than the Beamer - so you may need to turn it away from the
edge of the window a little sooner to keep it in the power.
Also, as the wind speed increases, you probably won't need to fly in fig 8's.....a bit of sineing the kite up and down to get you moving, then park 'n
ride away. The lower aspect kites - like the Beamer - should produce enough power to park it before the higher aspect kites do - they may need a few
extra knots.
As for the 'Triceps of steel' - why do you think I'm always hooked into a harness? g-force junkie - 22-9-2012 at 04:45 PM
you need a leash on all kites!John Holgate - 22-9-2012 at 04:47 PM
Quote:
you need a leash on all kites!
A Leash?? Do you mean kite killers?
I would agree kite killers on fixed bridle kites while someone's learning. My Ozone and HQ depower have primary and secondary safety's - and you
certainly need to practice with the primary safety so it becomes instinctive.
Once you know what you're doing, how much personal safety gear you use or don't use, is up to you. Personally, I always wear a helmet when in the
buggy and strong footwear. If I was learning an ATB, I would add knee/elbow and bum protection too.
I've never used a leash on the depowers - if the primary safety doesn't cut it, then I'll hit the secondary and dump the kite....if I can think fast
enough!nocando - 22-9-2012 at 05:04 PM
Well done John will show these to all
:wee::wee::wee:Proletariat - 27-9-2012 at 01:08 AM
I took the tight figure 8 advice and tried it out on my beamer on a nice ~10mph day. I was flying static and was able to keep it powered up the
entire time with no problem. Thanks John!
The Ace is still baffling my (as is the Blade4 8.5, but that's primarily just the fear talking.) I think you're right -- incredibly narrow window +
decent, predictable wind. Of course, the last time I took the ace up in ~15mph I had a few off-the-ground experiences I wasn't expecting, so it's a
fine line.
That Blade4 is pretty slow and lumbering (or powerful and terrifying), depending on whether you're in 5mph or 7 mph winds. I will try to get it in a
*cosine* wave when I get moving on skis/board in a few weeks. Keeping that kite in a controllable figure 8 seems nearly impossible, but the wave
sounds doable. I'll let you know how it goes.Pierogi - 27-9-2012 at 03:41 PM
Nice job John! I'm relatively new to PKF but have enjoyed watching your buggying videos since long before I joined. It's videos like these that
really helped me get going.Kober - 28-9-2012 at 02:35 AM
John you should continue this how to series .... very nicely done ...John Holgate - 28-9-2012 at 05:29 AM
Cheers guys. Hope to do a few more....and summer is approaching....Proletariat - 26-10-2012 at 11:49 PM
Yeah, I never followed up here, John, but I meant to tell you that your advice here got me up and riding my board, finally. 25ish MPH day, and I had a
quick little 1.7m in tight figure 8's handing out even, smooth power. I'll post a vid of my first ride once I edit a bit.
2 days later and I was being "gently" towed along by my incredibly docile, predictable, and not at all terrifying Blade IV without mishap. The same
advice still holds, but 8's on the blade weren't possible without ripping my arms off, so the sine wave worked great.
Thanks again. Now please make a movie about how to get free kites and perfect wind every day. Thanks!
Good thinkin!