Power Kite Forum

buggy jumping- want to start

flyguy0101 - 16-9-2013 at 05:48 AM

Alright i have been forced to buggying almost exclusively at my home fields due to the inconsistent and lower winds, so have decided it is time to attempt a little buggy air. Any one gonna be at WWB in the fall that can give me some pointers? also for those that i have seen videos of jumping like carltb- what are you using as a seat belt? any comments or tips appreciated.
Scott

flyjump - 16-9-2013 at 07:25 AM

yeahhhhhhhhhhh

BEC - 16-9-2013 at 07:55 AM

I'm in!....I have an old seatbelt from an airplane...kinda like the old quick release systems they had in car seat belts...I put it around my sidebars and then cinched myself in....I will say it was a bit scary....no air...this was just to keep my ass in the seat during the gusts....ditched it after a couple sessions and learned to fly the kite better in those situations.....

I will bring it...looking forward to see what other experienced people have to say....

LOOK OUT WILDWOOD....if air is involved then screaming might happen more often....

shehatesmyhobbies - 16-9-2013 at 08:13 AM

Funny you post this, I have been thinking of this my self in the last week or so. I was looking at my old buggy sitting outside this morning saying I need to get the new axle for it so I can have some freestyle, jumping fun. This could get interesting quick.

abkayak - 16-9-2013 at 08:50 AM

im gonna velcro my ass to the seat and hang w/ you guys.....gonna be a fun Oct.

lunchbox - 16-9-2013 at 08:52 AM

I've also been thinking of giving it a try for just the exact same reasons. But I worry that a hard fall on a buggy could have the potential for back/spinal injuries...a board just seems safer to me....

having said that though...it does look like fun -


flyguy0101 - 16-9-2013 at 11:18 AM

@Lunchbox i agree the lack of shock absorbers (ie LEgs) is definetly a real issue- i remember the first waterfall i kayaked and landed flat was only a 20 foot drop but hurt the back for a couple of weeks. but after riding yesterday and spending a lot of time with my rump constantly a couple of inches out of the seat figure the seatbelt will help in other ways as well

Bladerunner - 16-9-2013 at 05:02 PM

I made a belt using about 2" wide double sided Velcro I got at the marine shop. Simply ran it under my side rails and over my lap.

I taped up a couple of inches of one end so I can grab it and pull if I want out fast.

From what I was told , before you jump you should practice going backwards and doing transitions. 180' and 360' .

What kind of buggy....

skimtwashington - 17-9-2013 at 07:25 AM

....can take this kind of abuse? You need a seriously strong gauged frame and shocks on wheels ideally.

Although bigfoot wheels would absorb more than regular barrow wheels- if you chose them(most buggy jumpers seem not to use these)....you still need strength and ability to absorb any impact/compression from gravity. For your spine.... as well as the buggy!



Custom build for this abuse?

Oh...and always floating down softly w/ 3-point landing would help-but realistically you can't expect that all/much of the time.

Would love to see some of this at WWBB though..

shehatesmyhobbies - 17-9-2013 at 10:28 AM

Several people jumping buggies at this time including, Carl, Karen, using the XR/flexifoil buggys, Stephane Bommel is using an MG race buggy.

I think with jumping buggy's its going to be no different then jumping ATB, a redirect to help soften the landing. I could be wrong, and I do agree some frame stiffening may be in order, but you don't really see that on these other buggy's that are getting air time.

waltweb - 18-9-2013 at 01:46 AM

You can use a standard PL barrow wheeled buggy, but you need to nail your soft landing technique so as not to snap off your rear wheel bolts. The technique is not the motorbike jump style, but as you've guessed, the kite lift , hang, and then parachute landing style.

The difficult part is managing the hang transition, into the soft landing, while looking around you, positioning your buggy for the landing, whilst flying your kite in the power till you decide to land!

Atef that it's relativly simple :D :o

Many Freestylers now use a beefed up small buggy. Heavy duty rear axle, 20mm wheel bolts, but don't go for shocks on the axel as this extra weight alters the flying angle of the buggy making it hard to keep the nose down or horizontal. in the air!

Watching video of other folk jumping only shows the buggy rider, and litte is seen of what is going on with the kite handleing. This is the bit you really need to watch, how the kite is being flown during the lift and landing.

Best to talk to Craig Sparks or "Stupid" Dave to get some useful info as regards to this.

regards Steve Walt Webb

skimtwashington - 18-9-2013 at 05:35 AM


Quote:

but don't go for shocks on the axel as this extra weight alters the flying angle of the buggy making it hard to keep the nose down or horizontal. in the air!


So why not design a buggy so it's balanced for this and with freestyle buggy jumping in mind. Besides.... I am thinking a shock up front too(all wheels shocked). So added weight there(to balance?)

That....going from standard commercially made buggy to a custom made(for jumping) is of course a bigger $ investment...yes.


Shocks seem like they could REALLY help....your spine and buggy.

Do most freestylers use depower instead of FB?

Bladerunner - 18-9-2013 at 06:45 AM

Quote: Originally posted by flyguy0101  
Alright i have been forced to buggying almost exclusively at my home fields due to the inconsistent and lower winds, so have decided it is time to attempt a little buggy air.
Scott


Sounds like our winds and park.
Trouble here is we rarely get clean winds over 12mph. Trying to jump in less is frustrating.

We have some riders who do a fantastic job of enjoying these winds by throwing down transitions, 360's and 2wheel. ALL great skills to have down before jumping.

shortlineflyer - 18-9-2013 at 07:05 AM

I am trying too, I am having trouble with getting the kite at the right place at the right time to lift me and the buggy

flyguy0101 - 18-9-2013 at 08:16 AM

@blade- could not agree more have been spending time trying to go smoothly in reverse and have discovered some really fun 180 "flip arounds" The other reason for the belt is to keep me in the buggy when i am really working an edge or working on a slide or two wheelin. Every time i OBE buggy lands on top of me anyways so its not like it will be an extra hit just means less likely to have the wheel in the head event:D

ted123456 - 27-9-2013 at 12:46 AM

Hello

if your interested in a buggy jumping and want some pics of a modified buggy and the seat belt i use then have a read through this thread i made from kitecrowd. ive changed my seatbelt a little over the past couple of weeks (just to incorporate a cam cleat)

http://forum.kitecrowd.com/buggying/casefile-flexifoil-buggy...

should be loads of info on how to make a freestyle buggy.

Also there is plenty of vids on my youtube page which should provide some shots of kite and buggy and maybe give some inspiration on freestyle

http://www.youtube.com/user/stvredmond

if you want/need any further guidance or info then let me know and i will endevour to answer

flyguy0101 - 27-9-2013 at 08:36 AM

ted- thanks for the links i finished my seatbelt last night so if the wind gods cooperate i am off in about an hour to strap my a$$ in for a little ride:cool: of course wind is not matching the forecast and is blowing 1 and gusting to 3:mad: maybe it will build some more or i will have trailer work to do
Scott

ted123456 - 27-9-2013 at 08:49 AM

its always the same wind is never how you want it. hope it will pick up for you. let us know how you get on.

bartiebat - 4-10-2013 at 02:27 PM

Hello, Karen here. So I started with a piece of industrial Velcro! It kinda works but the quick release isn't so quick! For jumping a 3 point belt to start with works really well since you may initially struggle getting the front end off the ground, so the 3rd point will help with that. I personally found a 2 point lap belt better past the bunny hop stage since your legs are free then. I have a wichard QR after cheaper ones kept breaking.

For those who say they struggle getting off the ground, try static jumping, then try them sidewards to get more of an in buggy feel. You'll naturally/nervously not send the kite enough to begin with, but don't worry & just enjoy the feeling of an extra bit of lightness till you send the kite a little more each time.

The lighter the buggy, the easier to lift off the ground. Don't worry about breaking it til you're past the bunny hop stage. I have a Flexi & only needed to reinforce it once my jumps got up to 4ft. It would have been cheaper if I'd learnt to land pointing the buggy downwind slightly & always landing by pushing the front wheel down first, but that would involve doing more than 1 thing at a time & I was never much good at that!

Learn flatland stuff first then relearn it with your lap belt on before you start jumping. This is purely because jumping itself is easy, recovering from rotating accidentally in the air & landing backwards /on two wheels etc is where you'll struggle, so get that bit sorted 1st.

Don't worry about jumping so high you feel out of control ..... You'll soon wish you could before you actually can!

I have flatland & aerial trick guides on www.ridelikeagirl.co.uk under the trick guides section which start from really basic stuff like going backwards & sliding. Hope it helps. But if you are stuck with something email me at ridelikeagirlkite@gmail.com & I'll try & help explain whatever it is some more xx

Bladerunner - 4-10-2013 at 04:29 PM

Thanks Karen,

I am not sure if you know it but you are a bit of a star on this forum. Your advice is always valued .

Many of us, myself included wish we could " ride like a Girl " !

The nice thing about learning transitions, 2 wheel etc. is that you can do it even when the wind isn't strong enough to jump.

bartiebat - 5-10-2013 at 01:09 AM

Absolutely! We've talked about changing the competition format over here so that when the wind in blowing less than 15mph the comps move to a flatland freestyle competition instead because like you say, you don't need much wind (& also it stops it being a competition about who has the biggest Flysurfer!) :)

Thank you, but anyone can ridelikeagirl, it just takes a few goes at your chosen trick each time you go out :) x

flyguy0101 - 7-10-2013 at 09:28 AM

Karen- Ken beat me to it- i am a regular viewer of your site and wish i could ride like a girl. Thanks for the reply- i built my 3 point harness and hooked in for the first time yesterday- i like it. Never left the ground but definetly added to some buggy control
Scott

bartiebat - 18-10-2013 at 11:32 PM

Aww thank you Scott, that means a lot! :) Yes it's weird how just being strapped in can change the dynamics. It takes me a while to do flatland stuff without a belt on now, even though the belt itself doesn't do anything to help or hinder. Can't wait to read about your stoke! You'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner :)