Power Kite Forum

Street Kiting Redux

Randy - 29-11-2019 at 01:29 PM

No posts today, so I'll do something about it.

So got the season going last week, and decided to give another try at single handed flying - but this time with a soft kite. This is one my g-kite series a 3.0 m version with only partial ribs. I'd been using my flex kites for this but they do take a beating on pavement as a blown jibe or drop in the wind ends up with them dragging on the asphalt. Anyway, I thought this worked out pretty well. A bit underpowered, but I tried my 4.5 m version and while it seemed to want to pull my arm off, I couldn't seem to get it to go very fast either. May have just been a lull, so who knows.

This uses a simple 2 line bar, more along the lines of the Paraski type I use with the flex kites I've been using.

https://vimeo.com/373528593

skimtwashington - 29-11-2019 at 03:56 PM



Nice!

good one hand set up so you talk on phone and ride..

:thumbup: :thumbup:

tomdiving - 29-11-2019 at 04:01 PM

CSN - if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with...

B-Roc - 29-11-2019 at 07:11 PM

Looked fun and sure beats black Friday shopping.

jantie - 30-11-2019 at 04:06 AM

Why do this without a harnas? It's so much easier that way.
Or use a belt with a quick release..
Anyway it sure beats black Friday at tha mall like B-Roc wrote

Randy - 30-11-2019 at 06:52 AM

Thanks guys. jantie, this is a very low friction environment - really no need for a harness. I rode that way at the beach for hours at JIBE and my arm never really got tired. Plus - I like to get some exercise when I ride. ;) On grass or a softer surface a harness does help.

sand flea - 30-11-2019 at 03:20 PM

That's cool....
I've always wanted to ride on asphalt.
Good stuff Randy

Randy - 1-12-2019 at 02:12 PM

Thanks. I kept thinking about trying my buggy there for a long time then decided there wasn't any reason not to try it.

Windstruck - 1-12-2019 at 02:17 PM

Nicely played Randy, nicely played. I enjoyed the music to boot! Good stuff.

jantie - 2-12-2019 at 09:42 AM

@Randy: i get it... :cool:

Randy - 11-12-2019 at 07:24 AM

From the other day. Started out with 3.75 but broke my home made handle and the ensuing tangling resulted in changing to a 3.1. The lake side run was fun - but underpowered with my 3.1. I did much better with my 5.0 but my GoPro battery went dead by then. Hope to try the lakeside again soon before the water rises.

https://vimeo.com/378666592

jantie - 11-12-2019 at 10:29 AM

oeeeehhh...... with a bigger kite you could go like a mad man on that terrain...

Ed Cline - 12-12-2019 at 06:21 AM

Cool dance buddy.
I don't think you could have better illustrated the difference in short and long lines.
I won't go home unless I get a dozen mph at least, and I have a bumpy grass field.

But I watched twice amazed at how nimble you are with that thing.
Practicing downturns on no lines is....pretentious.....which means I can't do it :evil:

Randy - 13-12-2019 at 05:19 AM

I can't do them either - unless you count 1 for 2 as a passing grade. (And I broke the handle made of cheap PVC the second time around.) Tacking is really more useful on short lines, but hard to do with an NPW.

The stars aligned yesterday and I got to make a go of it on the beach. Took a little while to get the hang of it, but it was fun all the way. Went through 3 kites (NPW 21 5.0, NS 2 7 and NS 2 5.5). Unfortunately, this spot depends on the water being low and its raining today. (Less than a year ago this entire beach and some of the grass was underwater.)


jantie - 13-12-2019 at 05:34 AM

where is this?
not that i'm able to go there easely because there's a small lake
between Europe and the USA called the atlantic ocean.
but it's fun to look it up on Google earth.

Randy - 13-12-2019 at 06:15 AM

See if this works. It is on our local lake - Lake Lanier.

https://www.google.com/maps/@34.1995401,-84.0965531,468m/dat...

jantie - 13-12-2019 at 10:53 AM

yup, it works perfectly

my favorite location in the Netherlands:
click here

and the webcam wich obviously only works @ daylight:
click here

Randy - 13-12-2019 at 11:32 AM

Looks great. I was in Amsterdam a few years ago and was trying to work out a kite buggy rental, but didn't end up having enough time to do so. Nice they have school and rentals there.

Here is my favorite place - but it's 5 hours away. We do have an annual meet there for a week in the spring.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jekyll+Island/@31.0615587,...

Randy - 18-12-2019 at 06:25 AM

Not exactly a kite (but close enough).....not exactly a street either...but it rained all night an even into the morning so I figured the fairgrounds would be too muddy.

Randy - 19-2-2020 at 06:37 AM

My latest installment. The drift trike is a work in progress, but being able to pedal a little to get the apparent wind started helps on days that aren't too windy. Also, the tree near the end of this spot is tough to get past sometimes because of the turbulence it create - trike helps with that too. Got the ideal from bob2 on Extreme Kites. I've been working on drifting to control slides and through turns but not there yet. Made a few new kites too - a single keel NPW, and a scaled up round flex like what I used at Jekyll last year.

Finally, notice the lake water - the beach I was using just a few months ago is now completely covered as (for the second year in a row) the lake is approaching record high levels.



Ed Cline - 19-2-2020 at 09:23 AM

Hey Dude, I got this vid in my feed. Then got lost looking at drift trikes.
Not yet, but if the tires were.... no not yet.... inspiring though.
Simple uncluttered control arrangement.... kudos

Mr Randy, Did you work out the 10m with that Australian musician?

Randy - 20-2-2020 at 10:11 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Ed Cline  
Hey Dude, I got this vid in my feed. Then got lost looking at drift trikes.
Not yet, but if the tires were.... no not yet.... inspiring though.
Simple uncluttered control arrangement.... kudos

Mr Randy, Did you work out the 10m with that Australian musician?


Thanks Ed. The tires on this one are pretty lame (blow molded). I have some good 10" tires that would work if I can find the right size bearings. What a lot of guys do is get pneumatic tires and then put a collar around them made of PVC pipe, which seems to work well. It's kind of tricky for a kite - because too much sideways load and you start drifting. Sometimes that's what you want, but not always. I like this setup a lot for my lake spot - confined spaces limit speed anyway, and it's fun to practice different stuff.

Undecided on the 10m. Seems like shipping will be a lot, and my buggy season usually runs out around Mid March (except for JIBE, and odd situations here and there.) Also, My 8.2 seems to work pretty well for me. He also has a Peak 6m and LS 9.5 which are interesting, but idk. I have more wind toys than wind......

PistolPete - 24-2-2020 at 01:29 PM

Drift Trike, love it
:wee:

jantie - 25-2-2020 at 04:36 AM

nice Randy, good conditions.
what more does a kiter want.. :singing:

Randy - 25-2-2020 at 02:57 PM

Thanks guys! I always want more - in this case, more of the same.....;)