here is a buggy jumping video for you errol: https://vimeo.com/82937453

I definitely won't be doing that.

Like you said, it would be nice when going over ruts and bumps to remain seated That's the driving force behind it for me.

Hey Errol, You could float your buggy over all those rivlets and tidal pool runoffs at JIBE! :Ange09:

Errol, watching the video of you jumping with the reactor, I can only imagine what your doing with the speed.

My blade is an incredible jumping machine. I can't believe how easily it can lift my large frame in 10 mph wind. I don't have the guts or will in my area to try it in any higher winds so my jumps are micro sized but I've still had some unplanned higher ones. There is an extremely fine line between toying around and a lofting with that one but it always sets me down gently.

Quote: Originally posted by WELDNGOD

https://vimeo.com/16678110 I broke my shoulder in this video. Got a surgery and 5 mos. out of work....

Primus sucks

Haha, Jason that is one of the ideas I had that would make a great few clips of footage. Small features like that to jump over would be a blast.

Sean, the Speed is meant for catching air. It is a really gentle park and ride engine, but the most fun I have had with it so far was during a 17-18mph wind day at Myrtle Beach. I didn't have my buggy with me, as I flew down to be with family. It was all static flying. My small jumps were getting my feet 6-8' off the ground, and the perfect timing jumps during puffs were putting me eye level with the second story balconies on the beach houses. My guess is feet 16-20' above ground. I was able to see the street over the sand dunes and wave at my family down below me before setting down like a feather 30 feet down wind. I have never felt so safe under a kite before. My Charger will still drop me if I make a mistake. The Speed rewards good timing and redirecting with a soft landing on your toes, and if you just ignore redirecting and keep the kite at 12 o'clock and the bar in, you get set down about as hard as hopping off a step stool.

The first time I caught legit good air on the Speed, I was scared going up because I just didn't stop going up. I kept going up and up and up, higher than I ever did on the Charger. I was so ready for it to just drop me. Once I started coming down, the descent was so gentle I instantly gained a ton of confidence. I think the 19m is the only kite I have that I would feel comfortable jumping my buggy under. It is just so much kite. It is just shy of Paraglider size, and you can really tell. Even though it has so much power, it is so smooth and predictable.

My 8.6m Reactor is currently my favorite FB I have jumped with, but I haven't flown a 8.5m Blade yet. I would love to try a VIP if I had the chance.

Spent 3 hours today in the hotwire which was my first powered trial of it. I was on the peak in winds from 10-20. The first hour I spent getting to know it. After some time on it I felt like an invincible kite buggier. I could chuck the kite around as I pleased and it would kind of auto correct the direction of the buggy. It was the most power from a kite I've never felt. It really worked well and I'm definitely hooked. I stayed in the seat over extremely bumpy ground and could maintain 2 hands on the bar without trying to hold myself to the buggy. It was amazing sending the kite where and how I wanted and it would just rip the buggy around to the kite instead of trying to pull me out. I fired the safety under load and worked fine. I'll probably fine tune the set up a little, but it was a great day and test of a new and different way of harnessing the wind.

It was the most comfortable I have been. I could have ridden all day. It really seems like the lazy man's way to buggy.

Quote: Originally posted by ssayre

It was the most comfortable I have been. I could have ridden all day. It really seems like the lazy man's way to buggy.

Buggying in general makes me lazy and soft compared to the kite skiing I do in winter. After all the seat time I've had this summer I'll have to get back in shape before I click on the skis.

Happy for you Sean! That set up looks great. I have to hand it to you, you had some stones to try this. Sounds like you had a great time. :D

Quote: Originally posted by Windstruck

Happy for you Sean! That set up looks great. I have to hand it to you, you had some stones to try this. Sounds like you had a great time. :D

Thanks Steve, I'll have to admit that it did take a little courage to hook to it on a windy day. Then it took a little faith to test the safety under load, but once I had done that and had confidence, it felt safer than ever! Seriously, with it being slightly front biased, it would auto correct buggy direction. It was awesome.

Plus I'm in a light buggy where the consequence of turtle shell would be less. I think it would work even better with a heavy buggy but the consequences of flipping would be worse

The hotwire is not what takes nearly as much courage as my asphalt addiction. Learning to ride asphalt versus grass takes some learning. I'm just now confidently riding asphalt hooked in or hotwired.

Now you need to ditch the BAR and really be in tune with the kite on HANDLES.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. I regard fb flying as the highest level of skill and risk. I will make a return to them when I get bored of my lazy mans quiver.

Fixed bridles are great fun in coastal winds, but I won't do much flying of any FB kite I own outside of a beach.

Yeah. I rocked handles all week at JIBE except for one day of Nasa Stars. Just sooooo much control. Glad you are digging the lock in Sean.

Very good wind today but I was banished to a public park as I can't use my school spot during the day. The park has an area that is sandwiched between a sledding hill and a tree line so very turbulent. I'm using the Hotwire in almost all situations now but today tested my resolve. I was a little hesitant but it handled it great. I really love the blast off from launching from the buggy in high wind. the gusty wind caused a slight accidental jump that went well. I'm impressed by feeling safe. I'm certain that would have resulted in an obe in a harness. This spot is so sketchy but I couldn't waste good wind. Session ended with successful deployment of the safety when I let the kite get behind me at a bad time. Hopefully it's the end of the wind drought.

Sean - sounds like you are well on your way towards mastering your new craft. May the wind always blow strongly in your direction.

I beefed up the hotwire and used retired fall arrest harnesses from my work. I know they are plenty strong but wanted to hear opinions on 2 straps versus 3. I'm thinking I will like the 2 strap method better so there isn't pull on the front end, but not sure what would happen if lifted

That's a bit o'kill. I use two dyneema cords with a loop at each end then choke it around the siderails. At the other ends are stainless rings. I would stick with two attachment points, and try to get the balance just right. You are correct in that you don't want to be pulling on your front end. And if you ever start picking up one wheel,go down in size of kite or go home. I had two warnings before I broke my shoulder and I didn't listen.

Thanks man, I'm listening. I don't push too hard. Yes it is overkill. My siderail will brake before the Hotwire. I mainly wanted something larger diameter for the cl to pass through. My ns2 has a metal piece that hast to slip through everything and I didn't want it to snag. My peak wasn't an issue with that.

So decided to bump this back into discussion to see what Sean has to say about his experiences.

When he sent me pics of the bug the hotwire was on it. I see he wisely "forgot" to pack it to keep an old noob safe.

Whats the conclusion? Is the main issue bailing in time?
Seems we are choosing between two evils here being dumped on the head or an OBE. The head landing definitely sounds worse but OBEs dont sound like a bunch of fun either. Making the bug carry the load makes the most sense(to me) if it could be refined and made safe.
I spent a good part of the afternoon reading about towing paragliders and the dreaded lock out, and all the finer points and safeties they employ. They have a weak link in the system, breaks when all else fails. Doesnt do much for a lock out though. Maybe any Pgliders could chime in here.

Any progress been made on hotwiring?

Hey ben, it depends who you ask. most of the NZ and Australian riders use hotwire. I liked using a hotwire on my bumpy fields because I stayed seated going over bumpy ground that the pull of the kite wanted to pull me out in a harness. My wind dictated if I would use it. In decently steady wind, I preferred the hotwire. In gust lull wind where I thought I might have to relaunch the kite semi frequently then I would use harness. One of the pitfalls of hotwire is having to launch while seated and hooked in. It's ok in decent wind but a pain in light wind. One of the great things about hotwire is it takes all the load off of your body. As far as safety is concerned, I felt safe using it. I had mine set up so that when I hit the safety, the kite released from the buggy and I was free of both. A freak gust won't give you time to react but that's no different than when using the harness. Also, a standard buggy is light enough that it won't injure as badly as a heavy buggy when turtled. However, a heavy wider buggy is less likely to turtle. That's the pickle.

Either way, you will want to get completely comfortable flying your kites in a harness and knowing how your kites behave before moving to hotwire. You don't want to be crashing or relaunching while trying to use a hotwire.

to each their own...i wouldn't ever consider this

Quote: Originally posted by abkayak

to each their own...i wouldn't ever consider this

Don't know why this would bother you. You don't strike me as a conservative rider :D

I flew my buggy hotwired once. The whole thing actually sketched me out a bit. It is eery not being able to feel my kite. I prefer to fly a bit overpowered most of the time. While I was trying it the first time on my slightly bumpy beach, I was bouncing along and had my upwind rear wheel lift off the ground due to the side pull of the kite and a moment of really great traction. It spooked me pretty good because I could tell that if I hadn't been so quick to let the bar out I would have flipped it within the first 5 minutes. I may consider trying it out on Jekyll again since the beach is so smooth and hard packed, but I don't think I will be using it on an uneven surface again.

Quote: Originally posted by ssayre

Quote: Originally posted by abkayak   to each their own...i wouldn't ever consider this Don't know why this would bother you. You don't strike me as a conservative rider :D

my politics are conservative my riding not so much
I obe most times out when its blowing good..i only ride the beach and I've been falling all my life doing all sorts of stuff...it may be why i like it so much...Mom says i wasn't her smartest kid
but i don't want to be in the bug thats just me

So many great opinions/thoughts.

There has got to be something that could be done to make hotwiring or something similar work to take or share the load.

I obviously know nothing about buggying at this point but that doesnt keep my wheels from turning(hehe)

I tend to agree with Sean that at least with the little PL buggy thats not much to have on your back, not that I really
want to, any more that I want to go exiting the bug in an OBE.

Seems the main thing here is not making the choice on which way you want to get brown trousers, but figuring out a way
that is generally accepted by most to extend the duration and relative comfort of buggying, while not increasing the current risks by any great degree.

I get the numbing of feel for the kite. Maybe the addition of a pulley on an extended rope from the chicken loop to the bar with the loop still hooked to the harness. You could easily/quickly latch the pulley to the bug when getting in, sit straight in the bug and fly the kite as usual with the bar and have feel at the harness. EXCEPT is should be reduced by half and the bug is sharing the other half. With a common chicken loop release added to the rope it would travel right thru the pulley as you wave it all good by.

Am I nuts here?

Quote: Originally posted by oldben

Am I nuts here?

Yes. Welcome to the nuthouse, where we fly kites that have the ability to kill us for fun!

In regards to the Hotwire, I don't buggy, so beats me. Good luck though!

Thanks for the reply!

I thought so.