Hi im Michael and would like to say hi ive only just started kiting, i live near Cambridge and was wondering if there was any clubs or workshops to get me on my way, would love for any help or advice.

Many thanks

First off, hi and welcome to the group,

which Cambridge?

Cambridge, UK
Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
I'm in Cambridge , Ontario Canada

etc.

Cambridge UK sorry lol, just finished untangling my lines only took 6 hours, note to self don't get mad and just throw stuff in bag!!!. Takes a long time to untangle. really would love to master the kite then get on my landbord. just all i seam to do is walk up and down untwisting lines or reseting th kite. Is this normal for a newbie?

yeah, it is a right of passage. You will get the hang of it. I have some tips here that might help.

Yeah thanks thats a great site cant wait to get out again.

Hello! Welcome to the addiction!

You're not kidding. Those lines don't mess around. I haven't even had a chance to fly the Tensor yet, but just looking wistfully at it in the evenings the lines tried to 'swarm' on me.

I do already see how I need to pack them up, though. If you keep the lines flat, in order (on a bar, or with handles - brake lines to the inside) - Red, Yellow, Yellow, Blue (on a Tensor) and keep them flat between your fingers like a ribbon while you roll them up...should be good to go when unpacking.

One thing that does assault my sense of tidiness for the fiddly bits is that there is no apparent way to neatly gather the bridles when you are folding/rolling the kite.

Looks like today may provide opportunity to fly (a power kite for the first time). I'm gonna approach it like when I started my pilot's license a zillion years ago - safety procedures first:

* Launch well outside the power zone - immediately drop to safety. (x10 or so)
* Launch well outside the power zone - let it climb toward extreme left or right of the power zone - drop to safety (x10) or so.
* Launch well outside the power zone - fly well outside the power zone if I'm comfortable.
* Stay away from dead center of the power zone for now...stay away from the zenith for now.

I'm LOL at myself. A far cry from my younger days. "Ok, I'm coming out of this turn high and with too much speed scrubbed...but if I take this set as a triple I can pass this squid on the outside and move on...sounds good."

As for bridles, usually there are velcro tabs on the kite that you can tuck the attachment leaders into to help hold the bridles in place. The best thing to do is to just lay the bridles down on top of the sail and then fold the sail up from each end towards the center, folding the bridle lines inside the sail. Once the kite is folded up, the bridle lines can not go anywhere and if you lay them on top of the kite in a (somewhat) orderly way, they will open up just fine.

Most professionally designed kites have the bridle lines pretty well set up so that tangles are very minimal. I can't remember the last time I had a bridle tangle....and if it was tangled, it usually only takes a minute or so to get it sorted back out.

As for the lines. Pack the kite away first and then wind the lines up on the bar keeping them tight and all together. Wind up one way and then unwind the exact same way---meaning if you wind with your right hand while holding the bar with your left, unwind with your right hand and hold the bar with your left.

Hope that helps.

Welcome to the funny farm, You will soon figure out a good way to pack it all up without a single tangle. It took me a while but now I have it down pat. (still trying to get The Kidd to pay attention!) But it all comes with time. Good luck and don't get to frustrated.