Hi,

Simple skills question for you guys....

I've landed/crashed with the cell openings down, how do i flip it back over without pegging it down and doing manually.

Any other tips and tricks for a new pilot would be great!!

Cheers
Chris

It's not hard.

With the kite upside down, the controls will be reversed too. Apply the brakes hard and the kite will back off the ground. When it gets to be about a kite span off the ground it will most likely have started to turn in one direction or another. Let it. When it is close to perpendicular, relax the brakes and pull the power line on the highest side to fly it out of the turn forwards.

Sometimes this effort will just flip the kite over rightside up which accomplishes the same thing. Then just launch as normal.

You'll have a 50-50 chance of coming out of this with the lines twisted. It will fly well enough with a few twists for the moment. If you can remember which way it went when it got twisted, fly a deliberate spin in the opposite direction to un-do it. Or take it up to the zenith (overhead) , eyeball the twist and do a little dance on your feet to spin yourself under the kite.

After some practice you'll be able to back the kite off the ground deliberately to the left or right and fly out in a purposeful fasion. The hard part for me is remembering which way it twisted in the first place.

I find it sometimes easier to hold the handles in one hand with the brakes full on. then reach forward with your free hand and pull one of the brake lines in even further. This will usually flip the kite pretty fast and low to the ground. Timing is key here... as the kite flips you need to let go of the brake line you are pulling and grab your handle so each hand has a handle. The kite will continue to roll over if its at the right point and will be somewhat powered.

If your timing is off you'll likely have the handles yanked out of your one hand. If its on, the kite will flip fast and your up and kiting in a jiffy.

Both are great explanations, wish this forum was around eariler when I first learned how to do that. I used to stake the kite, walk over and rotate it by hand; what a pain in the a## that was.

Quick point for this thread, this can only be done with a quad line kite. With a dual line kite the technique is totally different and much more difficult to do.

One of the things to remember when reverse launching is that it has to be smooooooth. Quad line foils do not fly in reverse very well and if done to quickly, the trailing edge of the kite will fold up and will not let the kite fly very well. Use a LONG smooth pulling motion with the brake lines and walk backwards a couple steps as you pull. If done smoothly your handles should be slightly behind your knees with the brake lines fully tight and the leading edge lines slack. The kite should raise up a good 6-8 feet off of the ground very easily (depending on the design of the kite and size). Once the kite is up, let one handle back out and the kite will spin around and fly.

Hope this helps.

Cheers for the tips, I'm hoping to get to the beach this weekend and i'll try it out!

Cheers
Chris

It should also be stated that the kite needs to be inflated or at least mostly inflated to get it to reverse launch. If the kite is in a crumbled ball on the ground or twisted, reverse launching will not work.

I've only been flying for 6 months but I like to fly with brake lines lose. So I can't get kite back up if it is upside down. So with handles in hand up right I grab the far end of both brake leader lines with my thumb and index finger. Walk back to get kite off ground one end will be higher then the other. I let go of high end brake line. If left side is high let go of left hand same with right. Kite will rotate on the high end to upright. then let go of the other brake line.
This will work if kite is half off ground. Good luck an enjoy.
-------------------------------------------
Pansh 8.5m
DDR 14.9m
poppa gold wing surprise 3m
home made box 2700 ft. alt.
that I chase with hawk kite

If the kite's nose down in somewhat of a ball, you can usually get away with reverse launching. Couple key steps though.

First try totally letting off the brakes, so tension on power lines only, if it's windy enough the kite may just unfold ready to relaunch, if not, some quick steps backwards while pulling on the power lines. If this doesn't work a couple quick tugs on power or brake may be enough to shift the kite, then try the power lines again. If this fails time to walk back to the kite.

For some reason though, power on the mains when nose down works pretty good to unfold the kite, once it's unfolded switch quickly from the power lines to the brakes and reverse launch.

I've been trying to put into practise what you guys have been saying with mixed success, a small tug on the break lines for a reverse launch does get my kite to lift of the floor but when I try to flip it, using the method described it just crumples and falls back down, I’ve also noticed that if I re-launch the right way up with a twist in my lines and try to loop it while high in the air it gets most of the way round then dives at the floor, is this just a case of me needing to practise more or am I doing something wrong.

Practice, I think. What kind of kite?

For un-twisitng, take it up to the zenith and do a dance to spin on your feet. some might think it's kinda cheeting but it's faster, esp. if you go the wrong way the first time!

Assuming you are flying a kite with brake lines ?
A bit of finesse is required when reverse launching. It sounds like you are applying too much brake. Consentrate on pulling just enough for reverse motion and don't worry as much about it flipping. It will usually want to flip anyway.

With the loop I'm pretty sure you aren't pulling completely and for long enough on the one side. Fully commit and HOLD IT until the kite is FULLY around and moving back up to zeneth!!

Another point to reverse launching. It is not a sudden quick jab to reverse launch like a normal launch is. You have to use a bit more finesse and more or less coax the kite off of the ground. I usually teach a 3 step method of smoothly pulling the brake lines while you count to 3 taking a step or two backwards. This will usually get the kite a good 8 to 10 feet off of the ground. As mentioned, the kite will usually start to turn itself over automatically, just let it continue until you can fly the kite towards the edge of the window.

Higher performance kites such as the Razor, Yakuza, and JoJo RM's (just a few examples) will take a bit more finesse to get them to reverse launch. If you reverse too fast the kite will crumple up with the trailing edge of the kite collapsing over. Try reversing a little slower with a little less brake line tension. Usually the amount you walk backwards is more important than the amount of brake you put into the kite. Once the high performance foil gets off the ground it will start to turn one way or the other. Fly it aggressivly in that direction and use all the brake on that side to get it to turn around as quickly as possible. Once the kite is perpendicular to the ground, yank hard on both front lines to get the kite accellerating and filled as quickly as possible.

When you unspin your kite, use the brake line to get the kite to turn faster and it helps a bunch!(apply hard brake to the same side of the kite that you are initiating the turn with - only one side!!!) Practice and you'll figure it out. As stated you have to commit to the turn. Make sure you are high enough and start your turn. Keep it turning ALL THE WAY, dont stop half way through. OR...you can do the cheating spin thingie! lol

Hope this helps.

as for the spinning in the air, coreykite a.k.a the coreylama refers to this as practicing "kite chi" and strongly recommends it, but not as a crutch for turning skilld. here's a link to more info on "kite chi"

http://www.windpowersports.com/blog/index.php?itemid=8#more

I was skeptical at first, but it worked suprisingly well for me.

As a somewhat newbie I use to find it easier to just let the kite do the work! Now that i have some time under my belt i can easily flip it and relaunch in one slick move.

Cheers for all the info fells, its been raining every day since i posted so i've not been able to try anything but will post again when i have.

Hi fellas, been out for the last two days putting into practise the advice everyone’s thrown at me and it was fantastic so cheers, I’ve been looping like anything (cheers snowbird) and even pulled off a few reverse launches (cheers awindofchange) However all is not rosy in this UK garden, I had a small disaster. So if anyone is prepared to continue my tutoring I’d be very much obliged.

THE PROBLEM

After my initial success (see above) I decided to pack up for the day, I tried to bring the kite down at the edge of the window but it kept jumping back into the window and trying to take off again (I have previously shortened my break lines and there is not much play left in them, this appears to have had the affect of giving the kite more power?) after a lengthy struggle I managed to get it on the ground and stake it down. As I moved towards the kite it lifted, the loops shot off the stake and flew; I grabbed the passing lines, slipped over and started being dragged down the beach on my ass. As I was holding just the lines I had no control (but did gain some nice friction burns) eventually after a 50-foot slide the kite wrapped round a post and came to a stop.

Question? How many things did I do wrong and what should I do next time.

Can I assume that you staked it by the brake lines?

This is what will keep the kite down. See pic...
Note how the bottoms of the handles are at the stake and the tops point to the kite.

Some kite are jumpier than others and irregular or gust winds can cause problems. When stakes as described, the trailing edge is pressed down to the ground, sort of forming a seal. If the ground is irregular, wind can get under, and once the trailing edge catches the wind, it's over.

As a a last resort I keep a length of chain and lay it accross the lines near the kite for time when it just has its own mind no matter how I stake it, but on the beach this is rare.

Also good idea for the hands is to wear sailing or weight lifting gloves (both have the finger tips open for grabbing small things)_.

Great post Angus.

The only thing I can assume from your post (other than Angus's post) was your stake was not solid enough to hold your kite down. Make sure that your stake is put well into the ground and solid enough to hold back your kite. Also make sure that when you loop your handles over your stake that it is done so that the handles pull on the bottom of your stake closest to the ground and that they cant slide around.

Another option if it is super gusty is to flip the kite over leading edge down and stake the tops of your handles instead of the bottoms. By doing this you will not let the kite inflate and it is harder for the kite to bounce around when stakes. Some kites are more stable on the ground staking this way. One down side is that if the kite does flip over it will be a hot launch and will go up very quickly.

Gloves are a very good idea.

In super strong or gusty winds I will sometimes give the brake lines an extra wrap around my stake just to make sure they dont slide around while the kite is down. If the kite is going to be down for any considerable time I will go to the kite and stuff it into its bag, leaving the lines staked. When I am ready to fly again I pull the kite out of the bag and go. When the kite is bagged there is no way it will auto-launch.

For pulling the kite out of the air in gusty or strong wind conditions, fly the kite to the edge of the window like you did and then in a quick motion, put both handles together in one hand and pull about 2-3 feet of the brake lines with the other hand. Make sure that you can quickly release if needed and dont let the lines wrap around your hand. This will collapse the kite completely and remove nearly all the power...letting the kite fall to the ground. Keep the brake lines held and secure them to your stake and quickly pack your kite up.

The more you fly the easier it will become and the better you will be at landing and staking your kite. Keep your mind on safety and always watch what you and your kite are doing.

Hope this helps.

Usually staking the brake lines as the pic above showed is the best way to go.

I've got a couple kites though, mostly in the over 5m class, that won't stay parked that way, the problem is that wind will get under the kite, fold the trailing edge up and the kite will flutter around like mad. To stop this I use a second stake, with the kite on the ground nose up, you put both handles together, stake the brake lines as mentioned above, then use a second stake to put just a little tension on the power lines, this will hold the nose of the kite up a bit and force the trailing edge to stay put tight to the ground. Hook the brake lines on the first stake, then slowly pull the front lines tight until the kite sits up nice and solid, put the second stake in the ground to keep it there. I can leave my 13m parked like this all day in decent winds.

Cheers everyone, the vibe I’m getting is that its just inexperience and practise is needed so I’ll keep banging away and things will no doubt improve, can’t seem to find any other flyers in my area so next time I have a mare I’m sure I’ll be turning to you guys again.

ZuluFOx what beach do you fly?