It was a lot of fun to get to ride with Stephan. I could learn a lot by riding with him. He left his buggy and some gear here so it would be more simple to get back for IBX 15. Mano Dirix is coming too!

My favorite clip of Stephan is rolling the kite as seen here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaSU9Mk5dK0#t=128

Bobby have you rolled a your hydra like this before? At speed it must be quite a rush and certainly looks casual on video. Don't try this with your foil!

I didn't mean to turn this into a question thread, but I'm curious how fly lei's fly in the buggy. From the video, they seem a bit twitchy during acceleration, then smooth out once you are moving at speed.

Ha! I can assure you that was an accident/recovery and not a maneuver! I've touched mine but not rolled all the way over. They are very stable but vulnerable to the rough surface. It's flirting with disaster to use them on Ivanpah, but we've only touched on their capability. 70 mph is not out of the question with one. Well, actually it's been done in the speed buggy.

Wow! Great videos guys... Mano Dirix too... Coolness, that guy is impressive... This quickly became one of my favorites after the first time watching it:

https://vimeo.com/97469707

Quote: Originally posted by BeamerBob

Ha! I can assure you that was an accident/recovery and not a maneuver!

LOL, yes it was indeed an accident, sorry I didn't mean to imply otherwise. The impressive part was the recovery at speed with no ill effects.

You are correct in that tearing the bladder on the kite is a real danger if you decide to sandpaper it against Ivanpah lakebed :-)

Glad to hear they are opening up new doors for pushing the envelope. Perhaps we could get a helmet cam video of some speed runs of you flying this winter?

Some nice videos, I was thinking the same thing about scuffing the surface and breaking some threads on that leading edge. I really want to take my small LEIs out in the buggy for a go just to see the difference at higher speeds. I think maybe the beach in spring if we get some good wind.
That was a quick reaction by Stephen with both the kite and buggy and the kite didn't slide much. I know I've done it and have seen a few others do the same thing when a kite collapses or for whatever reason it goes down and rather than drag it quickly reach out and drop the handles on the playa and with all the buggy speed you just roll around in a big circle to coast back to pick up the handles then shake the kite out (unless it's in a rats nest ball)

I've done the save the kite circle many times but I've always held the bar or handles as I went around. It's on video on my 2 montanas video.

The LEIs are super stable and make loads of power. The best part is how much they depower. I've made enough videos with helmet cam but if it promises to be a 60 plus day I'll roll tape.

nice

cool , when is IBX 2015 ?

March 31 thru April 4. Click the link in my sig for the new website.