is so much fun

We had very light winds today so I decided to see if the Ace would fly. Aslong as I keept it moving it would fly so I put my harness on and hooked in for the first time. it was so nice taking a load off my arms.

Just thought I would share :D

I flew for a long time without a harness and man I tell ya what you can get a lot more hrs. in flying with one thats for sure. I only hook in in the buggy. I only hook in flying static for a little break. Haven't tried jumping hooked in yet But I have seen it done.

scudding hooked in with one hand on one handle, the other hanging back, sooo relaxed! enjoy...

a bit scarier in gusty and wiggly winds, though....

Yea I really liked how you can fly the kite with one hand on handles. it was nice to just lean back and relax. I only have really low winds, Id say below 5 mph but that was fine with me since it was a 5m Ace...lol. I didnt want to hook up to that in anything higher especially without a QR right now.

actually, I've never hooked up with a QR, so yes I have indeed been careful with the winds! I used a steel carabiner (uberstrong) with the gate tied back so i could hook and unhook at will, nice for dealing with lulls and those ace moments when it gets all fussy about being too close to the edge of the wind...

When it's a good jumping wind I always fly unhooked for doing moves, then hook back in for a break while keeping the kite near the zenith. Unhooked is way harder, but good for safety...

There's nothing quite like leaning against the kite, setting your skis and carving a line clear across a lake with the wind screaming through your lines and one hand out as if you're flying. Getting used to the upward TUG when turning to go back - still not real fond of that over anything but soft fluffy snow ; )

what does your spreader bar look like? If its like mine you don't need a witchard release. you just manually hook/ unhook. If you don't have a bar, how are you makin this work?

Its a kingpin bar
http://www.realkiteboarding.com/index.cfm?page=detail&ca...

Right now I just have a strop.

a dyneema strop is all I use on the rare occasion that I use a harness.

The odds of needing a Q.R. with a hamerhead ( like you show ) spreader and strop are extremely high once you get real comfortable with it.

Options are:
A spreader made by Liquid force ( I have one )and one by Slingsot that have a spring release on the hamerhead. Nice thing with them is you always have a release no matter who's kite you are on.
Making a Q.R. on the strop like the ones shown in the DIY god thread. I have made them and they seem to work !

Like all steps in kiting the more you use a harness the more it becomes second nature.

I don't need a harness.I'm used to holdin up a welding stinger or heavy ass mig gun all day long. so hangin on to a kite is easy, lettin go ,not so easy

Well the whole reason I decided to get a harness was to take some strain off my shoulder. Its still not back to 100% so my flying time was pretty limited. When I first started flying I took it really easy (light winds and such) but now as Im getting more and more used to this sport Im pushing myself more. Just dont want to push my shoulder too far...lol.

oh yeah , I forgot about that.

Even with your hammer head turned upside down don't count on the fact you will be able to pull out !


If you are trying to hold down extreme power it can be VERY tough to pull back enough to get slack on your strop.
If you fly with Killers and let go when hooked in a twist in your strop can happen.
Good idea but I have to think gravity letting the strop drop as soon as it clears the hook might be more desirable during a panic disconnect ?????

Avoid hooking in when well powered.

That said, get hooked in ! It is important in moving forward !

I made little quick releases for added security that I use on my strops.

I've got a shoulder strap for my Rebble ... flies so much better and pulls harder in lighter winds when I use that - I guess it keeps more constant tension on the lines ...?