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mcruzzer

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About mcruzzer

  • Birthday 10/21/1954

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  • Favorite Kite(s)
    ALL of them! Mostly REVs right now though!
  • Flying Since
    1997
  • Location
    Fairfax, VA
  • Country
    United States

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  1. If you were at the convention this year, the banquet on Saturday night featured a short video compilation put together by Kurtis Jones (Alive Archives). I'm happy to say that the complete 90 minute video from the convention is now available from Kurtis. You can order it via his website ( www.AliveArchives.com ). I haven't received my copy yet so can't comment on it but just thought I'd let you know that it's available. Jim
  2. The answer is ... it depends. It depends upon whether the kite in question was made/sold by The Kite Factory in Australia (and therefore possibly did retail for $100) or The Kite Factory company in California and made in Asia. If it's the former, it is probably a decent kite; whether it's what you're looking for is another question. I'm not aware of any kite made/sold by/imported by the California company that is worth anything close to $100. Hope that helps! Jim
  3. Ant: No, it definitely appears to be a Sky Burner product...most likely a NikNak. Note the scalloped trailing edge and battens on the tips. The NikNak flies from 0 to 10mph; the Wren is rated up to 5mph. Rob: Either way, both kites are great for their intended use. They are both 'current' products, but just because something is still sold (ie, current) doesn't mean that it's designed to fly the latest tricks. As noted, kites that you should be looking at include the Silver Fox SULs, the French Connection UL, the Acrobatx UL (all available new at reasonable prices), the Quantum Pro SUL, or look for a nice used kite such as a Cdc STX UL or possible a Blue Moon SUL (lots of great kites from Blue Moon...too many models to list here, really). You cold also find a nice Sky Burner Freestylist UL, either new or used, that is a great trick kite. You don't say what your skill level is, but if possible see if other kiters in your area have kites that you can try and see what you like. Jim Hey Jim... Like, I said, whatever it is, once I learned its unique 'feel', I really made progress with my over all flying skills. I have just recently gotten a good feel for flying 2 line kites. I don't have any other local fliers around, so all that I can learn from videos and internet and trial and error have built my skills to now. I have mostly what most experienced fliers would consider cheap kites and factory lines. Being that I just really learned how to do some beginner tricks, I don't know if it's that important that my light wind kite do those tricks, now that I've seen how much can be learned still about stalls and smooth turns. Is it a characteristic of old school kites to not want to do pull turns ? I have a couple of 8ft+ 15+year old stunt kites that can't do pull turns, and I thought they must just be mis-adjusted. They do make ALOT of noise, though. ~Rob. Rob, both the NikNak and Wren are quite capable of doing both pull and push turns, so not sure why you might be having a problem with that. Jim
  4. Ant: No, it definitely appears to be a Sky Burner product...most likely a NikNak. Note the scalloped trailing edge and battens on the tips. The NikNak flies from 0 to 10mph; the Wren is rated up to 5mph. Rob: Either way, both kites are great for their intended use. They are both 'current' products, but just because something is still sold (ie, current) doesn't mean that it's designed to fly the latest tricks. As noted, kites that you should be looking at include the Silver Fox SULs, the French Connection UL, the Acrobatx UL (all available new at reasonable prices), the Quantum Pro SUL, or look for a nice used kite such as a Cdc STX UL or possible a Blue Moon SUL (lots of great kites from Blue Moon...too many models to list here, really). You cold also find a nice Sky Burner Freestylist UL, either new or used, that is a great trick kite. You don't say what your skill level is, but if possible see if other kiters in your area have kites that you can try and see what you like. Jim
  5. As was pointed out, not really a marketing disconnect on the part of Revolution...it's up to the DEALER to determine how they want to market the kite (with or without lines). I too usually sell my 1.5 series and EXPs with line but will offer them without line if the buyer wants them that way. And, when selling a B-series, I always make sure that the customer knows that the standard package does NOT inlcude line (which is how it comes from Revolution). With regard to selling kites with line, many dealers sell ALL of their kites without lines (both single line kites and sport kites). But, don't blame Revolution for something that is the result of a dealer's decision as to how they sell their products. Jim Sky Jewels Kites
  6. Rob, That sounds like a Nik-Nak, vs. an i-Nak. Either way, both kites are more "old school" in their flight characteristics. And neither one is going to do the tricks you see a SF UL (or other current UL trick kites) doing (at least not easily). They are excellent light/no-wind flyers. But if you're looking for a kite to do the current tricks in UL winds, you need to get something more like the SF UL kites, a French Connection UL, perhaps a used Freestyleist UL... There are others but those three come to mind as relatively inexpensive UL kites that will do the tricks you're attempting to do. As an aside, I love my Nik-Nak and i-Nak, especially when I just want to fly in low or no-wind conditions and not really care about lots of tricks. They have excellent build quality, are pretty rugged (nice for teaching when the winds aren't very good). Jim
  7. Might have been Paul Dugard... Jim
  8. Greg, Wow...there's a lot of good kites out there. The Level One Jumping Jack Flash is awesome, but may be just above your desired budget. The Sky Burner Freestylist is also great. At around $140, there's the NTK French Connection. The Prism E2 is wonderful...as is the Hypnotist. Also, the latest from Flying Wings...the Silver Fox 2.3 or 2.5 are really hard to beat at their price! Any of those would let you get into the advanced tricks flying that you are looking for! Jim
  9. I'll be there! I'm working with the staff from KHK, so will be all over the dune Saturday and Sunday, and flying SLKs, duals and quads (well, I hope to be flying them all! lol). Jim
  10. John, this is GREAT! What an opportunity for kiting! And for you too! Can't wait to hear about it, and maybe get out to San Diego to see it in person! Jim
  11. Well, if you REALLY want to go to Wildwood, I'd be glad to use those Police tickets so that they don't go to waste Jim
  12. Well, I'm planning to be at Nags Head on the 31st with my new Rev Eyes...can't wait to fly them on the dune! Jim
  13. Let's see...had just come back from a visit to Nags Head...went to the Mall in downtown Washington DC to see the Wings Over Washington kite club's First Sunday fly...walked up, started talking to this couple...she handed me the straps to an HQ Jam Session...needless to say, I crashed it a LOT but had fun and was hooked...bought a Beetle (still have it!)...got a Fanatic a month later for my birthday (October)...by December I had 22 kites! By January, I was in business as a dealer! LOL Started flying REVs about 5 years ago...but my best day was in 2003 at the Wright Kite Festival in Nags Head (Kill Devil Hills, actually). Joe Hadzicki gave me lessons and I flew for 8 hours that day...and again the next day...and I was actually there to work at the festival! One of the two best kite flying days I've ever had... So, now I'm still a dealer and moving more to REVs than anything else (just got my "Eyes" 1.5s...beautiful kites!) Jim Sky Jewels Kites
  14. Hang-em-high has been around for a number of years as well...Bonnie Marvin has been a great supporter of the kite building community for a long time. While she doesn't have a brick-and-mortar shop, she's still very knowledgeable and professional. She also carries some items that Kitebuilder does not (and vice-versa...). Jim
  15. The web site is at: http://ecom.citystar.com/hang-em-high/ They mention opening hours and have a telephone listed on their web site, so it looks like you are in luck. Hang-em-high is not a true brick-and-mortar store. Bonnie runs it out of her home in the Richmond area. Primarily, it's pretty much mail order although you can pick up orders there if you arrange to do so in advance. Really pretty hard to go in and look around. Jim (in Fairfax, VA)
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