John Barresi

Kind of depends on the kite... I think your kite might require 6-12mph to fly well, some of the kites we've recommended here prefer the 3-10mph range. When the kite lifts off easily, doesn't fall out of the air when you're flying, and conversely isn't shaking or rip-roaring across the sky... That's about right.

Good one to start with J-2-F... Keep in mind, the Flic Flac might actually be easier on any kite, whereas the 1/2 axel might just tend to pop your particular kite out of the sky. Also, I recommend you do try taping a one (or two) US quarter sized coins to the bottom of the keel (tail), on the back side... Experiment, feel it, see what kind of difference you notice.

Any of the kite stores you see listed on our home page are reputable... You'll find quite a few Kite Shoppe customers here on the site, and they are just over the river from me - making them my own local shop too. Do let us know, anytime you have any questions at all!

But of course! Kitebuilder has the best collection of kite makers I've seen anywhere, and friendly to boot.

Hopefully you'll get some replies here too... But I'd encourage you to post the same question(s) on the Kitebuilder forum as well, they know their stuff. Keep us posted on how things go?

FYI - While it may not be a trick kite, or the easiest for beginners to learn tricks on... I can actually get the Cherry Bomb to do a lot of the new stuff, just by taping a couple of quarters to the tail. See info about weights on kites.

Haha, you've opened a can 'o worms now... Here's your Blaster. This is what I generally call a "WalMart entry level kite"... It's made more to sell, not to fly. A good example of a beginner kite made to sell, AND to fly would be the Cherry Bomb (my personal favorite)... But, it's not a trick kite. Getting into tricks moves you up in the price range a little bit... A couple of examples: Mirage by Prism Big Bang by New Tech As you can see, you go from the $30-$50 range up into the $80-$120 range for trickability and handling. You'll get a lot of different opinions though, much like you would for a new car. A couple of my favorite first questions: 1. What is your budget? 2. What kind of wind speeds do you usually see where you fly?

Hi Jonathan! I'm not sure if the kite you have now will get you into these "new fangled" tricks... But, here are the best trick video tutorials on the web: http://spaces.msn.com/members/sportkiteflyer/ (right side) I learned 1/2 my stuff from Randy's videos, and they'll certainly give you a major head start... Post back with any questions at all. Ideal tricks to start with might be the 1/2 axel, Cascade, Flic Flac.

I've always preferred the standard LE in the 1.5... An SLE seems to have too much weight, and gives added inertia which I don't care for. However, if you plan on working over the fence some more, or giving a number of lessons... The SLE might be good.

Thank you Rob... We've done our job then.

Dunno about eloquent, but sincerely... Cheers, best wishes, and the very best for all of you in the New Year.

Bah, nice thought... But I ain't down with $25 an hour (out of principle). If we were putting on an event, it'd be different... I'll just wing it. We provide an art, and should find a venue that appreciates it.

LOL - Pretty hopeful, huh Todd? He was at my house on Sunday and got a good look at the Dot.

Wise ass.

Oh, is that all? It's a matter of finding and identifying the flag, might be easy for someone familiar with PHP.

I'm in the same boat as Rob... I understand why most people like it, but the 1.5 doesn't even come close to matching the precision and grace of a Rev 1. As for durability... I've never blown out any Rev, 1 or otherwise. Shoot, I don't think I've broken more than a dozen rods in 15 years.

Good idea, I had the same thought myself last night... No idea where to even start though.

Did we ever come up with an indoor practice venue in Portland? I have a new indoor track I really need to practice with.

For sure... I'll start in on him during KTAI in 3 weeks.

Now how do you get on that list??

Longtime personal friend (15 years) and contributor to Kitelife, Al Hargus passed away this morning at his home in Columbus Ohio... One of the grandfathers of sport kiting, Al was a flier since the early 80s. In addition to general articles, he was the author of our regular column "Tangents w/out Trivia"... A revised version of his original column since day 1, "Tangents with Trivia". I'll do an "empty spaces" piece in the next issue of KL... A man worth recognizing, and remembering. Anyone who would like to send in a paragraph or two about Al, we'd appreciate it... I know so many of you have quite a few good stories to tell. Thank you Al, for being you, and for everything you brought to kiting. Tommorrow, I fly for you... Tonight, I toast...

Happy birthday indeed, and many more.

We're pleased to yet again announce the next prize being given away to our most appreciated supporters, the Kitelife Subscribers... For roughly 10 cents per day they play a major role in keeping KL growing in every way. Dot Matrix from Carl Robertshaw, a $280 value! You can sign up here. Odds of winning for this prize is currently 1/175, and will be drawn on December 31st! http://www.kitelife.com/prizes/dotmatrix45/index.htm Our thanks, and the very best to you... Let the drooling begin!

Drum roll please... The winner of this great prize is: Tim Vaughan - Subscriber #54 Congratulations Tim! Our new prize(s) will be announced by tommorrow evening.

Yeah, we might go with something like this... Followed by a great deal of... Ending with a round of...