Paul LaMasters

indoors or outside, depends on the kite model applied and your objective(s). You actively fly 'em, like a sport kite, some have superior negative glide capabilities (Janus by Bill Biggie), some float on a fart (iFlight), some you'll "add weight to" in an effort to alter the glide (Manta, up to a pound!) some are compound shaped like the 61/49 by McNeill and need some slight breeze, .... Skate glider kite can fly unattended if there's even enough to feel on your neck~kind of wind glides are single lined kites, but all single line kites are NOT gliders

Another 1st Sunday wow fly coming up, TOMORROW big wind expected, Mesh calling your name out loud,..... come to west Covington park, where security welcomes us, parking is convenient and the group members are practicing safety together, socially distanced as you're all lepers infected, except me, ha!

"Quad-effect " if you can only go forward and stall, the two bottom strings are no longer necessary. properly tuned, the reverse flight should come almost effortlessly, in low wind or indoors you will be walking backwards to make this flight pattern. dont be locked in position, you move and so does the kite. If you wait for wind you can sit down and enjoy, in reality the kite is overpowered my lessons start with the kite inverted, how to cartwheel back to right side up, then people can operated independently w/o me asisting

I own an XX, but it is a very early prototype. I also own a bunch of others models, various brands and sail configurations and live to compare kites. first problem? Severe oversteer, you release the steering wheel and the vehicle goes wildly off the road instantly,... I hate that! If you want to turn in the center of the sail, this model is fun, if you want wingtip turns keep away. secondly, it is way too heavy for a low wind kite, it flies but graceful like a cattle truck,... heyitprobably survives your learning crashes though third, none of the framing members in my possession fit this model, fourth, you will be the only XX owner in your kite club,... is that good? i would sell mine, but everyone I know is too smart locally, can't give it away either as it was a trade for flawed diamond tubes custom ordered for the Zen,... rather than "make it right" (they were too long) Rev sent the XX instead. That action ended a 25 year relationship good for a thousand dollars each season, not thru retailers direct from the factory!

I have objected to the premise of whump, from the beginning. I want everything tight all the time, the need to preload the slack out of a bridle seems counter productive to me, instant response is the joy of quad When sharing,.... i snap at people doing "forward / down turns" back to the center of the wind window,... no instead you "back that bottom wing UP" (or put my crap down and fly some else's OPK). You can't please everyone, Reverse to go Forward,.... it's a common team call for us ( in btwn is a LE up side slide connecting the two). a Whumpless bridle allows a single action to create a flick-flak, you snap it into position, but it freely returns back to normal w/o any more motion from the pilot being necessary I don't have enough experience with the synch'd bridle, but lessening the effect I found preferable, I want each leg independent as that's what I'm used to. Thanks for reading my rant!

Interesting post here!,..... stock bridle pieces are assembled as "little loop is passed thru big loop and then big loop pulled back thru the little one, doing this action more than once "tightens and lessens the hinging action built it" ( =more responsive/twitchy) Sung all the slack out and you have to really pull and yank on it to effect this! (it forms a Prussik Knot if you cared and did it three times, not just once as pictured in the original photos. I have also owned several Revolutions with the two colored bridle choice applied to them, Rods AREN'T stock for a quad-lined kite

No sleeving, not for decades.... use 50, 75, 90, 100 and 175 pound lines in all the variable length sizes. cannot untie, only shorten (add more knots), use a longer loop for adjustment room as it becomes necessary sleeving on the kite end can get tangled when slack lining, and it certainly can when flying one handed on that end too! build the end point/stopper knot in the single strand, then form the loop, keeping this insert centered perfectly NEVER broken at the knots because I don't use any except the "figure of eight". Placement takes practice as this knot tightens in two directions, once set it will not move again and it's four thicknesses at the center. the stopper knot works at night or in gloves to release easily. set-up is simple because no leaders means the lines can slip passed each other more effectively when laying out (or winding up at the end of the day directly onto the handles. if none of these outlined issues apply to you,... well we fly very differently, that's for sure! most of my flying time is alone, so spanking the kite is my go-to move, just add music

Please, as has been stated previously, those "factory numbers" should NOT interest you further, they are not relevant except as a marketing/sales tool. If you are new-is pilot their "spread" is too wide and not reachable by you (yet!) If you have thousands of hours under your belt, those same numbers are too restrictive to represent that skill level, you could fly it indoors or underwater if you had to, for 4 minutes of a demo anyway!!!! The factory would not have offered the kite framed as you have it currently, except by special request and also at a subsequent/additional cost. You are riding top of the line framing right there. I'll give you my numbers, but bear in mind I run with magic sticks and a French bridle, not stock. The full sail I would use (alone) to 3mph short lines up to 12 mph on long lines, the mid-vent to a steady 18 mph with gusts occasionally over 20 and down to 5 mph on the low end the full sail I would use from 10 to 25 steady, gusting occasionally much higher. Your numbers are twenty percent less for a thousand hours or more, unless you have a dedicated coach assisting you personally from the first moment of assembly. You can learn and feel a whole lot of sensations in a long week(end?).

"develop your own feel" it takes time, be patient, enjoy the journey of exploration comparisons are great fun if you have a partner, just change one variable and see how it feels "better or worse:" WHY? A kite club starts by you showing up to the same spot repeatedly and sharing your passion with spectators

All the leading edges are the same, so you are only comparing the venting portion of flight dynamics. It will "bend less" in the middle as the wind speed increases if you use the most/more vented sail the wind speed doesn't matter, they're all framed the same, only the feel in you hand matters,.. do you want it surging and twitchy (fun-flailing, alone for example?) or silky smooth and graceful (add vents until satisfied). You can enjoy an over-powered kite more easily, flying on the edges and low and slow across the power zone your next frame is the Skyshark CXL 150, stiffer fatter and it fits into each sail,... when do you like that mass, low wind flailing or upper edge gusting. Experiment and keep notes if you need to,.... you are developing your own sense of feel and perfection. You have a great set-up to compare upon as well, ENJOY

Riff, you should ride up with Conklin, next time we go to West Covington Park, ride in the back of his new Subaru with a mask, and hoodie reversed to cover your face! Come up and fly with WoWsters, you know some of us already!

figure of eight knot and a set of forceps..... the knot is too be placed at a very specific point,( it will not slide only tighten, which is four thicknesses in the middle of the knot), How can it slide around if it tightens on both directions towards the center of itself? I should shoot some video, but the knot looks like an "8" only laying on it's side (before it is tightened), ONE half of that eight has to be pushed OVER the top of the entire assembly of string and all of the ensuing slack must be PULLED OUT in the opposite direction. Holding the strands in place with the forceps allows you to BUTT AGAINST it's edge, as you snug all of the line out thru the other half of the "8" firmly placing it exactly as desired. Practice before you get to the good stuff! The knot doesn't cut your bridle unless you are sawing back and forth aggressively during installation or removal. The loop on the flying line is affixed to the bridle and it stops when pulled up tight against the stopper knot.

I am still afraid for myself and family, and have withdrawn from the weekend, you guys go wale away in my behalf, thinking of you all already tearin' it up!

the pull or stopper knot shown in the picture was placed onto the existing loop rather than being built INTO the loop before forming,.... insert that thing on the single strand!

you can get anything you desire,... IF you're patient, financially motivated or important lives are truly in jeopardy! You are building a line (set) from a single strand, placing the stopper knot into that strand BEFORE forming the attachment loop. The pig-tail is that part that loop attaches to, if will never be anywhere except on that bridle or the leaders for handles. The sleeving is another tangle point on the bridle when throwing acres or slack, heck I have even tangled the handle ends too. Slack where you can walk into it, not just catch a shirt button or wrist-watch, real slack where you are expected to step into it! The knot the protects spectra from cutting itself is the "figure of eight", the center is four thicknesses of line. In more than two decades of flight with this technique applied, I have never had a knot fail The stopper knot allows gloves or easy removal in the dark. Winding up the lines onto the handles simplifies the next session (just unwind to a stake, separate the lines, then affix) and eases the pain of putting it away too. It is pretty apparent reading my posts, that I don't do anything like others have been taught. It's a choice, not a flaw!

Skybond for me, pre-tied sets from Flying Smiles' Cath Shook, no sleeving, extended length attachment loops with stopper knots built it. PERFECT from the card winder, flown a couple of hours and the reversed top and bottom positions on the handles.

no wind is like indoors, you MUST use your feet,... think the "up & over" technique Plus, you must use the field walking around as well as that crazy slack lining. How much room dictates how long of a line set to apply, then just match a kite to pull those strings around, I use 15', 30', 50, 60'(50#, 100#) 100's (50# and 100#), 120's (50, 100, 170#) Fly indoor, SUL, UL, standard, mid-vent, full vent, ultra vent, mega-vent and thong-butt bikini vented

Skybond is judged superior on the east coast, against ALL challengers, more slippery, tighter diameter, longer lasting, slimmer and yet stronger too, color is just a bonus, I am not sponsored except by my wife (ha!)

someday, the wind will be a deterrent to your fun! Now? I prefer no wind (after decades of mid-atlantic weather, indoor conditions with an unlimited ceiling,..... for 5 months!), True dead calm, early morning sunrises, usually on long lines too, I just need good footing to move around safely backwards and laterally, so lately I've been flying in closed parking lots at the soccerplex nearby my home on AUAs, 50 pound, (60, 100 & 120') skybond

almost everything becomes personal taste after learning the basics, we both have easily visual identifiable styles for movements of bodies and kites

dugard uses his initials, Shook a compass rose, Bazzer and Rev each use a screen printing process w/logos, you'll come up with something equally unique for your own "brand"

will be interesting to see how this aspect effects flight dynamics, gliding for example, love the experimenting sir!

Anyone got any "Response 12" sky shark tubes, these giveaways are 19s so you can actually use 'em in shook-mesh weather, I do! NOTE: if you "cut 'em down",... to fit 1.5 shapes you cut the fat part and leave the skinny end whole. If you don't want the end-caps to rattle, you'll wrap the end of the spar with vinyl electrical tape )a couple of wraps is sufficient) I've done this for literally decades and love these tubes!

Great giveaway John, these tubes are down spars only for SUL or standard sailed kites, PERFECT option easy to compare switching back and forth. Someone is gonna inherit some irreplaceable items, discontinued decades ago.... RARE and DESIREABLE the taper forces more weight forward resulting in a better glide when leading edge down doing field recovery envy to the winner, PM me if you want to unload, trade, sell, donate to a worthy cause? -plm

I went to shaped wooden pistol grips, anatomically fitted to each hand, mike van meers custom 100 bucks, easy to "rock/balance" on one finger!