SHBKF

Additionally I have two Power Blast 2-4's to stack some day when I get the nerve. Reef Runner supplied the second one of these also. I suppose my Blast, Power Blast 2-4 & Power Blast 4-8 would also make a wild progressive stack if I could survive it. So far just flying the single Power Blast 4-8 occasionally has me pretty distracted, kind of like flying your car around. http://kitelife.com/forum/gallery/image/5612-dsc07803/ I was thinking the Shockwave could be added to the stack of two Supersonics as it could perhaps keep up with them. But a six stack of Rev 1's has to be quite an armful too. Only have two Rev 1's, so far. This Rev stuff has gotten pretty crazy to say the least.

Most certainly. In fact, it is likely my first ever Supersonic Revolution flight will be a stack flight. I am thinking link lines of about five feet....What say you Sparkie?

Reef Runner's Supersonic vented arrived today & it is even better than new unflown. Nick has thoughtfully prepared the kite for beach flying. The vertical struts all have very nice sand guards in place to keep the sand out of the end caps. I have heard about this modification on the forum but have not added it to my kites. The Master shows his student with a special addition to another perfect kite from my friend Nick. Thanks Nick. I will follow this example for any kites that might go to the beach next time. SHBKF P.S. A special thanks to all the USPS professionals who bring fine kites to me.

And another Revolution Sportwing makes it's way to the Dark Side of the Blue Ridge. Never seen a two stack of Supersonics. This is going to be a real grin. I am smiling in anticipation. Thanks my friend. SHBKF

Just want to thank Nick for another wonderful kite. I have bought several from Nick over the last few years & the condition of each kite has always amazed me. He may have flown them but each kite has been so well cared for that they have all appeared new when I have received them. If Nick offers a kite you are interested in buying you do not have to worry about any surprises. His kites are the best. Thanks Reef Runner, SHBKF

If you're shopping price I suspect the P4 would be the least expensive. But if you want to add Prism four line accessories to it or the Snapshot then the Tensor is very similar in price. Certainly within range. When I bought my 2.5 I just wanted a larger foil than my little 1.2 & did not look into the possibilities. So I bought the kite then almost immediately added a Prism control bar, a second kite killer, brake line set & a kite stake. Add to that a couple shipping charges from shopping around & I might as well have bought the Tensor 3.1. I spend almost exactly the same amount & wound up with a great kite but not a Tensor. But even though I don't intend on selling any kite I ever buy, the Tensor would be very easy to resale with little loss. The Tensor 3.1 also comes with a great kite bag that will easily carry a second kite & extra gear. The accessorized 2.5 would be harder to sell & I would probably not do as well financially. Later I did acquire a Tensor 4.2 & a Tensor 5.0. I will be getting a 3.1 this year next time I go to a particular beach kite store that usually stocks them. Needless to say I like the Tensors. Now as to flying the kites. The control bar is of a nice quality & the convertible feature is pretty neat. It also has long leaders & the line sets are easily wound around the horns of the handles in either configuration. When flying the handle set as a bar the kite is pretty intuitive to fly & that may good for first flights or for those who prefer a bar. The bar set up has both brake lines attached to the center of the bar & through the bar to the kite killer you wear on your wrist. You pull slightly on the center line to back the kite down in the window or pull a bit more to collapse it. If you let go of the bar the kite killer applies full brakes & the kite folds up & falls to the ground but it is still attached to your wrist with the kite killer. There is also a quick release to detach the kite from the kite killer which could let the kite fly off with the bar dangling. Ideally not a safe thing to do but a last resort to get you unhooked from the kite if need be. If the kite lands leading edge down you pull on the center line to launch the kite upward then roll it over & fly off. That alone is a great feature. In the bar mode the brake line use is limited. Static flying of foils is done mostly on the upper lines with the brake lines slightly sagging. This is quite different compared to a Revolutions kite quad line set up where all lines would typically have some tension on them for complete control. I fly my foils on handles as that is my preference. Some fliers say they are not as comfortable as they would like but I have not noticed any issue. It may be how you hold them matters. With the handle mode you should have a kite killer on each wrist. Flying in the handle mode allows you to use the brake lines to turn the kite more quickly or tighter. Pull the left brake line & it slows the left corner of the sail a bit & initiates a left turn. Pull the top line while applying some brake to the bottom & push the opposite handle away from you to get the maximum effect. But you still fly the foils mostly with the top lines. These foils need to be inflated to keep their shape so forward motion is typically needed. You can stall at the top of the window but it is harder to do elsewhere. Perhaps I have said too much but more could be added. SHBKF

You're most welcome. It was finally too much for me. I note you mention the SnapShot 2.5. I think that kite is an excellent choice because of it's feature that allows conversion to four line flying. I got one almost three years ago & I believe I only flew it once before I arranged to have the parts sent to me so I could fly it as my first quad kite. I still fly it when I want to fly a foil in higher wind. I have some larger foils now but they can be quite a hand full in higher winds if you are flying static. I like flying the 2.5 on handles for the extra control as compared to a bar. You have more control in turns & flying backwards is pretty handy for relaunches. You also might look into a Tensor 3.1 as a quad foil. It is more pricey but not too much more than buying the SnapShot then adding brake lines & handles. The Tensor comes with a stake & in a really cool back pack also.

Okay, I was patient & let everyone have a chance, PM sent.

Got home from a late winter flight & discovered my 4D upper spreader was missing. Next day, while at work day dreaming about kites, I remembered hearing a faint ringing noise as I closed my truck door when leaving the kite field. So I returned that evening hoping for the impossible. Kite spares are hard to come by round these parts. I pulled in a little back from where I parked the day before, got out, glanced down & there it was.....It was the beginning of learning in so many things during those days.

I too like to set up multiple kites. I have additionally learned that it is a good idea to stake the parked kite at or near the bridle. My inland conditions have variable wind directions. The wind can change directions, roll your kite out of it's inverted position & you suddenly have a kite in the air. Then the handles pull off the stake & going dangling off with the kite. It can get a bit exciting to say the least, especially with the larger wings. I like to fly all types of kites & sometimes have three or four set up. Buffeting wind can slowly move a stack of kites out of a laid back position & into a launch as well. I now stake dual line kites into the wind nose down. It just takes a few moments to pull the stake & put the kite in your preferred launch position. You can imagine what fun I had learning these tips.

This is a repair I did a couple years ago to my well flown HQ Shadow. The spine had poked through so I did a little hand sewing followed with brushed on Plasti Dip. I also repaired the trailing edges with ultra high molecular weight polyethylene tape.

Living the KiteLife has raised my awareness of the presence of the wind everywhere. You have shown us an amazing possibility. It is really cool that you found this air & thought "I could fly there." Even better, you made an beautiful video to entertain us all. I have recently been scouting a location in a large new shopping complex that still has areas that have not been developed. Large areas of cleared flat land are rare here in the mountains. As I was wandering around seeking the best wind I happened upon an area that had new small trees planted in a row. I tried to perceive the wind shadow of each tree as I walked downwind of them. As I felt each shadow in the light breeze I thought how it would effect the flight of a kite & how I might play with them. Now you have me thinking about a large waterfall in the Linville Gorge of North Carolina that I need to go visit with a few select kites & some short lines. Thanks for the inspiration. a little note: achieved a personal goal with this post, thanks so much for all who have "liked" posts I have made. I have been trying to only make comments that others could perhaps enjoy for some time now.

Hello my new friend, Any Rev 1.5 is a good choice for you at this point. But my thoughts are not really mainstream. I learned with the SLE version in the strong gusty mountain winds of winter here in the western part of Virginia. While the vented Sportwings did not come to my collection until over a year later the standard sail survived it all. I flew mine with the heavy stiff Super Leading Edge for quite some time as I felt it was tough & could take my newbie abuse. It did. I did not have to struggle with having enough wind to get airborne & the speed of the kite in the higher wind sharpened my reflexes quickly. I learned to stay to the side of the window during gusts & higher winds. There I practiced hovering, flying sideways, flying backwards & tip landings. You'll hear lots of advice about starting exercises which are mostly based on flying straight down wind. So a vented would make that easier. You can also move around on your flying spot & find areas that have less wind. I did that yesterday when I only had ultralight dualies with me and a large storm moved by south of my location blowing strong wind my way. I actually got in the wind shadow of a large hill to be able to fly in lighter air. Location is everything, especially here in the mountain valleys. My second Rev was a Power Blast 2-4. I was afraid to fly it for some time due to the high wind of winter. So next I got a Rev 1 because it was a bit slower & the original. I flailed it around & even broke the leading edge in a strong gust one day. You could learn with Rev 1 & it is available in vented. I will eventually get a vented Rev 1. The 1.5 size is very popular & many fly only that size. Used Revs are hard to come by & vented ones are rarely offered for sale. So I have been flying Revs a couple years now & my favorite is the mid vent. I just got a full vent & I will say it is probably the easiest to fly but I am not sure that would be true if I did not know how to fly one already. The call of the Dark Side is persistent. Just out here in the sticks, SHBKF

I spent my first session attempting to fly a Revolution SLE in ideal beach conditions in early December. Got the lines unwound & then found the kite bridle was not attached to the bottom of the kite. Figured that out pretty quickly & noted that the lines could be twisted at each attachment point or coming off the wrong side of the connector. I made a few changes to get all bridle lines leading off the connectors toward the center of the kite to achieve best bilateral symmetry. Turned out that was a good thing. So I go to the handles, step back & pull somewhat evenly. The wing rises about ten feet, spins clockwise & crashes to the right. Hey, I can do a propeller spin! So I repeated that sequence over & over. I persisted for an hour, packed up, got in the camper & headed home to the mountains. Did not try again for about a month due to the holidays, work & sketchy weather. But I did make extended knotted upper leaders in the mean time. So early January I try again. Launch, fly up about twenty-five feet, veer to the right, fly off the edge of the window & flutter/crash to the ground. See below images. Especially notice the bad form with the right arm extended & the left pulled back. A week later the third session is the ah ha moment. I draw on my experience of flying quad foils to finally realize that for me the key to sustained early flight was gently steering with the brakes. I could finally fly back & forth across the window without unplanned "landings". Everything else took a bit longer but that was just part of the journey. The later rewards were far greater than the early session's struggles. In fact I look back on those early flights fondly these days. Ready to launch Airborne flying straight up for a bit. Veering to the right to the crash landing - I'm right handed. But I'm just a Solo Hill Billie Kite Flailer