RobB
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Blog Comments posted by RobB
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HS... congratulations on your Virtual Freestyle entry. When I first started with VF, my first two entries to VF were rejected... one had too much OOF (out of frame) and the other was just not up to acceptable standards at the time. Congrats on winning a prize, too !
I'm never there to win it, I think it's just fun to stand & fly on the same (virtual) field with the best pilots in the world.
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Nice light wind flying ! I couldn't see the trees in the background moving at all...
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6 hours ago, Exult said:
I also like the part where the kite is darting downwards from the top of window in a straight line (at 1:49) and from that you quite abruptly initiate a side slide outwards (?) towards the edge of the window.
Agreed, that was a slick move. The slides are looking really good. 2:50 ? Yeah, good one ! Also, it looks like the Cascade isn't too far off. I saw all the pieces in the video, they just need to be put together...
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1 hour ago, Exult said:like my Alien (though admittingly I've not used it much during the last six months). It can do double axels ( http://tricksparty.info/en/tricks-in-english/46-double-axel-group-4 ) without any input between the axels (haven't seen that in other kites that I have). It encourages you to try and toss it around. It gives you few line snags. In my opinion it is not so bad in low wind either if you trim it by moving the stand-offs inwards (can't remember if I did anything with the angle of attack as well). Finally and obviously – it is decent in high wind as well. Yes, it feels a bit different, but I have difficulties in describing it. Perhaps because I don't have many kites of that size (span-width 189cm) to compare it to.
Ah, here's the thing about the Alien. I used to think it was a 'high wind' kite until I had a lower spreader break (mid air) in high winds. I went back to the field card, and as it turns out, Prism rates it to only 20mph. OOoops... I was flying in winds gusting higher than that, so it was my bad. I always get to feeling that I don't give the Alien enough chance, and take it out after a couple years of basement exile, and give it another chance. I haven't been impressed by it yet, other than for comic & visual flying value. I still have to try it in lower winds with shorter lines before I make my final judgement...
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Good stuff ! I really like to see someone who has the bug, and is so enthusiastic about learning dual line flying. I get that... been there, for many years.
The Fade at the end of the last video stuck with me. That was nice. I like to see how long I can hold a fade, which can seem like a boring exercise, but it really helps to get the 'feel' of the kite. The gentle inputs that a fade teaches you translate directly to the types of inputs need to hold a stall or a slide.
1/2 axels ? It took me forever to learn them, and I still don't know if I do them right. I do a fast snap stall input, but don't let the kite go tips horizontal, but give the axel input quickly after ditching the speed (when the nose is pointed at 10 o'clock or 2 o'clock, depending on which side I'm flying). I choke the axel just as the nose is pointed in the right direction (left or right, horizontal) and quickly take up the slack either with a step back or an arm sweep, or sometimes both if the wind is low. That's the best I can describe it, and like I said, I'm not sure if my 1/2 axels are 'real' 1/2 axels...
Was the first video just the I2K, or did I see a different kite in there, too ? Maybe an Ozone at the end ? Different kites are going to be stronger with certain tricks, and I have to say, the I2K is a very difficult kite to trick. I really only like mine with the Spoilerz installed in higher winds. I don't like flying it without in lower winds. As a matter of fact, the I2K is the only high wind duallie that I have in my bag. I have an Alien, too, but we don't get along, and it stays home.
I like the music & the creative editing. You've found the exact reason I film my flying, to watch and see what you're doing wrong. Or right, sometimes...
Finally, about the weather watching... tell me that you can't drive past a flagpole without looking up to see which way the wind's blowing ?!? 8)
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21 hours ago, Exult said:Nice of you to share a glimpse of a "decent" kite festival. The two last festivals I've been to consisted of a not very large number of SLKs with few extraordinary ones. Only the second festival had a couple of other dual line kites, but the few pilots did not seem to be acquainted with their DLKs. Naah..., I sound like whiner - kite festivals are very nice places to be in even though they are not super mega spectacular events. Once again nice to have the opportunity to read this report.
This festival would've been even bigger if the weather had cooperated. Most of the shots of the dual and quad line flying were in between the raindrops, and if I had looked back to the North, where the big SLKs were flying in the morning, there were only a handful still flying. The sport kite crew was a heartier bunch, and the skill level was over the top. They all still make me feel like the newbie, but in reality, I am. Most of these faces are the same ones that I remember when I walked onto my first kite festival field over 10 years ago. I only see these people once or twice a year, but it is certainly a pleasure to see them all again.
Sunday was to be my last day there, as I had to work on Monday. I woke up to a driving rain, 40mph winds, so there was no reason to hang around. I was still cold & tired from the day before, so I packed up and headed home with the seat heater going full blast to sooth my aches & pains.
Yup, welcome back to New York. It was nice to have a vacation from this, no matter how short. It's amazing how far away you can get from this with only a few hours of driving !
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OK... day 2. I gotta say, I am totally exhausted. Something about walking around in the sand in the rain all day, I guess. Well, not rain all day, but as the forecast read, it rained 60% of the time. Didn't care, I was there to fly, and even at times when my kite was the only one in the air. But a really good time... it was good to see these faces that I only see once a year, and all the friendly residents of Long Beach Island. They're something else, so welcoming and friendly, just like kite folks.
When I woke up, this is what I saw out of my window... these were taken from my balcony. Yeah, I guess I got up late...
This is turning into a 'real' kite festival. Even with the grey weather, the turn-out was very impressive. This is only the second year that this festival has been held.
These guys had an actual real-deal Buffalo Cody. First time I've seen one of those in person !
Wow, just Wow. I've seen this stack before, it just doesn't get old.
So, what could top a stack of Rainbow Revs ? How about a Jimi stack. I got to examine these up close... the intricate sewing was very impressive.
Of course, every 'real' kite festival needs a Bol race. I think I need to look into these for my kids, it looks like a good way to tire them out !
Yeah, those again. Did I mention I really like these ? 8)
Something different, Dual Line and Quad line mega-fly !
Yup, some dual lines, too. I couldn't identify this kite yesterday, I suspected that it was something kinda rare, but it was confirmed today that these are 'Machines'. Not something you see everyday... and not one, but two !
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QuoteTry to further improve the two point landing. I didn't like the sideways movement the kite did when turning the kite from nose down to nose up. I want to be able to land at the spot where the nose is initially pointing when the kite is approaching the ground.
Try a punch turn to quickly change direction 180*. I think I may do a combo turn, but it's more punch heavy. Punch, step forward (lunge), and use the other hand for steering input into the landing. It's all very fast and difficult to dissect. But I think that's how I do that one.
QuoteDifficult to get out of the turtle after a lazy suzan in low wind - in more wind and with a sloppy exit it will snappily exit the turtle after the lazy.
When a light kite is stuck on it's back, try pushing forward on both lines, then pull it back out of the turtle. I remember that bugging me about the Shadow, too.
QuoteNoticed that the fade launches were quite OK, while I had difficulties with Lazy Susans. Is it so that the fade is a more of a light wind trick (at least with some kites the fade can be maintained in higher wind as well though) while the Lazy Susan is more easily done in higher wind?
The Fade is easier in lighter wind, and more dangerous to the kite in higher winds. If you lose the Fade in higher winds with the nose pointed down, it's only a split second before it turns into a high speed land dart. Lazies can be done without much risk in any wind, but look better in lower wind. I like them to go around slow & graceful, it just looks better to me. Fast yank & spank flying kinda looks like the kite is out of control...
Hopefully some of this may be helpful, I enjoyed reading your blog. I would be lucky to fly with someone who has the same enthusiasm as you do, it's nice to talk with someone who speaks the same language... at least I can read about it.
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I actually got to fly in a different location for once. I went up to Cape Cod to visit with family for a long weekend, and brought some kites along. Even though I've been going there all my life, I've never flown kites there, so it was a nice first for me. I also got to give some instruction on the Rev to my father (a natural, it took him less than 5 minutes to figure it out) and my brother-in-law, who added a couple year's worth of wear to my new Rev inside of 10 minutes ! I was actually glad the wind died out, there wouldn't have been much left of the new MV if he flew it much more !
Anyway... I only got one shot with my phone...
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BTW... all of the kids are training on multi-line kites. I can't wait to see them all solo. Can't wait to sit back in my chair and watch them all fly together. All in good time...
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Third week of Kite Season... I couldn't leave my smallest family member out of the fun, so this week it was Ceci's turn to have a little play time on the beach with Dad. She's been sitting on a Minion kite that she got as a gift a while back, still unflown, in the box. After seeing the other two go out and have a fun time flying, she was very vocal about it being her turn this week. The Minion kite was another X-Kite, pretty decently made for a cheepo retail kite, and once again, flew right out of the box...
It was actually pretty big for a kid's kite, and the pull was exciting at times for her. She's flown plenty of SLKs before, so she knew what to do.
There's a size comparison, the Minion was flying at the same height as the Ultrafoil. Even though the summer crowds are gone, the off-shore summer breeze was still here.
A close-up of the two kites together. This photo was optimized to bring the colors up, it was really kinda grey today. We only had a couple of hours to spend before dinner, so these were the only two kites that made it into the air. Frustrating, since I have two kites that are itching to fly... a red Kymera and a new-to-me MidVent with magic sticks. Soon... they've both taken up residence in the car, so they'll make it into the air soon !
The only distraction from kite flying today... Beach Glass ! Ceci thinks they're valuable jewels and can't resist grabbing a few while at the beach.
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I found this... it was a couple of years ago. The solo flight has been a long time coming !
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Second Week... this time it was my son's turn to spend some time on the beach with Dad... Mick is 8.5 years old, and he said (after watching a KL video) that he wanted to learn to fly like that. He's held the quad handles before, but this was his first solo flight.
Oh, my poor MV ! No idea what abuse it's about to endure !
Working on his control with some ground passes... also learning the wind window.
He got some inverted hover practice in, the biggest challenge is learning to keep those hands in front, in control, at this point...
Another launch... too bad the sun is setting so early. we could've been out there for another couple of hours.
OMG... hands in front ! Yeah, the patience level required with an 8 YO is much greater than with an adult...
Another ground pass. I think he might've done better than I did my first time out with a quad. My poor MV had it's roughest outing, EVER. Totally worth the price of admission, and really, no visible damage to the kite after countless hits. The endcaps did not want to come off the spars when we packed up, that was the worst thing that happened...
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Don't worry too much about the I2K, it's a tough kite. It has a lot of built in tension when properly assembled, and I think that adds to it's strength. The leading edges should be curved when you have the proper amount of tension on the tips. I hope you have the Spoilerz for it, they make the kite fly comfortably in winds that you would normally need a vented kite for. I don't know if the Prism site has the documentation available for the I2K still, so I attached the field cards below...
http://ferob.com/kites/prism-illusion.pdf
http://ferob.com/kites/illusionHighWindSpoilers.pdf
My I2K with the Spoilerz installed...
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Just reading through... as far as the question about sticks in the I2K vs. the Illusion...
Luckily for the I2K, the spars are Skyshark 5t, readily available still. I don't fly my I2K very much, and have stolen it's sticks many times to fix other kites in a pinch.
http://www.skyburner.com/skyshark/pt-series.html
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I finally got a chance to watch your video all the way through. Looked like a nice flying session, and a great location. I think the high point of what I saw was around the 7 minute mark, you flew straight down and did a snap stall to the left, then again to the right. That looked really good. That move can easily be made into an impressive landing, or while the kite is stalled, it's a perfect spot for an axel.
The move at the end looked like a turtle, I couldn't see the kite, but your input looked like the input for a turtle. That was my first trick... fly up while pulling on both lines, and right near the top, throw slack at both lines. The kite flips onto it's back... walk towards the kite, tug either the right or the left line, and the kite will rotate around. Boom... Lazy Susan. Once the kite rotates 360*, pull both lines, the kite will return to flying position, fly away.
Two things I would suggest... I fly with my pointer fingers on the leaders for fine inputs on either line. This helps greatly during stalls & slides. Inputs when the kite is barely flying are micro inputs. Which brings me to the universal truth... more slack. Almost always, when you wonder why a trick failed, the answer is... more slack. Always walking (or at least a big step) towards the kite when you're trying a trick. Example... 1/2 axel, snap stall towards the side of the window, step forward, axel input to fly out towards the center of the window.
If you're like me, the stepping forward is tough while the kite is in the middle of a trick. I kinda lock up out of fear that I'm about to crash. Very difficult to overcome, I'm still working on that.
Last thing... patience. I worked on the axel for about a year before I really got it. It took me over a year to learn the 540. I know that I'm slow, but I didn't have anything but written advice and some uToob videos to learn from. I would read & watch, over & over, but most of that information would fly out of my head when I got out to the beach.
I am happy to see someone else learning dual line, not the most popular, and certainly not the easiest kind of flying. Keep up with the videos, even if you don't post them, watching them in your down time will help you analyze what you're doing (right & wrong) and that will help greatly the next time you're out in the field.
Let me leave you with this...
and this...
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The calm before the storm... well, not too calm, the winds were 10-15mph, but they were clean off of the water. My daughter, Bailey (7 years old), wanted to come out and fly her new Butterfly kite. The kids aren't as interested in kites as I am, so I always jump at the chance to fly with them.
The Butterfly is made by X-Kites, and is better made than most kid's kites. It did fly well, right out of the box.
It's amazing how cold a 70 degree day feels after weeks of hazy, hot & humid 90 degree days. Yay ! Sweatshirt weather !
Bailey also took a turn wrangling the Ultrafoil 15. It seems really big to her, and with any much more wind, would probably lift her off the ground.
It was much easier to fly once it was properly lashed down to a convenient piece of driftwood.
This is the one kite that I was itching to fly... the Joel Schultz Skyscraper. Yeah... this one's got some pull ! It's a very unique SLK that's going to get flown alot.
It flew really well, even if it did make my arms a little longer. 300# line required ! Thanks, RC !
SO, Kite Season 2016 is off to a great start... hoping to get all the kids more involved this year, the other two seemed a little jealous when they saw the pictures. Bailey worked on her dual line skills today with the Snapshot foil. I think she'll be ready soon to fly the hot pink Action Kite that's been hanging from her ceiling since she was a baby. It will be good to see that classic in the air, it's 20-25 years old, but has never been flown !
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21 hours ago, riffclown said:
Pictures!!
Always !
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I hope your repair is standing the test of time. I have attempted spar repairs in the past, only while waiting on replacements. Never had one fail, but I only flew on the repairs once or twice before the new ones came in. Please don't get me wrong, I respect your effort.
I will say... I've had spars fail and the pieces ripped the sail. Really, nothing worse than that... without replacing a panel, there's no way to fix a sail and make it like new... you can always tell, and if it's a special kite, it's heartbreaking.
Best of winds to you !
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I wouldn't try this on the Illusion. When assembled, the Illusion has a lot of stress at the center T because of the curvature of the kite when assembled. The Illusion had special, specific lower spreaders that were reinforced at the junction point, they are exclusive to the Illusion.
The problem with trying to repair a spar on a kite is that if the repair fails, there is the risk that a broken spar will puncture the sail.
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Just forget about that 'Sleeping Beauty' launch... don't break your kite. What's the point ? Fade launch is OK, though. I hear you about wanting to concentrate on learning to fly dual lines, but you've got the rest of your life to learn duallies. You'll need at least that long ! The great thing about four lines is that they're easy to learn, and the learning curve is fast. If I'm on a crowded beach, I choose to fly a quad line because of the confidence the kite gives me. I've been trying to learn how to fly dual lines for ~15 years, but still won't fly them in a place where there are a bunch of people hanging out, only when I'm about the only person there.
I totally prefer to fly dual line kites, but finding the right winds and conditions can be frustrating. You can put tails on quad line kites, too, BTW...
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Love that String Art Rev ! Those are the colors I would choose if buying another Rev.
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That Red Geisha Revolution is really beautiful. Not something that I could fly, but it's very nice to look at. I can't say the same about the 80's colors on the other one, but I do appreciate it's part in history. Congratulations on your new acquisitions !
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Sweet kite ! You're making me wish that I had bought that one. I was lucky enough to fly someone else's at a festival last Fall, although I believe it was an UL. Same thing, low winds, and super long lines, like 100' or 120'. That was the only thing that I wish had been different, since I'm not used to long lines. The kite did fly like a dream, though, it had really good precision for the low winds and I was able to bang out a few tricks.
Glad you got one, and I'm looking forward to hearing more about it !
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Still Here...
in Flying on Long Island...
A blog by RobB in General
Posted
Bobby was a friend to many of us, he was a frequent chat-head on the GWTW forum. I got a lot of great advice from him, swapped flying stories, and he remembered the compliments that I gave him on the WidowMaker Spider. He contacted me out of the blue, years later, and asked me if I wanted it.
The kids enjoy flying, but I don't push them on it. I let them ask, and it seems that if one is flying, the other two will want to join in. I kind of let the kites sell themselves...