RobB

Make sure you drink an extra cup of coffee, you'll want to be wide-eyed and bushy tailed for that little speed demon ! Enjoy !

You know, there really isn't a good example of the 'flat entry' 540 in this video... around 3:00, that one comes close. The 'flat entry' 540 is something that I've talked with Dave about in the past, and I know I've caught better examples of it in other videos. I'm sure it could be one step away from cracking the Taz or Slot Machine trick. I think it's the double input from either the right or left hand that throws me.

Another weekend without flying, so no news to report in my quest for the Taz or Slot. I'm all primed up on text advice, and have watched the videos a few more times. Next time out, I swear, I'm gonna nail it !

Here's a big part of the kites that he was into... Next time you're flying, tip a wing for him.

Sad news, one of our members, Andre has passed away... http://kitelife.com/forum/user/4526-andre/ I didn't know him in person, but he took his time to be a digital friend of mine, offered good advice, and even offered to send me one of his Spectre XUL kites. I wish I had taken him up on it, you know, you always think you have all the time in the world... I don't know any details of his passing, it seems that he was a young guy, gone too soon. Rest in Peace, Andre !

OK... I get it. The answer to that... just randomly flail and it should pop back into the air if the wind is strong enough. I know that's a bad answer, but it works for my son (7 yo) and his Snapshot 99% of the time. Tug one side or the other...

Well, this isn't my kite anymore, but here are a couple of the Seven I used to own...

If you're flying on a beach, it's pretty easy, with the belly of the kite facing up, trailing edge towards the pilot, put a bit of sand on the trailing edge. Pull the lines slowly & evenly, and the kite will stand up, ready to launch. A slight, even tug on both lines, and away you go ! If you're flying on a field, you'll have to substitute the sand for something else slightly heavy. I carry a few stones (from my beach) in my foil bags in case I get stuck flying in a non-beach environment where there isn't sand readily available...

Very nice ! That Double DC needs some tail ! That Power Sled is the same pattern as my replacement Power Sled, but I think yours is bigger. Looks like a great day at the beach. I have to say, that Ocius has a stunning color combo, but you might want to try some longer lines on that 4d, I found 30s to work best for me... I really liked the trick combos, the wrapped 540 got rewound a few times to try to figure that one out ! Two thumbs up !

Thank you all for the kind words... this is where I've gotten, back to my basic 'core' tricks. I gave up trying to learn new tricks a while back, and just worked on having fun and trying to make my flying look like I was doing things on purpose. With all the talk & success on the Taz Machine trick, I'll be out there trying to put that one under my belt, but probably not until the beach crowds clear out & I have a few hours to spend on an empty beach. This was just a serendipitous after-work fly, the whole session lasted maybe 1/2 hour. Not enough time, and the wrong kite to try to learn new things with ! @Dave... yes, the flat entry 540... the root of my frustration that the Taz still baffles me ! @Mark... I have plenty of 'Fail' video... maybe I should post that, too... @Joanna... yes, the Cartwheel is the most useful trick you could learn. Without that, learning any other tricks would be miserable !

I agree with Hadge... practice this one a few feet off the ground. It's very similar to doing a Spike (tip stab), only the kite rotates a little bit more to end up with both wingtips on the ground. If you get it right when you're practicing, the kite will just hover in a stall, which also looks pretty cool. The good thing about the TwoPoint landing is that you're less likely to break a Lower Leading Edge !

If you're using Internet Explorer, that's probably the reason it doesn't work. Kitelife works best on Google Chrome for me.

I think uToob is blocking certain countries from seeing it, possibly a content issue (music). I have to re-produce a copy in a lower quality and upload to Vimeo... you should be able to see it from there, although it won't be true HD. And thanks, Dave, glad you enjoyed it, I certainly enjoyed the first decent wind in a while. Didn't get to try the Taz or Slot, though. Half of the tricks in the video are just keeping the kite flying ! *update... for those trying to watch this video, but can't, I posted it to Vimeo... but their content filter caught the music, too. I swapped it out with some generic instrumental, so it's at If you can watch the original on uToob, the quality is much better...

WOW ! That is some collection ! ...and people say I have a lot of kites.

Finally... some good wind for once. It seems like every time I show up at the beach, the wind is too high, too low, too bumpy, or the wrong direction. Not the case a few days ago. I got lucky this day, got out of work a little early and found an on-shore breeze around 3-5mph. Not only nice wind, but the mysterious disappearance of the summer crowd.... I mean, this is July, right ? Where is everybody ??? Just kidding, I didn't miss them one bit ! If you have a few minutes, Full screen, HD & enjoy... Thanks for checking it out !

Hey Rob, Josh and I have walked the same sand (Jockey's Ridge - Nags Head, NC) at the same time. Of course, neither one of us had ever heard of the other at that time.......... Well, I saw that you guys are neighbors, relatively speaking... I'm happy he's building his collection, even though I'll miss having another 'Nick Foil' in mine. It's a really nice looking kite !

Welcome back to kiting ! Hope to see you out there next year...

Right place, right time... congrats on your score ! And, hey, at least shipping won't cost much !

Awww, shoot ! Missed it... That didn't take long.

Looks like a good spot... I know exactly where that is, I used to pick up equipment from an office in the industrial park right by there. Use the Google Maps, you'll be able to 'fly over' and identify good spots to fly. It looks like the 4d will become your best friend when you're flying around there, wherever there's open space, it seems like there's lots of trees, too.

The Sleds certainly pull pretty hard, I lost a PowerSled 24... it broke 300# line when the wind came up unexpectedly...

Do you still have the Firestorm for sale? Oh, that's not mine, I was just referring the OP to this ad... http://www.gwtwforum...p?topic=11708.0 I used to have 2, but sold one years ago. I have to keep the one I have (the red one) because it is an awesome kite, totally underrated & unappreciated. I don't know why there aren't more people into flying BIG kites... I hope that Blue one is still available, it's listed for a good price, and hasn't been marked as 'sold' yet. Good luck !

The Firestorm is one of my favorite kites ! It can fly in 2-10mph wind, anything higher than that will break it. Ask how I know that... There was a blue one for sale recently, but I think it sold. They come up for sale every once in a while.

Light duty KAP ? A 40 should be more than enough to lift any rig ! I've never used anything bigger than a 24 to lift my cameras...