Dave362

Congrats, Marcus! Nice kite!

No problem. i can wait another day until you pick me

Best of luck with your new kite. I apologize if my initial post offended. I had absolutely no intention of doing that. I only replied because I thought it might be helpful to point out one of the trade offs of flying a smaller kite which is, they can require a bit more wind, as I said in my original post. I felt this information would help you understand what you were buying a little bit better. All with good intentions. Since this thread got going, I looked up this kite and watched some videos. Seems like it will be a good choice as a next step from the foil, and if you find you're interested, will provide an introduction to some basic tricks. Something else that might be helpful, many of us that have been flying a long time flew for years before deciding to learn tricks, quite happily, I might add. In my case, I flew for a long time before tricks were even part of the dual line scene. What I'm saying is, you may just really enjoy flying the kite and never look into tricks. I still like (love) taking my stack of Hawaiian team kites up and cutting some sharp corners. Everyone is different, and there are a ton of ways to enjoy this great activity. So again, welcome to the forum. Its good to have you involved. Take care, Dave

i agree with all that's been said here. One thing to add, when looking at smaller standard kites, you can sometimes be limiting your wind range. Generally speaking,, full size standard kites have wider wind ranges due to a larger sail area. Of course, pupose built SULs can fly in lower winds. These, however, tend to be a bit more fragile as well as more expensive. Plus, they can't take the stronger winds a standard can.

My wife and I took a trip to Cannon Beach Oregon after I passed my graduate oral exams. I bought a Cheetah, which was a small dual line kite that was popular as an impulse buy for beach goers at the time (1990) i couldn't get over its rigid frame and swept leading edges. it seemed so serious, so professional. I spent the day flying it to the edge and holding it still in the smooth beach winds. To this day I think I measure all other kites by the feeling I got flying that first sport kite.

Hey John, nice to see you on here. Agreed. The current deep turtle kites change the learning curve for this trick.

I like Northwest winds, too. They stock all the cool SLK stuff. I'm afraid to spend too much time in there... Might have to take out a second morgage.....

I'm thinking its your touch, and sense of timing that give your tricks such a beautiful flow....

I would recommend looking at one of the retailers listed on the upper right side of the main forum page. These are the folks who support this forum and all the great info to be found here. If you are looking for a Rev, I would recommend the 1.5 size. My opinion is this size offers the best all around performance. For an entry level price, the EXP is a good bet. Lots of folks on here have these and are very happy with them. They are often sold in an all included package, lines, handle and kite. Then you'll need some kind of ground stake for setup and you're all set. When flying inland, I use a screw driver for my stake. I have a longer, sand appropriate stake for beach flying with the Rev. A guy could easily make something at home to use at the beach and save a few bucks. I've owned and flown Revs for a good 20 years, but am really more of a dual line flyer and just fly the Revs for enjoyment. Many on here are much more knowleable on all things Rev annd can help with the finer points. Having said that, the info here is sound, and the EXP is a good place to start. For a little more money, you can get a B series, which I believe is made of higher end sail material, (Icarex?) and has higher end framing. Do some price comparison shopping at one of these retailers and you should know what you're looking at price wise. Best of luck!

Sometimes you can get a kite only deal around $200, but by the time you get a line set and handles you'll be well above that price point. Maybe a used kite?

I got some real nice Taz machines today with my GPS and the Nirvana. Still a bit inconsistent, but they're getting better. For me, looking for the spine above the tail and then moving toward the kite after the second input are the key elements.

Did some research, and it is in fact the lower wing, just like in the rolling Susan. The two point is working fairly well for me now. i just do an angled dive and treat it like a snap lazy. When the wings come level, I pull on both lines and it drops right to the ground. I'll keep working on it, making the dive more vertical. Nice thing is, when I want a more dramatic landing, i can just pull for the lazy like I was doing before. Thanks for the help, guys!

I remember the amazing videos of the cool kites he made. Truly special stuff. Great loss for sure, and a sad day. Prayers to his family

Looks great! I'll bet that was a pleasure to fly.