Dan Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 I've had the hardest time finding a nice open field here that isn't sheltered on 3 or all 4 sides by tall trees and buildings. If there is an undeveloped piece of land in Northern Virginia, I'm sure it will be gobbled up quickly by some developer in the near future. Sooooo, one thing I've been seriously considering is flying out of one of the abundant number of parking lots I've stumbled across. However, that also seems like a great way to tear the crap out of my kites. Things I've been mulling over: - ground recovery, seems like a great way to wear down the leadings edges and sail - hitting the ground in an unplanned landing, ouch Anyone here tried parking lot flying? ~Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpa Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Since I fly like John does in his Bugs Bunny routine... OOOHH OUCH OOOHH OUCH OOOUCH crap.... I look for soft spots. In Idaho the really open undeveloped land is covered with sage brush and rattle snakes. I put up with rough wind from trees... on the up side a three story building is a high rise here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Barresi Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Oh yes, I've done parking lot flying in Las Vegas outside the casinos... Not the best place to fly, but it's possible if you are safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penny Lingenfelter Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 I tried parking lot flying once in the past. Why not, my friends had done it. Hmm, the big drawback~ No where to stake your lines down to while you go fix the kite. The wind wisked my kite away, onto the roof, 2 ft. under electrical wires and I found myself standing on top of my van with a rev pole trying to coax my kite off of the roof without flipping onto the elctrical lines and saying.."God, I'm not having fun anymore" Whew, I was lucky. didn't have to call the fire department. Walked across the parking lot to have a rum and coke and think about the follies of my way. **Oh yeah, my friends broke an almost indestructible Rev. 1 spar on the driveway or the rocks, or something that was hard and unforgiving. What was I thinking? (that I wanted to fly now) I stayed away from parking lots for years after that. If I fly on concrete it's usally w/a field next to it that I can at least stake down the kite. Good luck. BB Penny 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 Hey there... In New York, you have to take what you can get. I fly in parking lots, school fields, and community parks. They all have their share of drawbacks, but the tow hooks on my truck eliminate the need for ground stakes in a parking lot. I also have different ground stakes for different surface textures... a sharp long screwdriver for the athletic fields, and a larger, thicker stake for sandy beaches. You should try Google Earth to look for flying fields that are hiding from you at ground level. I found lots of places around me to fly by doing that. As far as ground recoveries... I think they were invented by kite part suppliers to keep themselves in business. I find it easier to do the walk of shame than to repair the kite later that night. ~Rob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tristan Posted August 16, 2006 Report Share Posted August 16, 2006 I have never tried that before. I'm not going to try thoe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penny Lingenfelter Posted August 16, 2006 Report Share Posted August 16, 2006 I've a short stake for rocky ground too. I also have one of Arnolds stakes. So Arnold I'll be looking for you and Rory at L.B. BB Penny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Mol Posted August 22, 2006 Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 ...- ground recovery, seems like a great way to wear down the leadings edges and sail - hitting the ground in an unplanned landing, ouch ... ~Dan On leading edge wear - There is a product, iShield, that is used to protect iPods and the film was developed for the military to protect helicopter rotor blades. If one could find strips of that and attached it to the leading edge it would eliminate leading edge wear. The car version of this product can be seen on or I have no idea how much it weighs or how much it would change the CG of the kite, but I would think that a change in the bridle setting or adding weight on the back might offset that. On ground impact - I had read somewhere that prism used velcro on trailing edge so the spine could pop out on nose impact. Don't know if that really happens since I have never hit the ground hard enough with my Prophecy or New Jam to cause this to happen. Maybe someone with more background on this matter could comment. Hope this helps Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Posted August 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 Thanks, Jim. Oh, I can vouch on the velcro thing on Prism kites. I've popped my kite's spine out on more than one occasion. ~Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Mol Posted August 22, 2006 Report Share Posted August 22, 2006 I know what you mean about finding places without a tower of trees surrounding it. I was kiting around our highschool, since it has a good north-south corridor - no large trees for 1/4 mile. But for east winds I had to get out and look around. If I didn't mind the holes in the sale, the wheat field would be an option - hay, didn't I hear about a kit where the maker put hundreds of holes in for venting? I did find the grass parking lot at the county fair property, could use it when it is open and we have a county park where there are few trees leading up to the beach. Good for East to west winds and has soybeans across the road so there not much to stop the wind. the down side is that it slopes down to the lake and the width is limited to the grass between parking lots 120 feet or so. I had comtemplated using the parking lots at our high school, since they are 400 to 500 feet long - on all but the strong wind days, they should offer some good air to fly in. But I don't want to scrap up the kite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ant man Posted August 23, 2006 Report Share Posted August 23, 2006 sul kites are great for small areas where wind is not there but for the most part my local sports complex has a nice field and in SE wind the flying is the best because there is no tree line and theres a manmade drain field full of water it looks like a large lake and for some reason the winds get really good when they blow out of that area Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Mol Posted August 23, 2006 Report Share Posted August 23, 2006 - ground recovery, seems like a great way to wear down the leadings edges and sail~Dan What about Tedlar Tape? It can repair sails, but I do not know how resilient it is against abuse. I read in one of the forums that there were many field repair option available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ant man Posted August 24, 2006 Report Share Posted August 24, 2006 i use a tape called TAIR AID its a strong tape that can take a beating Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Mol Posted August 24, 2006 Report Share Posted August 24, 2006 i use a tape called TAIR AID its a strong tape that can take a beating That stuff looks good. You can find more info at http://www.tear-aid.com/ Thanks for the heads up. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ant man Posted August 25, 2006 Report Share Posted August 25, 2006 thats where i found it great stuff jim youll like it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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