Tricking inland

[DaveH]

I live in Eastern Washington and am 8 hours from the coast. I just returned from a week on the beach and am all revved up (pardon the pun) to keep working on my flying. I can consistently do what they call old school tricks, Backspins, cascades, etc, and am now just developing some consistency in wrapping the kite up. Its still pretty new to me, though, and last week yeilded some great progress. So today I went to the local park and flew for about an hour. The wind was pretty strong. Still, I find it ok to practice tricks in stronger winds inland, because the wind just doesn't feel as heavy. The pockets, gusts and turbulence seem to make a doorway for trick flying as long as you're willing to do what the wind wants to do at any given time. Its kind of fun, too, because you have to be able to change gears in an instant to take advantage of whats available at the moment. Its not all great, though, because there are 4 colleges in the area which are a magnet for sports camps. So field space is hard to come by and you can't count on flying on your favorite field with the best wind. But anyway, I nailed some pretty cool wraps today and was able to practice repeating them. For me right now, its about wrap/unwrap, trying to develop consistency in these basic elements which make up more difficult tricks. I guess I just wanted to comment on how nice it is that kiters can make progress no matter where they live, and kiting doesn't begin and end at the coast.

Dave

[John Barresi]

Thank you sir!

I agree with Dave's statement completely, nothing to add.

[Baloo]

I am not as confident and am still learning the basice. Must admit I yearn for a nice steady wind. Sods Law says you will allways be working on that "perfect" day. Must admit the gusts keep you switched on though.

Off nearer the coast for a few weeks soon so look forward to some cleaner wind. You can be sure it will pour with rain while I am there now.