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Second outting with the Rev.


Guru4tru
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OK!!...I said:

"Oh Yeah...on a more serious note...I've been thinking about holding off on doing the Rev until I get where I want with the new Nirvanas I got receintly. The mind set is so different with the quads then the duals, I'm afraid it will throw me totally out of wack! I did actually buy it for my wife...heehee"

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Well, I was trying to help my wife on Sunday and the Rev. walked over to me and grabbed me by the shirt and said, "You are going to fly me!!"

I have no idea what I'm doing yet, but I seemed to be doing it pretty well! And I'm really great already at flipping it over when it is standing upside down! Anyway, I have to retract my previous comment of holding off on the Rev. It sort of already hooked me, with this last fly! I've decided to share some my time with her. (Well, with "him"...my wife named the Rev. "Revere!")

One question...when the Rev. is flat on the ground...that's "walk time"...right? Or is there a way to launch it when flat?

Keep It Up!

Duane

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Which way flat...

1) LE near you, strings down (is this possible?)

2) LE far from you, strings up (can do if the lower tips dig into the ground)

3) LE near you, strings up (no problem, use all the brake and reverse lift off ground)

4) LE far from you, strings down (pull back, get some wind under there, reverse lift off ground)

John

One question...when the Rev. is flat on the ground...that's "walk time"...right? Or is there a way to launch it when flat?

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Flat on the ground, you say Duane....hmmm.

The first time my EXP went flat on the ground against my will was when I broke the leading edge spar - I did not seat it completely over the center section - a grain of sand made it stick and I got impatient to fly. :sign_kitelife:

The second time my EXP went flat was when I broke a leading edge race rod - got a wing flip near the ground and spun into the ground, I think. I happened rather fast, then I saw the crippled wing and crumpled kite. :)

The third and final time my kite went flat was my new 1.5 mid-vent. In gusty winds, I flew it to the edge of the wind window as the window was collapsing. The kite floated leading edge down from high to the ground with nothing I could do, the lines were completely slack. No damage tho. Rather interesting experience, actually. :)

So, although I briefly wondered about launching from a flat position, I have not had the occasion to yet. I suspect in one or two more sessions with your Rev, you will find the question academic also. ;)

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Thanks,

So, it is possible! My first experiences were of the kite just sliding across the grass. I suppose I have to be more radical or Howard mentioned...just don't get in that position! That certainly has to be the best soluition! :sign_kitelife:

Keep It Up!

Duane

PS Howard--where did you get such a colorful kite?

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PS Howard--where did you get such a colorful kite?

Duane,

Rev will make any color combination you can think up ... for a price. John gave you a link to Rev's standard Pro-series page ... again, for a price, Bazzer will fill in the colors exactly how you want. Rev also makes dealer specific kites. A Wind of Change has their "Night" B-series kite ... as you can imagine, it's a very bright kite. Kent had it made because folks in Las Vegas, due to the summer heat, do a lot of their flying in the late evening. The Kite Connection has several different specialty kites. The one from Kite Party this year, Custom Black Rainbow Barresi, is especially pretty.

Kite

The kite that Howard has looks like an SLE kite with the same rainbow color idea. It shows up on ebay as being sold by The Kite Connection ... can't find a picture of it on his web site, but can see the title there.

So, for a few dollars more, you can recreate your most vivid image from the 60's and fly off into the sunset with it.

Good morning,

Tom

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I bought the kite from The Kite Connection. Yes, they have some pix of the color on their eBay listings, but I would suggest calling them to select exactly what kite and options you want. The color is "Black Rainbow", and is a color combination designed and ordered by Dave of TKC. TKC is, according to my research, a long established kite retailer run by Dave Shenkman, a long time master kite flier and supporter. My contacts with Dave prove him to be a nice guy to deal with - both knowledgeable and price-wise very competitive.

Sorry if I sound like a shill for TKC, but I'm just thrilled with my new kite. :wub::wub::P

So, folks, design away!

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... How would you like to be the guy, or gal, that screwed that up?!?! ...

That kite belongs to Jynx ... it was a few hours old at the time the picture was taken. Jynx loaned it to me to fly for awhile at Kite Party. When they called for the mega fly, she wasn't around, so I continued to use her kite. Thus, I was lucky enough to be flying that kite when John took his picture ... makes the picture extra special for me. What was going through my mind was ten sets of lines ... $80 apiece ... $800 of macrame if I make a mistake ... please God don't let me make a mistake. Oh yes, I decided that if I made a mistake, I'd drop the handles and yell "Jynx did it!!!" ... I'm sure it would have worked.

Actually I've found few problems flying in groups. Mike Kory is one of the leaders/callers I've flown with the most ... Mike, as well as others I've flown with, keeps the maneuvers within the capability of the weakest flier. And the rest of the fliers are have always made me feel welcome. I'd only been flying for a month when Mike put me in a line up of four fliers. I learned more in that one session than I'd learned in the prior month.

Team flying is one of the really great things about flying a Rev. Keep "borrowing" the Rev from your wife, get a little knowledge, and then enjoy the fun of standing side-by-side with others while flying your kite.

Cheers,

Tom

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WOW!! That's amazing!

But, there are two things I certainly don't need right now. One...is another kite and two...is to be in the sky with 10 other kites...heehee! Just the thought of that makes me laugh!! :wub:

That "Black Rainbow" is really a beautiful kite though and should I ever decide to get another Rev. I'm certainly going to go looking for that color combo!

As for flying wrapped around others lines...well, I just can't imagine that!! And if I joined in now and everyone flew to the lowest level, my level, of acheivment...then we'd all just be walking back and forth all day or sliding the Revs across the ground!! :wub:

Keep It Up!

Duane

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hey Duane

now your florida heat is subsiding, you'll be spending more time with your kites... and the rev may be calling you again :wub:

have you guys seen the rev tutorials ?

http://www.revkites.com/main/Techniques_1

try the first exercise.

It may seem silly just going up then down.

However once you try the basic launch and land you will begin to understand and feel the basic controls of the handles. :P

Then you can try the same movements at different heights, and with different speeds, fast, slow and dead stop - hovering.

you'll be surprise how small the movements are and for hovering it can mean constant minute wiggling movements (depending on the wind).

Don't worry about fancy stuff or touching lines for now.

If things don't feel right and the kite always spins in the same direction it might mean your lines aren't the same length. :wub:

have fun

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Choccy said,"It may seem silly just going up then down."

No, I don't think it is silly at all, because I can't do that yet. I bet you just forgot how difficult it was in the beginning! Give me just one good, controled "Up & Down" and I'd be happy, for now. :P

Thanks for the http://www.revkites....in/Techniques_1 site, but I had made copies of all that before and I take it with me...I mean "us"! :wub:

Just need more air, or land, time with the Rev., but then I'm working with the Nirvana STD now...I guess the only sensible thing to do is to quit my job so I can have more time!! :dual:

Keep It Up!

Duane

PS Oh Yeah...Thanks for telling me how to get to "all" the smiley faces!! OK...so what if I'm 61, I think there cool! :wub:

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OK...Now I'm getting someplace!! :P

I followed Choccy's advice to keep my hand moving "all the time" and it worked! Instead of having to react to what the kite was doing, and remember what to do, I was always controlling the kite with very small movements, so I knew what to do without trying different ways or having to recall what to do...which usually resulted in a crash.

It sort of reminded me of having to back up a car for a long distance, if you don't keep the steering wheel moving back and forth a little bit, you forget which way to turn the wheel when you need to.

I was going "up", "down", "sideways" and "hovering"...with "far" less problems and crashes them before. There is hope!!

:wub:

Thanks again!

Keep It Up!

Duane

PS No I'm not ready for multi line flying!! heehee! :wub:

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Choccy's "for hovering it can mean constant minute wiggling movements" confirms my observations of:

1. JB holding a precise hover down to the audience line at WSIKF after his performance. I noticed he constantly vibrated/wiggled his controls.

2. In electro-mechanical control theory, sometimes an oscillation is added to the feedback control path to lessen the error. This is called "dither". However, it mainly addresses "stick-tion" (or static friction) by keeping the mechanical parts in constant motion since dynamic friction is less than static friction.

3. So, I tried wiggling, and it definitely helps hold a steady hover. If there is "stick-tion" in the system, it is evidently in the human part of the feedback loop - the part that causes over-control by waiting a fraction of a second to correct. Without the dither, feedback requires the visual recognition that the kite is departing from the desired location, the conscious determination of the correction command, and the execution of the command. (Which often is too late and too large.) Apparently by dithering, the feedback is provided by the tension/pressure sensors almost directly to the muscles to correct the departure from ideal. :wub::dual:

So, after over-analyzing the whole problem - I took Ben's advice: suit up with my MP3 player and fly to music. :wub: Amazingly, quad kites seem to respond to a non-analytical mind set - a Zen state of shared consciousness with the kite. :P Duallies are also more fun to fly to music, but quads seem to almost demand the physical-spiritual connection instead of the mental-commanding connection.

Ahh - perhaps the explanation why dual-line kites are addicting, but quad-line kites are more addicting.

Just rambling... :P:P

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Yep!! Exactly what I was thinking!! :wub:

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I'd like Hedgewarden and Jeepster merge consciousness and see what kind of magnificant world shattering ideas they would come up with!! (or maybe there would just be mental images of Choccy wiggling?!?!) :wub::P

Keep It Up!

Duane

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Some of us enjoy and somewhat understand, and learn from the "ramblings". Heard of dither before, did'nt know what it meant. Thanks.

I find that with the rev, I have a lot fewer WOS. (walks of shame)

If there is enough wind to get under the edge of the kite nearest to the flyer and lift it to so the kite is standing, and the lines have tension, it should be flyable. (unless lines are tangled, or tip wrapped)

With my dual liners, I was/am always making the WOS.

At WSIKF, I did not have the controll or confidence with the rev for the mega flys. With the few more hours of flying time I have had, I am ready.

I am sure with more practice,you will be too.

I started to somewhat enjoy the time during my WOS. It helps to fly in nice weather, so I am looking at the mountains, trees, and so forth.

Good luck flying.

Ken

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