Guru4tru Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 Nice kite and nice field!! "4sp" ...Flying a STD in about 30 mph wind or better...Yikes!! heehee! I've never been there...that's really scary for me to even think about! (Maybe I'm just a coward!) But, I think you came out of the experience very lucky! I don't think my STDs have ever seen winds over 15, and I usually swap them off for a vented one in the teens. That had to be pretty exciting though! heehee!! Keep It Up! Duane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Dowler Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 30mph gust??? Let me pick up my jaw, then I'll scratch myself to see if what I'm reading was correct!! You're lucky all that popped was a vertical, in that much wind!! Better look at the vented versions if you're gonna fly in that kind of wind!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4sp Posted June 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 Yeah, we sure are new to this... We just had a freak tornado in MA yesterday, first time ever, and today it's clear and we have awesome wind. We ordered 2 standard kites because normally we don't have much wind, and this was the first day we went out flying (after much anticipation) , so nothing was going to stop us! Now I guess I realize why people have all these different kites in their bags! Thought I could make these two standard kites work for anything-now I understand the vented kite thing a little better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guru4tru Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 Yeah, we sure are new to this... We just had a freak tornado in MA yesterday, first time ever, and today it's clear and we have awesome wind. We ordered 2 standard kites because normally we don't have much wind, and this was the first day we went out flying (after much anticipation) , so nothing was going to stop us! Now I guess I realize why people have all these different kites in their bags! Thought I could make these two standard kites work for anything-now I understand the vented kite thing a little better. The vents are really necessary at those winds, but you made the right choice getting the STDs...you'll find they usually cover most of the normal stuff blowing through. My STD sees a lot more flying time then anything else. There was a post I made once about making a Rev. that would be a "full-vent" with removal covers over the vents...I wasn't the first to come up with the idea...but there were too many problems with it because of the weight and balance that they apparently never made it past the thought or prototype stages. Keep It Up! Duane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
--Pete Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 At a guess, the cap ripped off the end of the vertical in a gust, or when you hit the "brakes" really hard while the whole kite was pulling pretty strongly. As someone said, that was the cheapest thing on the kite you could break, so you have to consider yourself lucky. Get a few extras (and maybe some spars, too) if you are going to fly Standards in winds like that. I bent a ferrule (back when Revs had metal, outside ferrules) with my Rev I in a slightly stiff wind. It was surprising how differently the kite flew with a bent LE spar. I could tell in an instant that something was wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeepster Posted June 3, 2011 Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 ... so nothing was going to stop us! ... Don't worry, my first kite was a full sail. And the day it arrived so did the winds. Found that if I got out on the field early there was an hour or two of reasonable winds before the trees started bending over. Worked for a month until I decided that I was in it for the long haul and bought a full vent. Cheers, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobB Posted June 3, 2011 Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 Yeah, we sure are new to this... We just had a freak tornado in MA yesterday, first time ever, and today it's clear and we have awesome wind. We ordered 2 standard kites because normally we don't have much wind, and this was the first day we went out flying (after much anticipation) , so nothing was going to stop us! Now I guess I realize why people have all these different kites in their bags! Thought I could make these two standard kites work for anything-now I understand the vented kite thing a little better. Hey there... yeah... tornadoes in MA. Not much history of that... this weather pattern over the last week has been pretty strange. Just like showing up at the kite field and finding not enough wind to fly, sometimes you show up and there's too much wind to fly. You just have to find something else to do, no matter how bad you want to go kiting. I've broken more kites than I can count flying in too much wind. Those fields you were flying in are where I used to play ultimate frisbee... just a short walk from where I used to live in the south west dorms/towers. Good times... wish I did more kite flying back then. ~Rob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Dowler Posted June 3, 2011 Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 Ok , I'm back to life now!! You are correct, that's why vents are in most people's bags! With a std. and a vented, you'll have just about every wind condition covered!! You try a vented, you'll like it!! PS: you did get away with very little damage, could have had a broken spar rip the sail or leading edge pocket!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4sp Posted June 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 We ended up going to the coast all weekend to fly. Great even winds, don't know how strong. Surprisingly, I was able to repair my kite by inserting a 2-wrap spar into what remained of the end cap, and wrapping it up with electric tape, and flying with a 3-wrap LE and 2-wrap verticles.. Never had any problems in 2 days of beach flying. Those kites can really take some abuse, we had plenty of crashes into the ground or water, and a few spectacular 8-line mid-air tangles that sent both kites spinning and crashing to the ground. Good times. North shore of MA doesn't seem to have any kite stores, or many kite flyers for that matter, despite the plentiful beaches and wind...but I would love to try someone else's vented kite sometime. Are hovers more difficult with a full sail kite in high winds, then they would be with a vented kite? I could stop the kite, but I couldn't keep it anywhere near as still as you see people do in the many videos on youtube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonOsteo Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 A vented is MUCH smoother in a strong wind. Doesn't pick up drive so suddenly and irons out the small variations nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Dvoracek Posted June 8, 2011 Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 A vented is MUCH smoother in a strong wind. Doesn't pick up drive so suddenly and irons out the small variations nicely. A vented is much smoother in ANY wind. I acquired my full-vent (see my avitar) fearing our winds would tear my B signature apart. When I saw the full-vent was just more docile in general, I refined my inverted hover using the full-vent in moderate winds. Then I went back to the B signature with improved inverted skills. Of course the vents have reduced lift too, so you need more wind to remain aloft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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