Dual Line parafoil

[Geoff]

Hello all...Im a rookie that stumbled into kiting this spring via my 5 and 9 year olds. I recently went out and bought a Beetle...needless to say Im into it hook, line and sinker now! To the point where Im taking the kids to the park to fly kites and they occassionally walk off to catch bugs while I fly (not sure who the real kids are).

Anyway, am loving the Beetle, still trying to get the axel down, but can occassionally pull one off (woo hoo). I was thinking about also picking up a dual line parafoil to partake in some 'manly' kite flying. I was leaning towards the Symphony 2.2, the 2.7 I heard is a real monster and capable of pushing my 220 lb frame around but am a little fearful. I had some questions:

Im in Denver, CO and the winds here are a little unpredictable, at best. Usually in the 5-15mph range with some days gusting to 25 or so. What type of winds would I need to take a 2.2 to the park, launch it, and have a little fun jumping around with it? Is there enough pull in say, 10-12 mph winds to do some, 'kitehopping'?

Or would I need to go to a 2.7?

And with the 2.7 at what wind speed would I be looking at losing control of the bad boy?

I've gotten comfortable enough with the beetle and can keep it airborn without crashing it, and can land it safely. Is switching to a parafoil that much different than a delta type kite?

Any info would be appreciated!

Thanks!

[Penny Lingenfelter]

Geoof said:

I recently went out and bought a Beetle...needless to say Im into it hook, line and sinker now!

Hi Geoff, I think that you got into it swivel, line and handles... but you can add hooks, lines, and even sinkers to kites later.

Yup, you went to the park and got bit by a bug... the kite bug.

Be aware, kite jumping on land is considered extremely dangerous. That unprictable wind can take you up and then deposit you. Now kite buggying~~ fun fun fun.. oh.. and still a little dangerous. But kitesurfing~extreme fun still a littte dangerous.

Sorry I can't answer your question. Just thought I'd say hi till some of these power kiters get here.

I'm just a powder puffer... But I can do a face plant off a kitebuggy as good as anyone.

Enjoy, but take care of yourself for those kids.

BB

Penny

[cdcflyer]

Hey Geoff

Can't answer specifics about weight wind and lift but can talk about new gen parafoils. Most that I know of like HQ Beamer 2.5, Ozone L.D's etc... are quad line and when you get into trouble, it's real easy to bail out of the wind... Do a little research on quad line foils.

I do believe that 2.5 meters is probably a little small for serious hoppin. Probably need to be in the 5 meter category.

Foils are similar to dual line but inputs are WAY BIGGER, face plants are a little more common as well as rotator cuff issues.

Good luck, have fun and be careful, watchin from the sidelines on crutches is probably a less desirable situation.

Scott

[Geoff]

Thanks so much for the inputs. So, if the 2.2 is a little small for serious hopping, then might it be a good kite to start with as far as getting 'some' power but not risk winding up in a different zip code under gusty winds?

I thought about going to a quad line, but having just recently gotten comfortable with dual, didnt feel ready for the challenge just yet. Thought a dual line para might be a good starting point and still have some fun.

I guess what Im looking for is a para that will let me control it and stay planted, but if I want to feel some power, be able to hop and catch very limited air. Im not talking cartwheels or anything, just maybe enough to give myself a giggle, without the potential for serious bodily injury, maybe a coupla feet in the air kinda thing. Any suggestions on a kite for a 220lb guy?

[windofchange]

One of the simplest ways to discover the power of a foil kite is the Ozone IMP. This kite is now available in small, medium and large (1m, 1.5m, and 2.0m). It is a dual line parafoil and comes with everything, the lines are already attached to the kite. The larger one can have enough power to pull you around quite a bit in the upper wind range (15+ mph) But all of them can be flown with serious amounts of the fun factor in anything over 5 mph. Starting price on the IMP is 99.00 for the small and 130.00 for the large which makes it a very affordable kite to play with.

As for enough power to get some lift, you will probably want to go with one of the larger sizes and I fully agree that the quad line foil will be your best bet. The added lines will give you some form of depower and much more control. Learning quad line parafoils is extremely easy - if you can fly your beetle without crashing much, you can probably fly a quad line foil just as easy. Controls is still the same, pull left - turn left, pull right - turn right. Just remember that you will need to pull much more and a lot harder than you would with your Beetle. After you get better on the foil, you can start to incorporate your brake lines (bottom two lines) into your turns to get even more control from your kite. I don't advise land jumping unless you have the proper training and equipment as it can be very dangerous. We do a lot of land based jumping on our mountainboards but we always use the proper gear (brain shield - aka helmet, knee pads, elbow pads, chest protectors, butt protectors, heavy clothing etc...) Power kites do put out lots of power, be careful and always respect the wind or you may end up getting spanked (or worse).

Hope this helps.

[Geoff]

Well, looks like the parafoil will have to wait...the 9 year old needed his own beetle...so we picked one up with a coupla tails and Dodd's video. So we've got some work to do before I venture into the para's...just as well. We had some fun with formation flying tonight. It really is visually stunning!

I appreciate the advice from everyone. Think when I can plunge some more money into my new addiction I'll probably pick up a 2.7. It sounds like it'd be a blast but not deadly.

I think my plan is to work on handling that, then maybe move into a bigger quad. I know I'm not dextrous enough, heal fast enough and have enough room in the city to do buggying, boarding or surfing so I'll stay within my skill level. I thank everyone for their input. It really helps to have unbiased opinions out there!

On a side note, we went tubing this February in the mountains...cracked my tailbone, still hasnt healed. So when I was contemplating this my wife gave me 'the look' when i said I only wanted to go airborne for 'a coupla feet'. The look was, "You can't handle an innertube on snow...why don't I just call the paramedics now and have them meet you at the park."

Thanks everyone...if there's anyone in the Denver area with 2-3 meter para, please say so, I'd like to see one up close! Thanks!

[pbcoole]

I don't have any advice, but I just thought I'd say hello. I'm in the same situation as you. Early last week I picked up a couple of $3 parafoils for the kids at the supermarket checkout counter, and now I find myself ordering kites on the internet and wondering if I can kite surf on vacation this year. My kids, 3 and 5 years old, wander off to the playground while I fly an old stunt kite that belongs to their mom.

I have two good parafoils for them and a Prism Stylus for me coming by UPS today. I hope they will enjoy flying kites that actually fly -- the cheap parafoils didn't work at all.

I'm looking at some Premier QuadTrac Pro Foils that are on sale. I'd like to have a power kite I could fly in the park or use as a traction engine if I decided to get into that. But I should probably learn to fly the dual line kites first.

We live down in Santa Fe, so we're practically neighbors. We also have the same problem with gusty, unpredictable winds. I wonder if it is the presence of mountains.

Anyway, I hope you have a good time.

[Geoff]

Hey Neighbor...Sante Fe's a great town been through there quite a few times. The little woman has been desperately wanting to take a weekend down there for awhile now. I'll hafta look ya up when we head that way.

Yeah, the kite flying is becoming a sickness, guess it beats chasing skirts, drinking too much and gambling though.

I picked up Dodd Gross' DVD this weekend and have been reviewing it. It really is a great thing to have if you wanna get into doing some tricks with the dual line. I was having a helluva time trying to get my kite to axel. Then after watching his video, and practicing a little, I was able to pull one off about every 5-6 tries. So if you're looking for some good info, that's a great start in my humble newbie opinion. It takes you through everything from setup-launch to the beggining moves. I havent watched the whole thing yet, kinda taking it in steps, but it's a great tool, different camera angles and split screens and slo-mo, really breaks it down.

The dual line is really natural feeling as far as basic control and everytime I take mine to the park it draws alot of attention, even with my frequent crashes! People ask alot of questions. A passerby last night was asking lots of questions and seemed really interested so I handed him the reigns. He crashed in about 10 secs, then after a quick brief, launched him and he was able to stay aloft without incident for a good 5 mins before handing it back over to me. He said he'd never flown dual line and hadnt flown anything since he was a kid. So dont worry....you'll get it quick. I'd say most all of my crashes occur when I try 'getting cute' with it and attempt some trickery. But half the fun for me is trying soemthing and crashing then getting a good laugh from my 9 year old. If I'm lazy i can keep it aloft all day long without too much effort.....you'll have a blast!

Let me know how things work out and what happens when you get a power kite. It's one thing to ask and have veterans tell me, "it pulls alot" but another to have a newbie like me say, "it pulls more than alot, bring a rope to anchor yourself to a tree" ;-)

Take it easy!

[oneeyedfranc]

I recommend GFAK's Powerfoil 4.0. When the wind gets over 15 kts and I put the kite in the zone, it's able to drag me downfield at a very brisk pace. And I'm 20 lbs lighter than u. It's only drawback is that it doesn't last for more than 2 seasons. Can anyone recommend something a little more durable?