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Stunt Kite Clinic (Jun 16-17, 2018)


John Barresi
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Jun 16-17 in Long Beach WA!

Led by veteran pilot Scott Weider and myself, this dual line kite workshop is for beginner though master levels, starting from the ins and outs of your equipment on up through fundamental flight techniques and trick flying - we'll also have a few Prism kites on hand for folks to try their hand at team and "ground play" flying without fear of damaging valuable equipment.

Testimonials - http://tinyurl.com/nnzsmvd

Anything with two strings is welcome including foils, stacks with tails and delta stunt kites - the purpose of this workshop is first and foremost to help you maximize the kites you have, and the way you like to fly... During the weekend, we'll cover a whole range of dual line topics that interrelate.

Sign up here - kitelife.com/forum/store/product/89-stunt-kite-clinic-jun-16-17-2018/

Registration is $125 per person ($100 for KiteLife Subscribers) and includes full access to two days of instruction from 10am-4pm on both Saturday and Sunday... We only have room for 16 students, please RSVP if you plan to participate.

RSVP so far:

  1. @Gordon Sievers
  2. @khsidekick
  3. @Jhsidekick
  4. @Russ Wilson
  5. Jennilyn W
  6. @Flash
  7. @kananga
  8. @Bumfish
  9. @elmo264
  10. @Carl Norman
  11. @cyclic
  12. @gnikkola
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So, we own several dual-line kites, but for the life of me I can't remember the last time I flew one.  I always grab my quads these days.  For that reason I haven't seriously considered a clinic like this - you know, "real men" do quads.  JL just challenged me on that thinking and pointed out we always learn a lot from the "101" part of a clinic like this.  She's convinced me - sounds like it would be good to improve our skills in this area.

Given that, I'm wondering what the best equipment is for a clinic like this.  It sounds like John/Scott are pretty open to whatever people have, but if you guys had to recommend a particular setup what would that be?  I'm taking the approach of trying to improve my flying ability thru shopping.  Seriously though, is there a particular kite, line, handles that would be ideal for a class like this?

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Dual lines are so much more wind-dependent than quad... I’m not sure about a suggested kite (or pair of kites), not super well versed on what’s available and popular these days - anyone else care to chime in?

I agree on the 101 value - not quite as deep as quad, but still very, very robust and all kite skills meet in the middle somewhere. ;)

Homework might include...

https://kitelife.com/forum/topic/7002-stunt-kite-video-tutorials-dual-line/

Recommended length for team is really around 120’ still, but you won’t be flying team with your stuff for a little while - we’ll have Nexus kites on 100’ available for simple team play and learning. ;)

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Thanks for the info John.   I'm interested in all of the above - up for any new experiences.   I have a couple of Windance foils I've always loved to fly since they are so smooth,  but there is only so much i can do with them.   Anything you can share to take experiences like that to a higher level will make the weekend for me.   Team and flippy sound intriguing,  but since i haven't done either I'm not sure what to expect. 

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Widow NG is also a popular choice, it served quite well when TKL was stepping beyond basic flight.

The new Silver Fox by Lam Hoc looks interesting too, I haven’t flown it yet though.

For a full size kite like that, 75’ to 100’ may be the way to go - same principles, shorter means less window and response time, but 100’ isn’t so long as to make a kite actually sluggish.

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Ground work and basic tricks, I would choose the Prism Hypnotist, it is full sized & built like a tank. I would stay away from the E3, it is an odd flier and not very strong. Save the E3 $$$ for a Zephyr, it is a much more predictable flier, and in my experience it is more durable.

More advanced tricks, I would choose the Kymera. It is a great value right now, and quite capable. Along those lines would also be the ITW Hydra, also deeply discounted now. 

I've enjoyed every Lam kite that I've put my hands on, so his new offerings wouldn't disappoint, I'm sure.

It is tough to find a Widow Maker right now, and I haven't flown a Widow NG. I would recommend the Widow Maker as a great all-around kite, if you can get your hands on one. Lots of people say good things about the NG, but I couldn't say for myself.

I so wish I could attend, the last time we had a stunt kite clinic on the East Coast was 2008. I hope you all have a great time...

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Thanks for the advise Rob and John - I really appreciate it.

I'm curious, you both use the term "full size" but I'm not sure what that means for a delta.  I have several delta's that are all roughly the same size and I have a couple of Hawaiians.  I would call the Hawaiians super-sized.  How do you delineate full-size from other sizes?

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On 5/3/2018 at 11:22 PM, John Barresi said:

I should also ask you Russ, what appeals most about dual line? Carving shapes? Flippy tricks? Team flying? Just trying to get a read. :)

@John Barresi Now that I've done a bit of studying I can definitely say "Flippy Tricks" is my primary interest.  I'm up to improve skills in the other areas, but learning how to truly manhandle the kite is super intriguing.  We watched the Prism Freestyle videos last night - gotta learn some of that.
 

 

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We'll work on some of the basics (like a stall) before the clinic.  I was curious if there is any validity to Prism's suggestion to fly on short lines (30-50') to master some of the techniques?  That came up several times in the video.

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Easier to see what is happening at the kite, but remember the window goes by pretty fast. Helps you see any tip wraps as you relaunch too. 

I don't think I would ever try flying a full sized kite on 30', 50's  yes. Most of my dualies were flown on 50' - 65', back in the day. There was a trend to use short lines to get more people to fit on the same amount of ground. Today, it appears to be back to longer lines.

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Trying like crazy to get there. Don't know about flipping trucks though Khsidekick but I'd watch. Last time I flipped a truck kinda hurt . When researching for my 1st kite Hypnotist was 3rd. The choice between the Widow ng, Wolf ng and Hypnotist was so close it came down to money. Wouldn't have regretted either.Been saving for a higher end UL. It wouldn't make me any better of a flyer then a year of flying my Zephyr.Just want one :devil:. Spending money for the Clinic would. Plus I think the fun factor would be huge.If I can make it think I'd just bring the Hydra with 100' x 130# lines.

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