Category: Kites

Bol, carp, and banners


Bol, Carp, and Banners
Originally uploaded by Bassoon Man.

Pictured here are my bol (the parachute thing), the carp windsock and blue banner that I made at the Junction Kite Retreat, along with two other banners (the red and white ones) that I made last night. All of them are quite large (the bol is eight feet in diameter, the carp is about five feet long, and the banners are approximately fifteen feet tall).

While the winds weren’t great, there was enough for all of these flying goodies. In addition, I was able to fly my Rev 1.5 SLE (I just bought a lighter set of spars so that the Rev essentially becomes a 1.5 SUL (which weighs less and flies in lighter winds). As usual, I met the nicest people while flying – a park ranger approached me with the idea of putting together an annual kite festival at Doheny (wouldn’t that be great?!) and I met another guy who was interested in the banners and gave him an introduction to the Rev.

Hata Fighter KiteIn addition to the above, I also tried flying some of my fighter kites. So far, I can’t get either the Fandango or the Hoopty to fly – both of them spin like mad but that’s about it. I did get a Hata up and had a great time with that. It’s not very fast but I was able to keep it aloft for a very long time. I’m sure that I’ll be making some of my own fighters in the very near future.

I’ll be flying many of these tomorrow at the San Diego monthly kite fly.

Fighter kites and a master fighter

Okay, so I’m posting things out of order – I haven’t written my post regarding the GREAT time I had at the Junction Kite Makers Retreat (I’ve already posted my American Airlines rant [they still have NOT responded to my complaint] and haven’t yet looked that the few photos I took – I’ve just been too worn out to do much since I got home). Even so, I’ve spent some time (while I wasn’t sleeping) looking up fighter kites on the Internet, which I was first introduced to at Junction. While we did not make them, I had a chance to fly one on my first day there. Fighters are very small (in fact, they’re surprisingly small) single line kites that are highly maneuverable. In addition to making more of the same of the goodies I created at Junction, I wanted to try and make my own fighters. Yesterday, I stopped by a few stores and purchased some Mylar, along with a few other supplies. Unfortunately, according the instructions I’ve found on the Internet, fighters are now usually made with carbon rods for durability.

What surprised me even more; however, is that I was just introduced (only a few weeks ago), to a man by the name of Vic who runs a well-known kite shop called “Kite Country” in San Diego. Little did I know at that time that Vic is considered to be quite famous in the fighter kite world as not only a champion fighter but also as a master fighter kite maker! His kite, “Vic’s Fighter” is still highly regarded by kiters (is that a real word?) around the world. So. . . I decided to take a quick jaunt down to his shop today (about 72 miles from home) to pick up some carbon rods and a few other goodies. Okay, I spent a bit too much (UGH)! Just the same, I got to pick Vic’s brain for quite a long time and learned a lot (the only problem is I probably won’t remember even half of what he told me).

Much of what Vic did have to say was quite fascinating! He told me stories about how he has chased everything from joggers to dogs on the beach (who hadn’t a clue that they were being followed by a kite) as well as having his kites “peer” into the windows of hotel visitors. While my experience with fighters is currently very limited (I got to fly one at Junction), these kites are, apparently, VERY maneuverable. Can’t wait to try some more!

In addition to four fighter kites (a Hoopty, a Fandango, and a Flick [all by esteemed kite maker, Jeff Howard], as well as an Indian made Mylar fighter with bamboo spars, I bought my son a Rev (so he will be able to fly his own, instead of mine)! I’ll have to post pictures of these kites later. I also purchased some carbon rods and other small hardware so I can try my hand at making my own – which is something that I would prefer to do, once I learn how, that is!

Looking Northwest from Mission Bay Park

Looking Northwest
Originally uploaded by Bassoon Man. I have been extremely fortunate in connecting with members of the San Diego Kite Club (I’m a member too). This is now the second time I’ve gone down to fly with them: the first time was their New Year’s Day Kite Festival.

This event, held on Saturday, May 12, 2007 was their monthly fly. Unfortunately, I got stuck in traffic on my way down (it’s about 75 miles from home) – the freeway was a veritable parking lot all the way from Oceanside to Rancho Santa Fe. Why? Who knows? It was just a mess. As a result, I arrived later than I had planned but that didn’t matter – it was a beautiful day (although the winds could have been a bit stronger). I managed to get my remote controlled KAP (kite aerial photography) up for a it’s first “real” voyage. The first time occurred many weeks ago at the Huntington Beach Kite Party – unfortunately, the winds were so poor that day that by the time I had launched my rig, the camera batteries were nearly spent and I only obtained a few photos. Today; however, was different – I managed to get about 200 pictures. While I have not posted the vast majority of them (they were boring), I did learn several things:

  1. I need to keep the camera pointed more parallel to the ground – I got a LOT of pictures pointing down.
  2. The KAP feather that I bought from Jones’ Airfoils works REALLY well – I was rather amazed at how few of my shots were blurred when compared with previous KAP outings.

As I’ve noted previously, the day was terrific and I was glad I made the trip.

Le Duck’s Maiden Voyage

I’ve had several weeks of Hell on Earth (so, what else is new?) but finally decided to take a quick trip down to the beach after I got off work to see if I could get my latest creation, “Le Duck” to fly. I didn’t get my hopes up as my previous two attempts to get him up failed due to a lack of wind. Fortunately, it was a beautiful afternoon (high 60’s?) and my duck went up like a charm! What a thrill! 🙂

Le-Duck.jpg

As can be seen, my duck looked beautiful against the blue sky! Unfortunately, I hadn’t planned on this outing and didn’t have a good camera with me. As a result, I took the above photo with my phone. Just the same, it recorded this historic event!

I will say this, watching my stupid duck fly so beautifully did give me a bit of a break from all of the stress. I’m going to have to make a whole flock of ’em now – just think how that would look in the sky! Too funny!

My bol flies!

While it’s hard to believe that I actually made this thing (it’s called a “bol”), I spent the last week assembling it from scratch. Yes, I even sewed it myself! It is a huge flying toy – eight feet in diameter. While many bols can be larger – much larger – the fact that this one flies still amazes me. Unlike kites, bols usually just sit (or hover) near the ground. As the following video shows, it also flies (just a little bit).

With everything that’s going on in my life (most of it is EXTREMELY stressful), I’m finding a bit of momentary relief by making and flying my own kites. It’s simply great fun to go down to the beach on the weekend, unfurl lots of flying stuff and chat with those who happen to be in the neighborhood. As a rule, kites are benevolent absurdities that have almost no practical use (at least not for weekend flying at the beach) other than to bring smiles to the faces of anyone who sees them. Of course, those that fly them also get to momentarily forget life and enjoy the wonderful colors and the trill of feeling the pull whatever it is that they’re flying.

More pictures of my new bol may be found by double clicking on the photo below.

It flies!

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that there will be some wind tomorrow (Sunday).