Untitled - KiteLife
Untitled - KiteLife Untitled - KiteLife
exquisite ripstop and fiberglass creationthat looks like a stained glassbutterfly against the sun, an astonishinglygood flyer, unlike otherripstop fighter's I've flown . Manypotential flyers of fighter kites areprobably scared off by the apparentfragility of paper or mylarkites . An expectation discussed bymany was that Joel's new Butterfighter(and rts frilly mate, the"Butterfly") will overcome thesefears and help stimulate arenewed interest in single-linemaneuverable kiting .The three winners of the event,Robert Loera (Kite Fantasy), RickRoberts (Hawaii), and Richard (ZZ)VanMechelen (Action Kites), allflew Vic's Fighters, a kite no longeravailable. Designed andproduced by Vic Heredia, this foldablemylar fighter is an oldfavorite, the fighter I learned on .Matthew Kim and and friendswere flying their Korean fighters,on cutting lines from nimblyhandled wooden reels . Koreanfighters, unlike Indian fighters,remain rigid, and can be flown instronger winds. Too much windcauses a constant dihedral toform in the Indian, making it stableand unmaneuverable . The differencein flight characteristics betweenjust these two variations ofsingle-line maneuverable kiteshints at many more possibilities .Mel Govig of Kite LinesMagazine was out of there flyingfighters, and it was quite obviousthat he had done it before . Hediscussed the use of various sailmaterials for these and other kites .Weight, porosity, skin friction, andstrength are variables to considerin the design of any kite, includingfighters .Richard VanMechelen feels thatthe fighter kite bridges the gapbetween single line kiting andstunt kiting . Perhaps he and JohnPerusse, owner of Action Kites andmaster stunt kite designer, mayeventually release the hybridfighter we understand they havebeen secretly developing (on andoff . . .) for years .Somehow, in the rush towardstechnological perfection enjoyedin dual-line maneuverable kiting,the single-line maneuverable kitehas been somewhat ignored . Thisis finally changing, and we canexpect quite a growth in the newfuture both in the innovative flyingand in the innovative productionof fighter kites . I've got a fewscraps of graphite, mylar, andripstop I've been toying with, andcan only imagine the rippingspeed and precision of single-lineflying machines technologicallypossible but not yet invented .
STUNT KITES!Edited by David GombergCopyright, 1988 . 88 pagesIn the midst of the technological evolution of thestunt kite business, replete with graphite spars, wingloading,and all of the other attendant fol-de-rol, itis refreshing that someone has not forgotten hefrom which all things follow . . . the beginning stuntkite flyer .It is to that individual that David Gomberg, in hisnew book STUNT KITES! directs the majority of hiswell-aimed copy. From his initial discussions on thesport's sometimes hazy beginnings, Gomberg walkshis readers through a discussion of wind characteristicsthat ranges from common sense to "Gee, Ididn't know that ."In subsequent chapters, the beginning flyer willcover the vagaries of self launching various kitetypes, basic maneuvers, landings, off-wind control,and kite tuning . Still ahead is pertinent informationon equipment, troubleshooting, and advancedmaneuvers. Basic powerflying, quad-line, solo techniques,dual flight, and team flying are alsocovered . There's even a chapter on contests andcompetitions .Gomberg's conversational style is rather likebeing taught stunt flying by your kindly oldgrandfather . . . helpful but not pushy. The flyer is"talked through" nearly every point . It is made to bealmost specifically non-technical . Still, everythingthat is needed is conveyed .STUNT KITES! is, plainly put, easy to learn from . Inaddition to the various discussions of pertinent information,the text is interspersed with commentsfrom some of stunt kite flying's more stellarluminaries . This is not to be construed as "windowdressing ." The comments are timely and practical .There are few stunt kite flyers who will not learnsomething from this book . This is not to say thatSTUNT KITES! is the be-all-and-end-all work aboutstunt kite flying . As any flyer that has been aroundfor a reasonable length of time will tell you, there'senough stuff involved with this sport to fill severalbooks . Gomberg himself, in his introductory statementadmits that "Before the ink is dry on this page,new kite designs, materials and applications willbecome available and then commonplace as our'infant' sport hurries forward into maturity." If thisvolume, however, is to stand as the formal maideneffort, the maturity of the sport will have beenmade better for it .
- Page 4 and 5: VOL . 1 NO. 3 SPRING, 198926 THE TE
- Page 6 and 7: sport. So be sure to enter noviceev
- Page 8 and 9: INTERNATIONAL STUNT KITEASSOCIATION
- Page 10 and 11: Top of the Line in Japan? Nope . .
- Page 12 and 13: We understand that Wind Pilot, ofDa
- Page 14: THE VALENTINE'S DAYFeb . 10, 11,&12
- Page 17 and 18: 1st - Locklan Gilford 141 .02nd - K
- Page 19 and 20: through the vinyl is seated in then
- Page 21: Wind conditions are often veryhard
- Page 26 and 27: By Al Hargus IIIIntroduction by Cri
- Page 28 and 29: THIRD ANNUAL TEXAS GULF COASTCHALLE
- Page 30 and 31: GREAT LAKES STUNT KITE CHAMPIONSHIP
- Page 32 and 33: We heard about the Acceleratornear
- Page 34 and 35: pleasing appearance in the sky .Our
- Page 36 and 37: actual wing . It makes for a verycl
- Page 38 and 39: attens to help the kite maintainstr
- Page 40 and 41: In flight, the spine flexes inwarda
- Page 42 and 43: situations . In flight, the charact
- Page 44 and 45: able in the standard manner, andare
- Page 47 and 48: (SKQ NOTE: Due to the large numbero
STUNT KITES!Edited by David GombergCopyright, 1988 . 88 pagesIn the midst of the technological evolution of thestunt kite business, replete with graphite spars, wingloading,and all of the other attendant fol-de-rol, itis refreshing that someone has not forgotten hefrom which all things follow . . . the beginning stuntkite flyer .It is to that individual that David Gomberg, in hisnew book STUNT KITES! directs the majority of hiswell-aimed copy. From his initial discussions on thesport's sometimes hazy beginnings, Gomberg walkshis readers through a discussion of wind characteristicsthat ranges from common sense to "Gee, Ididn't know that ."In subsequent chapters, the beginning flyer willcover the vagaries of self launching various kitetypes, basic maneuvers, landings, off-wind control,and kite tuning . Still ahead is pertinent informationon equipment, troubleshooting, and advancedmaneuvers. Basic powerflying, quad-line, solo techniques,dual flight, and team flying are alsocovered . There's even a chapter on contests andcompetitions .Gomberg's conversational style is rather likebeing taught stunt flying by your kindly oldgrandfather . . . helpful but not pushy. The flyer is"talked through" nearly every point . It is made to bealmost specifically non-technical . Still, everythingthat is needed is conveyed .STUNT KITES! is, plainly put, easy to learn from . Inaddition to the various discussions of pertinent information,the text is interspersed with commentsfrom some of stunt kite flying's more stellarluminaries . This is not to be construed as "windowdressing ." The comments are timely and practical .There are few stunt kite flyers who will not learnsomething from this book . This is not to say thatSTUNT KITES! is the be-all-and-end-all work aboutstunt kite flying . As any flyer that has been aroundfor a reasonable length of time will tell you, there'senough stuff involved with this sport to fill severalbooks . Gomberg himself, in his introductory statementadmits that "Before the ink is dry on this page,new kite designs, materials and applications willbecome available and then commonplace as our'infant' sport hurries forward into maturity." If thisvolume, however, is to stand as the formal maideneffort, the maturity of the sport will have beenmade better for it .
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