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I instead got stuck on this just a few days older video than the above video (also JB, Djinn, drone and low wind):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=13&v=RbVQJAqEOYU
I think use of a drone camera could be useful in instructional videos. Seeing the pilot from above (being aware of the pun: a new “angle” to learning ) highlights things like hand positions (far apart when doing a low and slow forward/backward samurai slide and that while the kite is overhead it allows the hands to be closer e.g.). Also when the kite is not in view on can often figure out how the kite is oriented (which is an exercise in itself).
So much inspired by the video I looked forward to the next session. I had an idea to go between a left/right samurai slide position over a brake heavy inverted hover back and fourth over and over as an exercise. Also trying to keep the kite closer to horizontal most of the time to minimize the footwork (as I hope it would do). …And how it turned out…? – Quite different!:
The chance I got last week was a very windy pre-work session with frozen mostly snowless ground that one couldn’t drive the kitestake properly in, wind causing tears in the eyes (when looking in any direction other than from the wind) so that line untangling became difficult and somewhat numb cold fingers making the lark heads difficult to handle. Though using a B-series 1.5 full vent with four wrap tubes, the session left a desire for an even more vented kite. This sounds as I’m complaining – No! I see the many very different weather/nature variations (as I can see when going though the images from the autumn/late summer of the very same field as for this high wind session) as a bonus adding to the uniqueness of any kiting session. Strive to extend the possible range of conditions that you can handle!
Lessons learned for cold and windy conditions:
* Cold? – warmer/bulkier gloves are better than cold fingers.
* Don’t get so occupied by the conditions so that you forget adjusting the leaders properly.
* Fit the handle to the line set in advance to cut down on the line fiddling field time.
I think the use of a drone camera could be useful in instructional videos.
I surely agree. It definitely would!
If combined with two other cameras – one for the kite itself and the other one closeups of the pilot would make for really good footage for instructional videos!
* Cold? – warmer/bulkier gloves are better than cold fingers.
* Don’t get so occupied by the conditions so that you forget adjusting the leaders properly.
* Fit the handle to the line set in advance to cut down on the line fiddling field time.
Three tips that would work well in cold(er) conditions. The latter in any condition! 😉
So this week’s pre-work session was much more suited for starting to practice (/figure out how to do) the samurai slide position. It was not a windless session, but a full sail (1.5 B-series std.) with P90 LE and 2PT downspars was the choice that felt natural. Used the 15m 40kg line set. The frost layer didn’t go down very far into the ground this time (about 1.5cm (~1/2 inch)) and wasn’t very hard either, so it was possible to drive the almost superfluous (due to the light wind) kite stake through it. It wasn’t very cold either (+2degC, 36 F).
This light wind was good for testing what I had previously intended, to cycle between a left to right slide samurai slide on and on. I had also hoped that samurai sliding would be a way to easily move the edges of the wind window outwards, but for that purpose it was easier to do as before: “keep it flying/moving like a wing” by maintaining kite speed, being careful with the handle angle to hold the sail at an optimal angle and move from the kite when being close to a side of the wind window. Well what’s next? – I’ll wait for a really low/no wind (and preferably no witnesses) session and try samurai slide it all the way360 deg around. If learning this I’ll perhaps be more ready for my Rev Indoor (which should, according to what I’ve heard, be poor at side slides, while the samurai slides works).
”Expert” advice from my first session with a fair share of samurai slide exercise:
To my surprise I found a kind of trigger that positioned me and the kite in the (I believe) right position almost by itself. Point with one of the shoulders towards the kite and the other away from the kite. Extend the arm of the shoulder closest to the kite letting the elbow joint go to end of range (i.e. arm maximally extended) and have the handle close to horizontal. At the same time move the hand that is closest to you so that the top of the handle points towards your throat (don’t fall while maintaining this pose 🙂 ). The handles should be in a flattened out A-grip. Now start rotating in the direction that your extended elbow is pointing in while at the same time you are walking backwards. What is it that is samurai about this? – I don’t know. Felt more like a walking bullfighter, but I guess that is highly subjective.
Also (finally) I tried to ”float” at the top of the wind window (normally tend to be a bit close to the ground both with DLKs and QLKs) – felt quite OK but need to think it through and try again a couple of times. What is possible to do with the kite when it is above you and being close to horisontal, before the handles have sunken down too far towards the ground? Then it is time to let the kite glide downwinds while extending your arms and back up against the wind to begin a few seconds of flight time when the kite is being above you again. It is kind of a good thing that there are many things to try out in low wind sessions, but I also kind of miss the snappiness of moves in medium/higher wind, e.g. a ladder down wing tip pivots feels way to fluffy for me and not crisp especially in low wind. Well as always, maximize what you can do in any given condition – the weather you can’t affect and time for sessions are mostly limited.