Because getting up at 6:30 in the morning to fly kites (and it’s not the first time!) might fall into the nerd’s category. But like said, I rather call it a passion of mine!
No way to leave the house without a cup of coffee though, so I made myself one and after fifteen minutes, give or take, I was ready for action. All of the gear was already sitting in the back of my car so all I had to do was to start it up and head for the beach hoping the beach bums weren’t awake yet.
I guess they were still sleeping because I was totally alone on the beach. The wind hit it in from the sea and actually, it was a bit stronger than anticipated. Well, I was destined to fly, so I started to rig the stacked kites. First I pegged a kite stake well into the ground, put my handles over it and started to unwind the flying lines. Now it was time to get the stacked kites ready; insert the standoffs, leaning all the kites way back and check all lines being clear without any tangles or wraps.
All checked and I walked over to the handles, hit the record button on my vidcam and got myself ready for the takeoff. I braced myself knowing the four reasonably small kites would pull like a truck in these winds.
Bam! Takeoff and, YES, the stack almost pulled me out of my socks! But after a while, I worked things out and kept the stack mostly along the edges of the wind window. The wind also dropped a tiny bit making flying a little easier.
Fun?
Yeah! You bet! ?
3 responses
It appears that you had quite a work out and an invigorating experience. The stack looks quite stable once going. Are all the stack lines of the same length or is the top kite set more nose back than the other kites? Now imagine each kite with a tail. Even if made from spiral cutting a large plastic garbage bag it would look spectacular.
My kite stack experience is limited to this:
https://kitelife.com/forum/gallery/image/6234-stack-work-in-progress/
https://kitelife.com/forum/gallery/image/6244-stacked-fazers-xlxxl-with-tails/
Hi!
Yes, it was actually a bit too windy for being comfortable, but what the heck. The stack was ready and I was eager to fly so I gave it a go! …and I got quite a workout in return! ?
Now to your questions.
Yes, all lines are the same length. However, the pigtails on the last kite are packed with knots so the lines can be lengthened and shortened on the fly! (No pun intended ?)
This also means I can change the angle of attack accordingly. IIRC the last kite is a tad more nose back than the rest, to enhance overall stability in the air.
And yes, next step is to make four tails! ?
/Sven
Yeeehaw!
The tails are ready!