The Proper Care and Feeding of a Windsock Pole
Posted on 11/23 15:09
Tapered fiberglass windsock poles are elegant and convenient. We carry 3 grades to suit different conditions.
- The lightweight Flex poles are great in the backyard and with lightweight windsocks.
- The Heavy-Duty (HD) poles are stiffer, can carry bigger windsocks and also work great with feather banners and medium flags.
- The Extra Heavy-Duty (X-HD) poles are the stiffest we offer. The X-HD also has a removable 12” swing-arm for the top that assures the windsock is always down-wind of the pole.
Learn to Fly Kites at ExpertVillage
Posted on 11/17 10:58
Visualization is a wonderful learning tool. Seeing somebody do the thing you’re trying to learn can help immensely. I was approached this fall to shoot a bunch of video segments about kite flying for a new web site: ExpertVillage and the results are there for all to see. It is an intriguing opportunity to reach out to even more newcomers to modern kiting.
Nothing beats going out and getting your hands on the gear and working your way to an understanding of what is happening and why, but a little assistance, particularly at the beginning, is nice.
Nothing beats going out and getting your hands on the gear and working your way to an understanding of what is happening and why, but a little assistance, particularly at the beginning, is nice.
Self-Taught Power Kiting
Posted on 11/13 09:48
Most of my customers want to learn power kiting on their own. Nothing in our childhood memories of kites quite prepares us for the new technology and the abundant power that can be generated. We love to learn but don’t always like to be taught.
The kite is the key to all the rest. Modern controllable sport kites paved the way for all the innovations and ideas that have led us to our current state. No matter what kind of power kiting you eventually want to do, basic kite skills work in all the environments. One can easily start there.
The kite is the key to all the rest. Modern controllable sport kites paved the way for all the innovations and ideas that have led us to our current state. No matter what kind of power kiting you eventually want to do, basic kite skills work in all the environments. One can easily start there.
More on the Origins of Kite Chi
Posted on 11/04 00:04
I guess the ideas that led to Kite Chi first began when I got into professional kiting in 1977. Between 1977 and 1984, from Colorado to the Pacific Coast, I was flying the Flexifoil 2-line Power Kite foils in ever growing stacks. From my initial 3 stack to eventually 37 in 1980 and a 50 kite stack by 1981. Hand-flying stacks of stunters is a specialized part of power kiting and untwisting a lineset in flight is a more complicated task. Looping a big stack into the “power zone” creates lots of it. Often I would simply spin around under the stack while it flew overhead. Then in 1981, I spotted Mix McGraw flying stacks of Hyperkites in front of Pier 39 in San Francisco. He is an accomplished kite flyer and also an elegant man. His unwind-spins under his stack caught my attention and I started to try to emulate some of his grace.
By removing my eyes from the process, my fingers began to listen to the kite. I noticed how quickly the tactile part of kiting became more a part of the fun of it. I started listening to music while I flew my stunters and stacks and that accelerated the process. Rather than learning tricks, I was learning to feel the wind.
I have been refining this concept and creating a model that others may follow ever since.
By removing my eyes from the process, my fingers began to listen to the kite. I noticed how quickly the tactile part of kiting became more a part of the fun of it. I started listening to music while I flew my stunters and stacks and that accelerated the process. Rather than learning tricks, I was learning to feel the wind.
I have been refining this concept and creating a model that others may follow ever since.
Kite Chi
Posted on 10/28 00:06
This is a training technique I've been teaching for 25 years now.
It's called "Kite Chi"
While your kite is doing a loop in the sky, raise your arms over your head and spin around, untwisting your lines while the kite is twisting them.
It's not about the lines.
It's about our eyes.
Our culture has become so visually dominated, so much visual information bombards us, I think that sometimes our brain forgets we have other senses.
The neural pathways in our brain used for visual images are so well-worn, so heavily traveled, it has become like a rutted road, keeping us occupied by our eyes.
Turning around distracts our eyes for a moment, allowing our fingers a chance to begin to learn the tactile language the kite uses to tell us "Where It Is' and "Where It's Going".
Pretty critical information, and available to us non-visually.
The more you practice Kite Chi, the more comfortable you become flying in control without NEEDING to be looking at your kite all the time.
Merely closing our eyes or looking down doesn't work nearly as well as the mind is still using visual images in the imagination.
Kite Chi teaches us to create new neural pathways, combining visual and tactile inputs, that expands our awareness of the different elements we're involved with.
Ultimately you'll be flying the kite with your fingers,
Steering the board or buggy with your feet,
While your eyes plot your course, look out for obstacles, watch the wind, glance at your awesome kite, ogle the beach betties, stare at other buggies and kites, or whatever catches your eye, as your eyes are not fixed on one (kite) thing.
It's called "Kite Chi"
While your kite is doing a loop in the sky, raise your arms over your head and spin around, untwisting your lines while the kite is twisting them.
It's not about the lines.
It's about our eyes.
Our culture has become so visually dominated, so much visual information bombards us, I think that sometimes our brain forgets we have other senses.
The neural pathways in our brain used for visual images are so well-worn, so heavily traveled, it has become like a rutted road, keeping us occupied by our eyes.
Turning around distracts our eyes for a moment, allowing our fingers a chance to begin to learn the tactile language the kite uses to tell us "Where It Is' and "Where It's Going".
Pretty critical information, and available to us non-visually.
The more you practice Kite Chi, the more comfortable you become flying in control without NEEDING to be looking at your kite all the time.
Merely closing our eyes or looking down doesn't work nearly as well as the mind is still using visual images in the imagination.
Kite Chi teaches us to create new neural pathways, combining visual and tactile inputs, that expands our awareness of the different elements we're involved with.
Ultimately you'll be flying the kite with your fingers,
Steering the board or buggy with your feet,
While your eyes plot your course, look out for obstacles, watch the wind, glance at your awesome kite, ogle the beach betties, stare at other buggies and kites, or whatever catches your eye, as your eyes are not fixed on one (kite) thing.
