Another bright day and it seems that the 1.5 vented with race rods is becoming a fixture this year. When was the last time we flew the Zens this summer?
We were in conversation about handle termination today and have set out to try tying variations on the short connector to the pigtail leaders with or without staking loops. We’ll be using the pink polyester sleeved kevlar so limiting a point of failure without a visual clue.
Rowan flew in again today and seemed much more relaxed in dealing w
The Decs arrived on site on Saturday morning at about 9:00am. The ‘Rev arena/two line preparation area’ was nominally in place and lasted until the lunchtime mega fly on Sunday at which point it was over-run by visitors to the event.
There were plenty of arena spots for the Rev teams including 3 Mega Team performances. Stephen Hoath did a great job in calling the grid.
Monday morning was bright and sunny. The wind still from the north and lighter again so we were not able to attempt ‘large
It was great to be back at Bristol this weekend after the Olympic ‘holiday’ last year. We had two days of sunny weather with good wind mostly, if a little variable/turbulent at times.
Standard JMH 1.5s with race on Saturday worked 'all day'. We started with standard JMH 1.5s with race on Sunday then switched to JMH 1.5 vented with 3 wrap but were back to the standard 1.5s for the last performance.
No ‘Mega Fly’ opportunity but the sequence of arena presentations kept the ‘very large’ audienc
As a special treat to celebrate the end of the event season I rolled out a new set of lines today. Apart from being equal lengths the lack of friction when wrapped made a really big difference to the flying experience <grins>. Vented 1.5s with Race rods again…
Rowan joined us again today. He missed the Portsmouth and Bristol weekends. Interesting to see him owning the inverted hover and LE left/right as well.
Still not mown on Blackheath so very snaggy.
The SW airstream presented a
An early start for me in order to take advantage of the weather and avoid issues with road closures in getting home. Too early for some so solo flying for a while.
Diamond Rods are ordered for the team. We flew them in the ex-iQuad sails the other week. I have the red, yellow, pink and purple, (all with white sails) that were illustrated in a Facebook image in the last day or so. I cannot, however, find the ‘page’ now which is irritating. These rods will certainly extend the range of the 1
It was a light breeze on Blackheath today but the clouds did not burn off as forecast and at times there was a hint of drizzle. The field is still not mown so we had to contend with snagged lines yet again.
Plenty of line set adjustments today in setting up a variety of spar configurations in the 1.5s and a couple of Robertshaw sails as well.
I flew the Diamond Rods again and later handed the 1.5 kite to Rowan who managed to fly in with the team in what were really marginal conditions for tea
With the wind from the east we do not get planes bound for Heathrow overflying Hackney (or Blackheath). So it was a late start this morning! No early morning drone…
Arrived just before 11am and set up vented with race. Eventually switched out to four wrap which simply felt more comfortable in the gradually increasing breeze. Rowan appreciated the difference that the firmer spars made in controlling circular side slides in the pendulum.
Late September sunshine broke through as we wrapped up
Glorious sunny day today but there was no breeze at all when we arrived at 10:30am. Occasionally there was a barely perceptible movement from the west.
The Diamond rods may not actually be lighter than the Race rods but they are ‘stiffer’ so the sail loads and the kite moves quickly in response to input from the flier. In zero breeze the fighter kite technique of pulling the kite up and then letting it glide away works beautifully with these spars.
The ‘lightness’ of touch really becomes ap
Heavy steady rain this morning so no point in an early start on Blackheath today. Time to do the ESTA application ahead of the Miami trip…
Careful ‘study’ of the Met Office forecast today suggested that the rain would ease around 1:00pm over East London and that was what happened.
Some of the site at Blackheath has now been mown but not the corner where we usually set up.
It was very wet underfoot. We flew ‘wrong sails’ today, Xtra vents with race rods, getting some more low wind techniqu
After the c8:30am downpour in Hackney the blustery SW airstream continued today with thundery showers looming on the horizon.
The ‘heath’ was not as wet underfoot as last weekend. Vented sails with race rods were just about at the limit occasionally as were the same sails with four wrap rods in the lighter moments.
Rowan joined in with one of the iQuad practice set kites today and showed considerable resilience in dealing with unfamiliar situations and regaining control of the kite if things
With a little assistance from the clock change we were on the Heath at about 10:00am today.
As the wind was c20 mph I helped Rowan set up his new lines and handles (thanks Lolly) and made sure sufficient brake was set before he attempted to fly the Xtra Vent sail with 4 wrap. That was the set-up for the rest of us as well, or at least most of us.
We flew six for the first time since the end of the event season. Ashley called and Rowan flew in confidently given the fairly extreme conditions.
We were four up today in similar conditions to last weekend. Xtra vents with 4 wrap on the usual site albeit with the detritus from the previous night’s firework display underfoot. Not as bad as in previous years but maybe it was a smaller display.
Rowan found that the combination of the ‘strong’ breeze and lower temperature today was causing discomfort and while the rest of us resorted to gloves he was not confident that he could maintain control with gloved hands.
Eventually the wind chill
Anticyclonic murk today with a very slight easterly air movement. Hard to call it a breeze! Standard sails with Diamond rods occasionally worked for team flying. We should probably have got out the Zens and Robertshaws for comparative purposes but all six fliers were content to fly the 1.5 sail as and when possible.
I spent quite a bit of time rescuing ‘snagged’ or ‘wing tipped’ fliers but did find a moment to take the kite for an extended walk ‘downwind’. The responsiveness of the spars me
A late start today, c11:30 as I am still slightly on Florida time. Did get a last fly last Tuesday on Miami Beach in the super smooth on-shore breeze. Back to grey skies, intermittent drizzle, rain and a proliferation of worm casts on Blackheath today.
Switched back to 120ft lines without issue but noticed a disparity between the bridle configuration of the iQuad training kites and the Bazzer Pro. I had tried reaching forwards and pulling the top lines to get a launch with the training kite
11:00am on the Heath today after negotiating an A12 closure and using the Crisp Street alternative route. Full vent with race rods mostly coped with the blustery airstream but by the end of the session it felt like hard work filling the gaps when we were left without airflow when putting team moves together.
Bright and sunny most of the time today but the mostly clear sky at the outset gradually filled with cumulus.
Heading back to Hackney diverting from the A12 we saw that the ‘Ginger Pig’ w
Headed towards the Blackwall Tunnel it looked as if fog was burning off Canary Wharf and the buildings were emerging into the sunshine. It turned out that this was the reverse of what was actually happening and the field at Blackheath gradually became enveloped in the fog.
It was a mostly steady breeze by way of consolation so the full vented kites with green race worked just fine although mid vents might have been exactly right.
Jacob called some moves and we went through some slow variation
Clear blue skies today with occasional high cloud out to the west indicating the approaching but still distant weather front. A SSW breeze was good in the main to put up a mixed set of 1.5 Mid Vents including Rowan’s new blue fade Pro with green race.
A very relaxed fly today with few incidents. The bright sun was just strong enough to keep the cold at bay.
Some of us will fly on New Years Day weather permitting. Happy New Year!
Felix
We did not fly on New Years Day but flew six today from soon after 10:30am.
Full sail 1.5s with Race Rods and 3 wrap worked most of the time but there were lulls when the Diamond Rods might have helped keep the team work going in the southerly breeze. The darkness of the weather front approaching from the west, dampness in the air and increasing wind speed led to an early end to the session today but not before Rowan was introduced to the six person sprocket.
Sometimes it’s a good idea to qui
It was a bright frosty start in Hackney but by the time we arrived on Blackheath c10:45 the grass was frost free. On the way the flags were hanging down but the forecast breeze cut in as we walked onto the field. Mid vents with race and full vents with race worked today.
Rowan flew his new sail* and eventually found that inverted hovers were a bit difficult with the gradually increasing wind speed. An extra ¾ inch brake step made the kite much more controllable for him. We went on to run th
Another 10:45am arrival today but it was warmer and drier than last weekend in the light, fairly steady, westerly breeze. Full 1.5 sails with race rods worked fine except for one short interlude. We ran through some of the four person routines in anticipation of the Cervia event.
Blackheath is great for watching the clouds and we were treated to some long regular bands of cumulus today appearing from the SW apparently heading N and E.
Having finalized the line-up for Cervia today I went on-
Didn’t travel last Sunday as the rain was due to start at 10am and continue until 3pm. The forecast was correct.
Mid Vents with Race Rods seemed appropriate today initially but the increasingly blustery airflow eventually meant that we switched to Full Vents, still with Race Rods. The low cumulus built up gradually while we were on the ‘heath’, no doubt reflecting the turbulence at ground level. The cloudscape was curiously three-dimensional today.
Driving home one of those ‘warning’ indic
Xtra Vents with 4 wrap rods today for most of us but Maggie flew her vented Rev 2. It was blustery but not quite as extreme as at Washington Tyne and Wear one year when almost all of the single line kites had been brought down but we still went ahead with a demo…
In difficult conditions ‘free flying’ can be the most viable option and watched closely can produce some excellent interaction provided that the fliers are suitably attuned.
Figuring out how to direct fliers who are all flying indivi
Clear blue skies today with a few ‘fluffy white clouds’ in contrast to the gales and torrential rain up to yesterday and meant full 1.5 sails and race rods.
The occasionally shifting breeze allowed us to ‘perform’ for the passing Blackheath audience who were particularly vocal today. It is strange, though, to have to tell someone that, yes, we have been flying on Blackheath with these kites since 1989.
We did get to test the initial ‘pass by’ of the ‘free flying’ project but Rowan suggeste
22mph gusting to 38mph* is not really very comfortable for team flying so we did not attempt too much today with the Xtra Vents and 4 wrap rods. However, a neat rolling ball materialized at one point before a gust prompted a quick but elegant un-winding fire drill…
The Xtra Vents ‘side slide’ and ‘reverse fly’ very smoothly and some outward facing counter ‘pendulums’ looked very neat as well as the close knit rolling rotations that have become central to our ‘not called’ flying.
That 'indicat
It was bright to start c11:45am but the low cloud gradually thickened and the variable breeze rose incrementally.
Xtra Vent kites again but because of the lulls we went for green race which mostly coped except for some of the more sustained gusts.
The GB Foreign Office and USA State Department seem to be in concert regarding Turkmenistan so it looks like we will pursue the possibility of attending the event at the beginning of August subject to ongoing political issues in the region.
Intere
