Jump to content

Blogs

Featured Entries

  • Felix

    2012 events, provisional list

    By Felix

    Oh well, another year! <grins> Nothing is confirmed, as yet. 1st January 2012 12-16/04/2012 Berck-Plage, France 21/04-29/05/2012 Cervia, Italy 05-07/05/2012 Weymouth 26-27/05/2012 Exmouth 25-27/08/2012 Portsmouth Margate
    • 0 comments
    • 2,008 views
  • West Australian

    Flight Log and Thoughts about My Rev Kit.

    By West Australian

    No Arvo Flight Yesterday, Responsibilities are beginning to creep in on my flying time Well I Joined up to KiteLife… Very Happy about that. I feel that the Contribution that KiteLife makes to the Community needs to be supported. And all those Sweet Tutorials are Pretty good too I have been Downloading them onto My Ipod Touch. To Paraphrase SparkieRob, I have a John Barresi In my Pocket. This morning was nice, Light to Moderate winds when I set up the STD with 3 Wrap and 80# lines I got i
    • 3 comments
    • 4,524 views

08/04/2012 Blackheath

Another late start but there is no point in making kite flying a chore. A light wind day with lowering dark grey clouds and occasional drizzle lifted by lighter spells and the greening of the trees in Greenwich Park. I'm still puzzling over the white spars. They certainly seem to work for me in terms of flex and weight in the standard 1.5 sail. Later today I pulled a spar from a bag with a view to marking it ahead of Berck. When rolled across a flat surface it was obviously curved. With a bam
Felix

Felix

0

01/04/2012 Blackheath

A late start, something after 11:00am on the heath, no clock change excuse and the fuel gauge light came on as we came out of the Blackwell Tunnel. Note to self, must fill up before setting off for Berck... And..., then there was very little wind. Zens occasionally grouped for figures but otherwise taking up a lot of space in 360s. A family group stopped 'downwind' and some of the kids followed my kite. Afterwards I explained that I did not really approve of such activity. There is a significan
Felix

Felix

5

25/03/2012 Blackheath

Clock change weekend so late on the field. 11:00am not 10:00am! First green hints in Greenwich Park beyond the fenced Olympic preparation area where temporary buildings are going up. Checked out new Xtra Vent sails today although wind speeds were more in line with standard 1.5 sails with Race Rods. The new sails with red or purple flashes look neat alongside the production grey fades. Thanks Lolly and Bazzer for delivering these in time for Berck. Tried some 'in linear' odd/even opposing 180
Felix

Felix

0

18/03/2012 Blackheath

The Canada Geese flew across a couple of times c10:00am today as a reminder of their previous presence on our regular pitch. Just across the A2 the Olympic fence has now been firmly established. Casual flying only today switching from green race mid vent to standard race full sail. The white race rods in Maggie's mid vent felt very light and responsive. Removing momentum from the flying equation will demand further specific input from the flier so it will be interesting to see how the very lig
Felix

Felix

0

11/03/2012 Blackheath

The forecast weather duly arrived and so we were able to fly white kites in respect of the event in Japan on the 11th March last year. During my last long visit to Japan we travelled to Sendai in NE Japan and on to Matsushima and saw the islands that are the inspiration for the placed stones in the raked gravel gardens. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Sendai,+Miyagi+Prefecture,+Japan&hl=en&ll=38.365988,141.070998&spn=0.011222,0.015535&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=17.361197,3
Felix

Felix

0

04/03/2012 Blackheath

The weather did not look promising this morning, it was raining lightly and the forecast was for more rain. On the way to Blackheath I saw two cyclists doing the Blackwall tunnel. Crazy people! I was not quite sure which 1.5 kite would be best today but the bag that came to hand was the mid vent and with green race rods it worked very well. As the team do not all have mid vents it is not a kite that I fly very often. There were only a couple of moments when the gusts stressed the frame to any
Felix

Felix

0

26/02/2012 Blackheath

Not many isobars on the map and the projected 4mph did not materialise in a consistent direction for more than a few minutes during the time we were on Blackheath today. Mostly it was a shifting 1mph perceptible only as a directional cooling effect in the warming sunshine. It was occasionally possible to get the Zen/CR1 to the top of the window and hang on the rising air but the cumulus effect only became fully evident later in the day. I am looking forward to hearing reports from Spain next
Felix

Felix

0

19/02/2012 Blackheath

The 'half term fair' was still in place today but the prospects on Blackheath were altogether brighter than last weekend with sunshine and a variable NW breeze. Full vented 1.5s with 4 wrap were occasionally struggling in lighter moments but Race Rods felt over stressed in the gusts. Six up today so it was entertaining to visit the 'sprockets' once again. This move demands a special level of concentration as even an experienced caller may get the sequence wrong at the critical moment. Properl
Felix

Felix

2

12/02/2012 Blackheath

The remains of last weekend's snow was still lying on the heath this morning but our usual pitch was occupied by a 'half term' fair, generator trucks, bouncy castles 4WDs barking dogs and all... Not a pretty sight! The forecast 6-7mph NW breeze was not in evidence so we made do with the 1-2mph SW one that was in place most of the time. The dull grey low cloud cover occasionally showed shifts of colour and slight precipitation. Rain, not sleet or snow. It's great to have the Zens/CR1s in the ba
Felix

Felix

0

05/02/2012 Blackheath

I had go out and check the local road conditions before deciding that it would be OK to set out to Blackheath today. In the event traffic was lighter than usual. Only five inches of snow... Blackheath presented a bright white field under a gloomy sky. The breeze was slight but remained steady between 10:30 and 12:30. The Zens were the kite of choice today along with the Robertshaw with a race frame. Powering the kites to the ground provided a curious bass thump with a higher pitched sail rattl
Felix

Felix

0

29/01/2012 Blackheath

The construction next to the Olympic stadium was shrouded in the low lying cloud as we drove towards Blackheath this morning as were the towers at Canary Wharf. On the Heath wet grass meant bound lines after the initial winding out. Always a puzzle, that one, especially to 'beginners'! <grins> It's not so funny when it happens in the middle of complex team wraps... A lazy Zen day, in the best sense, as in flying the Zen kites following or 'ad hoc' without the need for rehearsal. Rolling
Felix

Felix

0

22/01/2012 Blackheath

Watching the weather forecasts during the week it appeared likely that mega vented sails would be needed today. As often is the case on a windy day the median may have been about 15 mph but the gusts were probably much in excess of 30 mph. So having set up the standard vented with 4 wrap initially it was not much of a surprise to find that really the mega vented sail was the more comfortable option even if the standard vented was still flyable. We ended up flying a four person team with two re
Felix

Felix

0

15/01/2012 Blackheath

A bright sunny morning looked like an opportunity to get some time on the Zens but soon after setting up c10:45am the breeze picked up and we switched to the standard 1.5s. It was not long before these were feeling overpowered and so we were back on the full vented 1.5s with Race rods. Following on from last weekend we tried the parallel figure eights with wing tip turns and a stop on the diagonal with five kites diced. That is definitely a move for a confident grid one day. Finding the form of
Felix

Felix

0

08/01/2012 Blackheath

Another grey day but lighter breezes meant standard 1.5 sails with Race rods for the first time in a long time. Four fliers settled into some neat 'free form' flying with some good slow and close flying. Somehow linear flying as in 'follow the leader' seems so 'yesterday' after 'free form' but we did fall-in for some 'V' infinities and then some parallel switched 'two to four' infinities before trying some parallel figure eights. I have in mind the possibility of interlacing all of these moves
Felix

Felix

0

01/01/2012 Blackheath

A Happy New Year to everyone! A gentle start to the new year. 4 fliers, nothing called, warmed by mulled wine for some. (thanks Martin!) Full vented with race rods once again fitted the bill. Only occasionally the frames felt stressed or there was a need to move on the ground. The cloudscape was particularly dramatic as it can be occasionally on the heath but eventually the rain started with the look of settling in for the rest of the afternoon. 2 1/2 hours later it is still raining steadily.
Felix

Felix

0

26/12/2011 Blackheath

A quiet last fly in 2011. Full vented with green race rods handled the occasional stronger gusts just fine. In the lulls moving on the ground was not too energetic. One year we rotated face to face pairs in the arena at Berck. Not something to be taken lightly in a formal demonstration. Today we tried the 'not touching' version rolling across the window. Sliding transitions are 'a state of mind' rather than explicit control. The flier has to see the picture and demand that the kite complies! &l
Felix

Felix

0

18/12/2011 Blackheath

The forecast sunny day did not materialise after a large 'shower cloud' drifted across London, north of the river in the main, mid morning. Switched from Vented Race to Full Sail Race and back to Vented Race as the peripheral affects of the shower passed through. With four fliers plan A and even plan B got a look in as well as some free form flying which at one point evolved into a very good rendition of the rolling ball. The leading kite has to be the one rotating down to LE down from the ver
Felix

Felix

0

11/12/2011 Blackheath

Grey day with lowering cloud base did not turn to rain in the short time on the Heath today. Vented with 3 wrap or Race just about coped with the higher gusts. Mostly long arm treacle style individual flying for me but we did find an opposing infinity, by chance, which looks as if it could be very effective in a large team configuration. It's the kind of move that, I think, translates into the grid with very little effort once the idea is in place... One more weekend before the holiday period
Felix

Felix

0

04/12/2011 Blackheath

Standard vented 1.5B with 4 wrap spars (mostly) again today but not quite at the marginal level of last weekend. There was a very high base layer of cloud cover and in the SW breeze we had a clear view of the NE London circling stack of planes waiting to approach Heathrow. For the first time this autumn gloves were a good idea if not actually essential! Four fliers today, some called routines and some excellent free form flying. Felix
Felix

Felix

0

27/11/2011 Blackheath

The forecast was for a slight front clearing to the south east at the beginning of the day. At 9:00am it was grey and wet but within a short time the cloud cover began to break up and by 10:00 driving towards Blackheath past the Olympic stadium the sun was dazzling! A further bank of cloud with a few spots of rain cleared to an almost completely blue sky but with a serious leaf blowing breeze we were at the comfortable limit of the standard vented 1.5 with 4 wrap spars. If we all had the Mega V
Felix

Felix

0

20/11/2011 Blackheath

Hmmm! Twenty Eleven Twenty Eleven.... The fog did not lift while I was on site today. The sun almost broke through on a couple of occasions but the church and the other local buildings only appeared occasionally as flat grey shapes. The A2 was mostly out of sight. Flying in cotton wool with only 1mph gets disorientating and with no feedback down the lines kites inevitably fall off the edge. The Zens (Race Framed) worked well even if the lines 'glued' in the wet atmosphere. The real surprise wa
Felix

Felix

0

13/11/2011 Blackheath

A glorious sunny November day. It was not actually much warmer than last weekend but it certainly felt it. Light breezes so full 1.5 with race rods. Four fliers switched between 'free form' and 'called' with 'Plan A' getting a couple of runs through. The 'free form' is developing into something like the 'no cut' fighter kite set-up. Fly close but avoid actual impact. The group migrated across the sky on several occasions and certainly attracted the attention of passers by. We had applause from a
Felix

Felix

0

06/11/2011 Blackheath

A grey November day, and chilly in the NE breeze even if 12 degrees centigrade is warm compared seasonal averages... Green Race in vented sails again! Being aware that the kites were occasionally over powered in flight we noticed how much flex we were seeing in the spars when attempting ground work. It was difficult to keep the kites still. The Rev 2 B Vented with Race Rods showed no spar flex by comparison and was very light, in pull, on 80ft lines. A lazy team fly again today with no calls;
Felix

Felix

0
×
×
  • Create New...