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andelscott

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Posts posted by andelscott

  1. I think for the beginner - line management would be good to throw in there. Setup and take down, winding lines to prevent tangles, etc...

    Even for beginners, I'd add:

    • line equalisation / checking for stretched lines and fixing 'em;
    • bungee tension / sail tension checks (vertical spars).

    Ironically seems easier to diagnose problem on someone else's kite than one's own because we just wanna fly! :kid_smartass:

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  2. Just get a proper computer. One that prevents you from making 'user based errors'. One that prevents you doing anything that could harm your user experience and records everything you do for posterity...

    Ah, a mythical computer. No, wait, that would be a computer left in the 'OFF' state.

  3. You are quite right! The other thing that we see is people insisting on driving their cars up to the flying field edge and hoping that the organisers will not ask them to remove them.

    I have sympathies for the *huge* SLK inflatables where a solid anchor is needed. Some festivals do indeed provide anchor points.

    However, for the main arena, there is typically one prime viewing zone - directly upwind of the 'performers' and it would seem fair this be mandated as a tent-free zone. The only logistical issue is knowing months in advance which way the wind will blow on festival days!

  4. Cos where are you numbering from and which are columns and which are rows?... Or ....could it be we just guess and fly it anyway. laugh.gif

    Fair point - I've flown with groups who number rows from top and even those that number from the bottom. Although "each is valid", when it comes to a MegaTeam, I for one would prefer a consistent approach...

    The 'Up North...' crew were pretty clued up though...

    Yes, but they also had the benefit of some rather fine pumpkin and tomato soup as I recall! :)

  5. I think this is a huge issue and it comes up alot!

    <snip>

    Ah, human nature and diversity - don't ya just love it?

    JB is right on the issues of 'personnel management' and 'expectation management'. The important issue is making sure there is a very clear (and communicated) vision of what the MegaTeam is all about. The roles and responsibilities of all participants must be clearly understood and accepted for everyone's sakes and sanity. There is but one shot (typically) due to the time to organise and get everyone up in the air. Audiences have a short attention span and festival time constraints can be crippling - even at the end of the day.

    But regular and ad-hoc fly-ins are a great boiler room for skills - Bri mentioned Ainsdale, then there is the NJ crew, and so forth. What better way of developing skills than flying with friends (and as many as you can find!), but without the added pressures of audiences and a "world record attempt"?

    Pity the sole flyer out in, say, Utah or Inverness-shire without a team within several hundred miles (hey, I'm just guessing and plucking a state and county out of the hat) - how can we reach out to them to inspire and encourage - and ultimately prepare them for successful assimilation into the collective? <Uh-oh! - think I've been watching too much Star Trek...>

    Perhaps we need more "distance learning" products - simple videos on how to form the grid - tricks and gotchas, like (hypothetically):

    • "avoid having the ten foot tall, six foot wide guy (or girl) in the front";
    • "flyer furthest forward is bottom of the column";
    • "don't stand immediately behind the flyer in front, but slightly zig-zag";
    • "no snag handles are great, but try not to snag your lines on another flyer's ears or hat".

    I'm going to enjoy reading the fruits of this thread - whether or not I ever get to a MegaTeam event. :kid_smartass:

  6. Comment to Bart and others, really. Big *is* scary. I've not been in there, but it was good to be properly located in the audience at Portsmouth - probably better as I saw the whole display rather than being transfixed by one kite and the surrounding hazards!

    *BUT* Stephen, Felix, JB, Dave E and others are doing fantastic work at getting grids of around 12-20 flyers together. This is a safe® way to test and stretch the skills so you can be ready for the full performance. It is also immensely gratifying to be part of, whilst remaining very impressive for any bystanders to watch.

  7. JB is preparing a draft list of the T&Cs.

    There is an element of 'due diligence' which I think is extremely important...

    Whilst this might sound a bit heavy, I thoroughly agree it is necessary, not just for the overall effect, but for the enjoyment of all participants. As a 'good conditions' target participant, I'm in it for the enjoyment not stress!

    Creating an agreed set of 'guidelines' to assist anyone brave (or foolish) enough to think of organising a megateam event for their event/festival should at least highlight the main risks and provide suggestions for mitigation. It would also provide a minimum framework, offering some credibility when suggesting the idea to festival organisers.

    Equally important, it may help dissuade unrealistic or inappropriate aspirations at an early stage, where the resources:

    • secure space,
    • time for briefing, assembly, performance and break-down,
    • weather conditions
    • acoustics (incessant PA or fairground isn't conducive to hearing the calls over an extended area)
    • skill-base
    • pilot's equipment

    are dangerously sub-optimal. Adrenalin alone probably isn't enough for a successful outcome... ;)

  8. The only idea I had was to make a new category called "Reference Topics" or something similar, making matching sub-categories under that one, and moving the pinned topics into these new, secondary categories.

    Anyone have suggestions, complaints?

    We're talking about a Rev Wiki now.....!! :kid_smartass:

  9. I'm now a little confused on the objectives of the register as discussion appears forked:

    • Team flying - for demonstrations;
    • Megafly - for show or participation.

    I would suggest these are two rather different needs.

    Team flying

    For JB, SH and others, I can see a real benefit in knowing of other advanced skilled pilots within a geographical area in case of a day with "man down" (man as in mankind, so man or woman, of course!). It would be a "deps" register or allow a team performance where it would not otherwise be possible to travel as a group - due to operational, logistics or financial constraint.

    Mega-fly / Mega-Team

    I'm less convinced of the benefits of a Mega-team (MT) register.

    Ultimately, it is completely down to the Field Director at any event, with responsibility delegated to the MT director for the fly. Of course there is a tension between excluding those who have sufficient skills for a suitable routine - just because they haven't presented for accreditation - and inadvertently including someone whose skill level could compromise safety or result in a humongous ball of string (leading to reputational damage). So to include a MegaTeam division in the Register, one might need separate 'classes' of flyer - full membership and associate, for example, where the latter means "keen, but check out the skills on the day before including in a MT".

    I completely understand Bob's comments earlier in the thread, for example, light wind skills may be the critical aspect on one day, whereas on another day the MT director might be able to include a wider group of flyers.

    However, it seems to me that a MegaFly relies on fliers actually turning up. By contrast a team performance would be by invitation only. A register could inadvertently turn flyers away from a MT and create a "ruling elite".

    At present Rev flying is fun and appears largely free of politics and major egos - please let's keep it that way!

  10. I did a recount recently, may have tabulated deleted posts or something.

    Seriously though, who counts their posts?

    (runs away)

    Only someone who's teetering on the brink between "occasional poster" and "regular poster"! ;)

    Is this status still configurable in the new flavour IPBoard? [Or how many more 'credits' do I have to earn first?] :huh:

  11. I seem to have less active posts than before I post and entry.

    Yesterday I had 246. Today I post two comments and I now have 244. Is someone trying to tell me something? confused_1.gif

    (Actually it might be 243 - after I press the <Post New Topic> button... )

    How weird is that - it's just back to 248 - more or less where it should be.

  12. ..but it's not Christmas yet - are Flying Squad flying to a different calendar. :P

    Following Bob's excuse, I just had an appointment with a Carol service. Apparently she was quite pleased with the result... :blink:

    So - next gathering: 27th, or New Year?

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