The 31st Carolina Kite Festival

This past weekend was the 31st Carolina Kite Festival at the Sands Villa Resort in Atlantic Beach, NC. This festival is sponsored by my local kite shop, Kites Unlimited & Bird Stuff, Etc., also found in Atlantic Beach, NC. We had no idea how this one would be attended as Hurricane Florence hit us hard and many people are out of work and out of their homes. Also, many of the hotels and condo units were damaged which made accommodations in the area harder to find. But it didn’t deter most of our regular out-of-town flyers.

The weekend started with very high winds and chilly temperatures. It rained the Friday before and was cloudy most of the day Saturday. The winds kept a lot of the attendees from flying their single line kites as no one wanted to have a broken kite. Luckily, the winds were blowing steady down the beach which made it much better for the large kites to fly. And there was a grand show of large kites.

The weatherman was both right and wrong about the weather on Sunday. The sky cleared and the sun came out which warmed up the afternoon. But the winds never let up, came across the buildings along the beach and became more turbulent. Fewer big kites were flown. But there were more people with their single line kites out on the field.

A couple of our special guests this year were Ray Wong and Randy Tom. Both are makers of art kites and hail from California. And both brought kites to be sold at the kite shop.. Photos of their kites are on the Kites Unlimited & Bird Stuff, Etc. Facebook page.

The Bay Area Sundowners Kite Team came from San Fransisco to perform both days. They are always a joy to watch. They perform routines flying stacks of thirteen hyperkites in red, white and blue. Many spectators come year after year to see them perform. Saturday’s wind was a little too high but they gave it a try anyway and did a good job. The slighter winds on Sunday were better and the team flew a couple different routines throughout the day.

On the third kite field, the stunt kites were flown. Dual line and quad line stunt kites were in the air as the wind and the whim of the flyers allowed. Along with all the flying, there was a kids’ kite building table for children to decorate and assemble a small sled kite and a candy drop from a high-flying delta kite. A few brave souls even went out on the beach Saturday night to fly their kites with lights on them. I emphasize “brave” as it was very cold after the sun went down.

Although it seems that I spent most of my time running around with my camera photographing the event, I did get to fly a couple of my single line kites, a friend’s quad line kite and visit with kite flyers I hadn’t seen in quite some time. The festival was deemed a success and plans are already in the works for next year’s event. For more pictures and some video from the festival, check out the Kites Unlimited & Bird Stuff, Etc. Facebook page (Kites Unlimited & Bird Stuff, Etc.).

Fair Winds All

Finding Time To Fly

This past weekend I was on Ocracoke Island, NC for a photography workshop. The weather was the best we had had for several weeks. Sunny, warm and with moderate breezes. I really hated missing the community kite fly. I also hated the thought of not doing any kite flying at all.

Not really knowing what the schedule was going to be for the weekend, I still threw some kites in the back of the truck. Who knows, there might be some free time during the weekend. And, heaven forbid, I not go to the beach at some point. So it was that on Saturday I skipped lunch with the workshop participants and took myself to the beach for a “kite fix”. Since I wasn’t going to have a lot of time, I left the stunt kites behind and only took a couple of the smaller single-line kites.

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The wind was coming from the east which meant it would be rather turbulent coming off the dunes and going to the ocean. The first kites up were a train of tropical bird kites by Into The Wind Kites. There should have been three but one needed some repair so only two made it into the sky. The only other kite to fly was my Drumbox kite. All the kites would go up for a while and then settle to the sand. But I made the best of it.

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While I was loading everything back into the truck and preparing to rejoin the photography group, a gentleman walked up to me in the parking lot. He told me he and his wife enjoyed watching the kites and appreciated my efforts. This made me feel so good. And just re-affirmed that a short kite fly is better than no fly at all.

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Fair Winds All

Missing A Good Day

Fort Macon State Park is open. Although the fort itself is closed because of damage from Hurricane Florence. The early report concerning the weekly community kite fly was encouraging but we couldn’t verify the information because we weren’t there. Whereas kites are important, grandchildren are more important. And our youngest granddaughter turned three. There was no way we were going to miss the party. As seems to be the rule, the day was perfect for kites and we were absent. No doubt we will hear about it when we stop at the kite shop.

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The good news is the Carolina Kite Festival will go on as planned. It will probably have a different “feel” than other years because of the hurricane recovery. We have no idea how many participants can or will come nor what kind of accommodations will be available. But there will be color in the sky and camaraderie on the sand. Of that we can be sure.

Fair Winds All

After The Storm

It’s been a week since hurricane Florence blew through our area. The devastation is horrible. So many people have lost everything they own. So many people have no home to come back to after evacuating. We stayed through it all and are very glad we did. It minimized our damage to just a couple of ceilings and shingles lost. After spending the week cleaning and removing debris, I was looking forward to a community kite fly as a means to get away from it all. Unfortunately, Fort Macon State Park is closed. For how long, we have no idea. They are doing damage assessment and repair and have to see how much beach remains after the storm.

Being on the “right” side of the a very slow-moving storm results in a lot of beach erosion. Some areas now have a four-foot drop to get to the beach. Some have lost the beach and the first row of dunes. And, oddly enough, some areas show no erosion at all. The quirks of a hurricane. So it may be a while until there will be another community kite fly. We hope not.

So I’ll take us back to a more pleasant time. To a kite building workshop which was held this past July. A couple of NC kitebuilders decided at the beginning of the year that it would be nice to have Robert Brasington hold a kite building workshop in NC. One was held four years ago in Raleigh, NC and it was about time for a return visit. A number of builders from NC, SC and VA were definitely interested so the planning began. The location this time was Morehead City, NC by popular demand. Conveniently located so the builders and spouses and families (should they decide to tag along) could spend some time at the beach.

Thirteen builders converged, ranging in experience from complete novices to master builders. The majority chose to build the 3/4 stealth delta kite in varying colors. The delta was my choice as I had never made a delta before and I truly admired the Brasington deltas. His technique of using adhesive and multiple templates is very different from what I normally do so this workshop was a learning experience. But that is why I like to attend workshops. I’m always open to new ways and, sometimes, easier ways to build a kite.

The camaraderie during the weekend was grand. Taking breaks from sewing to visit with people I only see once or twice a year was one of the best parts. Having to hem three incredibly long tails for the delta was the worst. Unfortunately, some people had to leave early on Sunday and others were in a rush to go to the beach and fly their new creations. So we missed getting a group photo. All in all, it was a great weekend and one which many of us are looking forward to doing again.

Fair Winds All.