Tag: Color in the sky

The Weather Is Just Not Cooperating

For the second week in a row, the weather is not cooperating with those of us who just want to fly kites.

Last week it was the cold. You may call me a “wimp” but when the temperature falls below 40 degrees with a north wind (a strong north wind), it is just too cold to be on a beach. On top of that, it rained. We did go to the beach for a while and sit in the truck and watch the foam blow off the tops of the waves. It looked like snow blowing across the sand. After going home, I picked out colors and fabric for my next kite build.

This weekend a winter storm arrived. We got a half inch of ice covering everything. Along with north winds in the teens and sleet. Most of the county was shut down because travel became too dangerous. Temperatures didn’t get above 40 degrees with wind chills making it 10 degrees lower. Things got better after the storm moved on but the ice remains and we chose to stay home and stay warm.

While housebound, I started sewing on a Van Hienen Shield. Instructions for this kite are found on the Kitebuilders.com forum. Each week a new step is published. And the instructions stay online so if you fall behind, it’s easy to catch up later. This weekend is for cutting and hemming. Next is the applique. When the skin is complete, the framing begins.

So here’s to sunshine, more tolerable temperatures and smooth flying winds to come.

Fair Winds All

Squeezing In Some Flying Days

The usual Sunday morning kite fly was a good one. The sun shone, the temperature was mild and the winds were off the ocean in the mid-teens. It was a warmer day sandwiched between the colder days. It brought out several flyers and many varied kites.

Because the winds were higher, I got out some of the delta kites that hadn’t seen the blue skies in quite some time. And, of course, the new delta I got for Christmas. The two older kites were the Premier Mesh delta and the Skydog Illusion delta. Both make a good show with their long tails.

Along with these two, I also put up the new-to-me Premier Stratadelta. Flew it with some ribbon tails but I think it will have more of a presence with some longer, wider tails. A project I will have to work on.

What those who are my friends know that I am a fanatic football fan. I try never to miss a televised game of the Green Bay Packers. The regular season is now over and we are approaching the playoffs. To show support for my team, I made a Green Bay Packer kite and flew it this past Sunday.

The next couple of days were cold, cold, cold. At least cold for this area of North Carolina. So we stay at home and watched the weather forecast. There was supposed to be a warmup in the middle of the week. And it did get twenty degrees warmer than the preceding days. So off to the beach we go to make the most of what pretty days there are. We only stayed an hour or so and the winds were on the light side. However, we did manage to put up a few of our light wind kites. Specifically those made by Flying Wings Kites. One was the Laima, the second was the Wala with the travel frame, and the third was the Emong.

These were just right for this day. No pull on the lines at all. Just hanging in the sky with little attention needed. Perfect for sitting on an empty beach soaking up some sunshine.

We did have one visitor while we were there. A lone sandpiper came walking up to us, closer than I’ve ever seen one come. He/she walked around us several times. Not afraid to come between the chair and the truck or walk from one to the other and stop to look at both of us. At times this bird was so close you could almost reach out and touch it. After several minutes, it flew off down the beach. Whether it was lost, lonely or just curious, we will never know.

As the afternoon wore on, the temperature began to drop and the wind picked up a bit. Not too much for these kites to handle but enough that it felt like it was time to go home. So until next time –

Fair Winds All

Let’s Go Back In Time

On this past Labor Day the Mile High Kite Festival was held on Beech Mountain, NC.  This is a festival we never miss.  First, because we get to see some kite friends that we don’t see more than once or twice a year and, second, because we get to the mountains for the long weekend.  (And get away from the mad tourist surge at the beach.)  This year was a very unusual kite fly.  There was wind.  At times, too much wind.  The sun shone the whole weekend and the temperature was perfect.  However, the wind was gusting into the twenties.  Because we fly on the side of a steep hill at the top of the mountain, kites are seldom anchored and left to fly on their own.  This was a good thing as no kites were lost to the extreme gusts.  The banners that were put out to decorate the flying field took a beating.  And some of the vendors tents as well.

This year I flew more kites and took less pictures.  Probably a result of having wind.  I got my two latest kite builds in the air; the 3do and the Stretch Tucker parafoil.  Both of these were online workshops as the in-person workshops were canceled this year.  The parafoil flew like a champ.  The 3do needs some extra tweeking.  Not unusual for a new build.  I didn’t realize it until just now that both of my latest applique designs were Oriental themed.  Other kites made it out of the bag off and on all weekend.  That’s a lot for me to fly on the mountain.  Unfortunately, there was no kite builders competition this year.  Maybe because I was the only kite builder to bring something.  So, by default, I awarded myself “Best In Show”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After sitting home for a year because of the pandemic, walking up and down the hill was quite strenuous.  You never realize the effect of inactivity until you’re inactive for a period of time and then try to pick up where you left off.  We stay an extra day after the festival to sight see a little, maybe fly our kites a little and avoid the holiday traffic.  This year we mostly napped.  We did find a new coffee shop which also had great pastries.  I can only hope they stay open and are there next year.

That’s about it for now.  Stay tuned for more updates and latest kite flying news.

Fair Winds All.

Please Forgive Me

I has been over a year since I’ve told any tales about our kite flying.  There are various reasons – the pandemic kept us closer to home, the weather didn’t cooperate, had other things to keep me occupied and I was just too lazy to sit done and write.  So I’m going to try and pick it up again.  Especially as the kiting activities have started up after over a year of cancellations.

Now where to start…

I will start with one of the more exciting things.  At least, more exciting to me.  I have added some kites to my collections of White Bird dragon kites.  A kite club in another state was having their annual fund raising kite auction.  There were a number of White Bird kites up for auction as the club had been gifted with a departed kite flyer’s collection.  A friend of mine agreed to be my proxy at the auction.  After much time on the computer, I became the proud owner of four White Bird dragons.

When the box arrived, my living room became overrun with nylon.  All were signed and dated.  The Harlequin is a 150 foot dragon from 1994.  The Rainbow is a 150 foot dragon from 1995.  The Sun King is a 55 foot dragon dated 1988.  And the Cloud Dragon is a 55 foot dragon dated 2001.  After a few weeks, I did have a day with enough wind to gt them in the air.  And some day I hope to be able to fly all four of my 150′ dragons at once.  My ultimate dream is to fly all my White Bird dragons at the same time.  But looking through my kite bag, I do not have enough lines or sand bags to accomplish that feat.  It’s an embarrassment of riches.

That’s all for now.  I hope to be able to do more catching up in the next few days and have more kiting adventures to write about.

Fair Winds All.