I haven't had much experience with quad line or large power kites... so a friend
"Brian Siegel" brought one of his Quadrifoils to Grand Haven for me to try
out.... It was a exhilarating and even scary experience... but FUN!
Brian gets the kite warmed up and lets me grab a few shots of it before I'm to tired to
shoot them. It's a massive beast... and the pull it gives is much like playing
tug-of-war with a elephant.
It's often a good idea to wear a harness either around your waste or upper body. This
allows you to hook the control handles to the harness which takes the strain off your arms
(leaves them in the sockets your body provides).
no kidding.
As the kite pulls - you can either get into some sort of vehicle (buggy) or jump on a
water ski or surf board and be pulled - or simply lay back like Brian is here and
sand-ski!!! Note the sand being kicked up in front of his shoes... he's moving at several
miles per hour here.
Brian says at 220lbs that he can pretty much stay on the ground... I didn't think he
meant that literally! Brian gets up close and personal with the beach... then says
"OK YOUR TURN".
Who? "Are YOU talking to ME"?
I take the controls - which are handles with four lines attached. Pull the top two and the
kite goes up - (sometimes bringing the flyer too) pull the bottom two lines and the kite
goes down. Pull one top line and the other bottom line and the kite rotates in place. Here
I'm wrestling with the beast... trying to get the feel. I don't dare clip it to the
harness because I don't want to end up being air-borne... at least this way I can
let go if in danger. ;-)
Oh Nooooooo problem! - I'm getting the hang of this real quick.... sand skiing is
easy no matter what shoes you have on!. I wonder what would happen if I shoot the
kite up real quick!?!?
'Take offs' are a breeze! - but you have to watch those landings! ouch....
That was enough excitement for me... I'm totally exhausted from playing tug of war
with this beast in about 15mph winds. It was great fun and I'd love to try it again in
lesser wind! So now I have a good idea of what power kiting is all about. THANKS
BRIAN!
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