Elf's KiteBuggy Page

Traction Kites. Good stuff.

2001
This is my latest endeavor - There is just somthing about playing with mother nature, harnessing the power of the wind (and ohhh what power it is!) that gives such a rush!  My friend Ahren started me with a small stunt kite.. you know, the 2 line kind that does tricks in the air.  Later on, browsing in a local kite shop, I saw a Stylus 2.8 kite.. also 2 lines.. 200lb lines. Then I saw a traction kite. This was my calling.
I ordered my first Traction Kite, a Blade II 4.9 in the summer of 2001.  A lot of people recommend a person start with a small kite. I figured I wanted to learn kite jumping and buggying, so I bypassed that suggestion and went for 4.9 square meters of kite. I took it out to shoreline in about 12mph winds (a fresh breeze) and got my ass whooped. Undaunted, I gave it some practice in wind about 6mph. There was still a lot of pull, but I quickly learned to "fine tune" my control. Soon I was able to  fly loops and circles,  hover the kite anywhere in the sky, make it fly forwards and backwards with ease. 12mph winds were no problem anymore. Soon I was learning how to lift myself into the sky. First 2, then 3, 4, 6 feet in the air. Then 8 feet. What a rush!
Next comes the buggy. I chose a Libre V-Max kite buggy - a piece of German engineering (BMW of kite buggies?). Troy Gunn in Texas helped me to decide and order this one. Thanks Troy!

2002
When the new Shoreline park staff in Mountain View came in, they noticed our Kite Buggies in lot E, the prime place in the south bay to go buggying. Unfortunately they didnt know what to make of it and declared it forbidden. I gathered the group and took it up with the Mountain View Parks and Recreation Comission. They began the meeting with an unfavorable look, and with the city attorney and city risk manager against us. By the end of the meeting, a unanimous vote was issued to recommend to the City Council to allow us back with a 1 year trial period before allowing it as a permanent activity. Shortly after this I was on the front page of the Mountain View Voice newspaper, thanks to reporter Candice Shih. Unfortunately the Council won't be able to address the issue until September, so I spent the summer buggying at fields of local San Jose high schools. It's not the same as Shoreline, but it's good practice! I installed a digital speedometer on the buggy, and summer winds afforded me a top speed of about 25mph. Of course, 25mph looks and feels much faster when you are 4 inches off the ground!

In sticking with the Blade II series, I added a Blade II 3.0 to my kite bag in the summer of 2002. Its much faster and more nimble, suitable for higher winds where I don't dare use the 4.9! It's first real test was at Ocean Beach in San Fransisco. I cruised the shoreline at about 25mph. The winds here were so strong that I had trouble keeping from being dragged all the way inland!

Late in the summer, I was out with the 4.9 by itself doing a little kite jumping. There was a swift wind layer about 75 feet up that I caught and found myself about 11-12 feet in the air! I envisioned broken bones and body parts as I looked down upon the world. Luckily I landed without a scratch, and immediately put the kite away, figuring I has used up my luck for the next couple weeks. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of this. I'm sure it would have been quite a sight to see. Some crazy people jump 20 feet or more. This kind of stunt usually results in hospital or funeral bills.

One more kite added, this time a Razor Little Devil 2.1 - Much smaller, great for training, and excellent for those high wind situations. I have almost a complete set for different winds now - 2.1, 3.0, 4.9... All I'm missing is the 4.0 for when the winds are too strong for the 4.9 and not strong enough for the 3.0

The first 3 pictures are quite large, you may have to scroll your screen a little to see them all.

The Kite in Question  Here is the Blade II 4.9 aloft. It is about 17 feet wide, and about 4.9 square meters in surface area (53 square feet). I use 500 lb top lines and 300 lb brake lines.

Little Air   6-8mph winds.. not very much. Enough perhaps for 3 feet in the air.

The new Buggy! (side)  Hmm.. is it going to fit in the car...