Online Kitebuilding Class

Boxkites (aka Robert van Weers) will present kitebuilder.com's FIFTH online kitebuilding class beginning January 5, 2007. Robert is a very knowledgeable kitebuilder with over 20 years of kite making and flying experience. He has been a member of the kitebuilder.com forum since March 2004 and continues to be a very active participant. He will be presenting a six-week class on the construction and design of the "Achtkant" Train.

Achtkant is a Dutch word meaning, "eight sided;” which is a fitting term for this simple yet, majestic looking kite. A well-known Dutch kite builder, Harm van Veen, designed this kite in the early 1990’s and Robert is pleased to bring it back into the limelight by giving it a small but awesome twist. If you've participated in previous forum projects, you'll know why you won’t want to miss this one. If this will be your first project, I promise you will learn a few things along the way AND as a bonus, end up with a really cool kite. Every forum member can read and follow the class project, but if you want to participate in the question and answer portion of the class, you must register by January 3, 2007. Review the class forum for more information.
kitebuilder.com

Since 1989, Kite Studio has specialized in kite supplies.

Except for a brief period in the 1990’s when we sold kites to a few walk in customers, we never carried manufactured kites. Our focus has always been toward kitebuilding. However, the popularity of our website has grown over the years. A lot of people come to kitebuilder.com as a result of searching for a kite. So I now feel it is time that we reward these potential customers by offering something that fly’s. But our focus will continue to be aimed toward the kitebuilder. You may say, huh? How are we going to do that?

Well... I’ve been noticing over the past couple years that some big name manufacturers are beginning to pay attention to kitebuilding competitions. Some of the kites that I judge at festivals and some of the kitebuilders that I congratulate with an award, are being approached by vendors and asked if they would be interested in a contract. The companies are actually paying royalties to the original builder of the kite! Now I don’t think the designers are getting super rich of these monies, but at least it provides some recognition and few dollars to support their hobby. I would like to support them further.

A lot of these builders have been buying from Kite Studio for many years, so if I can help direct money back into their pocket, then I can rationalize my “kitebuilding focus” by by selling the kites that kitebuilders design. At least it makes sense to me. Who knows, if new customers become interested and buy a kite, they might break something while flying, come back for a replacement part, and discover they can fix things on their own… thereby planting a seed that kitebuilding could be in their future.

So… I hope you will support this new endeavor. Point your non-building buddies in this direction if they are looking for a kite. I won’t be selling ALL the kites available in the world, but I will be offering a few quality creations that are backed by the seal of approval from the original designers... your fellow flyers... many of whom "lurk" in the kitebuilder.com forum. Maybe this will prod them into talking?

You can view the current selection HERE, but realize I am just getting started. I will be adding more as we go along. Starting in December, I will feature a different kitebuilder each month which will include reduced prices on all their kites.

Now go build a kite… Get ready for the 2007 season. Maybe YOU will be the next designer with a contract!

Kite Flying tips, as only Corey can...

Check out these new Kite Flying Tips

The folks at Expert Village ("the worlds largest 'how-to' video site) asked Cory Jensen to shoot a bunch of video segments about kite flying. As past president of the American Kitefliers Association, and owner of WindPower Sports, Cory is definetly qualified. Check out these short videos; you will learn something about modern kiteflying, and you will probably smile along the way. Cory has a personality like no other!

From the Expert Village website: "Kiting has been an obsession for Corey since he was 12, flying kites on the Oregon Coast. In 1977, Jensen got into modern kiting while flying Denver Broncos kites off a hotel roof over the team's stadium during games. Since then he's been blown away at the variety of kite challenges. In 1985 Jensen and a partner opened a kite store on Cannery Row in California. They ran the shop for 12 years. He is now the owner of in Las Vegas."

Aviator's place in history is finally airborne

By SARAH ALLELYNovember 9, 2006

BOB and Dick Hargrave grew up knowing their great-great uncle could fly, even if many people overseas were sceptical. But when they were contacted by the United States' Library of Congress, the brothers knew absolute proof was close.

The US had never acknowledged that Lawrence Hargrave wrote extensively to the Wright brothers in the years between his 1894 box-kite flight at Stanwell Park and their 1903 successful flight. So when the Library of Congress wanted the Hargraves to sign over copyright to the letters several years ago, Dick did so in the hope Lawrence would finally get the recognition he deserved.

Today, many of the Hargrave clan will gather at Stanwell Park for a tribute to Lawrence and Eric Waite, the man responsible for making sure the Illawarra's aviation history was not forgotten.

Dick drove from Victoria with a mock aircraft made from old plane and car parts, to Bob's home in Thirroul this week.

Once Again Afghans Take to the Skies

By Jeff Swicord Kabul, Afghanistan07 November 2006

For centuries they have filled the skies above Kabul, often engaged in aerobatic battle. "Gudiparan bazi", or kite flying, is a sport that many Afghans have raised to the status of an art.
Mohammad AshareAfghans, like 12-year-old Mohammad Ashare, enjoy kite fighting with other flyers, trying to break the string of opponents and send their kites floating off in the wind. "Depends on how good your string is, then it is your technique,” says Mohammad. “For example, you roll your string on top of the other kite’s string, and never pull the string, just let roll."
Banned during the Taleban years because it was considered un-Islamic, kite flying has made a comeback in Kabul. And kite shops can now be found all over the city.

Read the rest of the story (with video) HERE

Generating Power From Kites

Wired News reports: Researchers in Italy have high hopes for a new wind-power generator that resembles a backyard drying rack on steroids. Despite its appearance, the Kite Wind Generator, or KiteGen for short, could produce as much energy as a nuclear power plant....

See the rest of the report HERE

There was also a great article in the British edition of the free daily newspaper Metro. You can download the pdf HERE

Zhao Ji Chen's Mechanical Dragon Kite (front view)

Zhao Ji Chen entered a mechanical Dragon in the 2006 AKA Kitemakers Comprehensive Competition. As wind flowed through the mouth of the kite, it moved a fan which turned the gears, which put the eyes, mouth and cheeks into motion. A very cool kite. Mr Chen won first place with this kite in the Train & Centipede categor and GRAND CHAMPION! See his score here: http://www.kitebuilder.com/competition.htm

Zhao Ji Chen's Mechanical Dragon Kite (rear view)

Zhao Ji Chen entered a mechanical Dragon in the 2006 AKA Kitemakers Comprehensive Competition. As wind flowed through the mouth of the kite, it moved a fan which turned the gears, which put the eyes, mouth and cheeks into motion. A very cool kite. Mr Chen won first place with this kite in the Train & Centipede category and GRAND CHAMPION! See his score here: http://www.kitebuilder.com/competition.htm

Zhao Ji Chen's Mechanical Lobster kite in the air

Zhao Ji Chen entered a mechanical Lobster in the 2006 AKA Kitemakers Comprehensive Competition. As wind flowed through the channels of the kite, it moved a fan which turned the gears, which put the claws and tail into motion. A very cool kite. Mr Chen won first place with this kite in the Cellular & Dimensional category. See his score here: http://www.kitebuilder.com/competition.htm

Zhao Ji Chen's Mechanical Lobster kite on the ground

Zhao Ji Chen entered a mechanical Lobster in the 2006 AKA Kitemakers Comprehensive Competition. As wind flowed through the channels of the kite, it moved a fan which turned the gears, which put the claws and tail into motion. A very cool kite. Mr Chen won first place with this kite in the Cellular & Dimensional category. See his score here: http://www.kitebuilder.com/competition.htm

Kite power in action on the ice

Medical students to doctors before we reach the South Pole

By robert.conway@telegraph.co.uk (Robert Conway)

I am a bearer of bad news. Extreme South, the planned expedition to the South Pole in 2006 by Toby Williams and myself, has been postponed. We have decided that rather than compromise our planned route, we will wait until 2009 when we will attempt a new and ground-breaking journey to the South Pole and beyond.

Kite power in action on the ice. As you may know, we planned to follow the route to the pole taken by Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Dr Edward Wilson, an alumnus of St George's, where we too study. However, without the funding in place ...

Umanoff's Kite Connectors

"Martin Umanoff patented these kite connectors in 1964, the applicant was Pressman Toy Corporation. This invention tries "to provide an improved kite construction in which the assembly thereof does not require the penetration of or damage to the..."

More info HERE

2006 AKA Grand Champion

Zhao Ji Chen wins 2006 AKA Grand National Champion with his mechanical centipede kite. Congratulations!

More details HERE

[auction] Kite Fabric

Auction Alert! Ending October 30

A large assortment of KITE FABRIC that has been accumulating in the corner of the shop for a couple months. Discontinued colors, remnants, and seconds with defects a little out of the ordinary. A quick glance shows various yardages in white, black, blue, yellow, light blue, dark green, teal, raspberry, silver, and more. I assure you, the retail value will be WELL OVER $100.00. The cool thing about this type of offer is the higher the bidding war goes, the heavier I pack the box!

click here

"Nine Dragons" kite in Nanjing

A man flys a 499-metre-long kite consisting of nine dragons'bodies and heads in Nanjing,capital of East China's Jiangsu Province... click here

Benjamin Franklin's 'lightning kite' paper goes online

Benjamin Franklin's 1752 paper describing how he conducted lightning with a kite is one of hundreds of landmark scientific papers now available to the public in an electronic archive compiled by the Royal Society in London.

click here

[video] This ship runs on wind power | CNET News.com

[video] This ship runs on wind power CNET News.com: "CNET News.com's Neha Tiwari speaks with the CEO of KiteShip, Jeremy Walker, about his company's football-stadium-size kites that help cut 20 percent of fuel and emissions from commercial ships. The interview took place at the California Clean Tech Open competition in San Francisco on Sept. 26, 2006."

[video] - Kite lifts womans skirt.

Kite lift skirt Video Some kids in asia clip a kite to a girls skirt while she rides a bike. I think it was staged.

Asian airport closed by mysterious flying kite

A kite forced the closure of Zhanjiang International Airport for half a day after it was found flying near the runway in the Guangdong port city over the weekend.

Asian airport closed by mysterious flying kite