by btjsfca » Tue Aug 05, 2008 5:54 pm
Hee hee!
Ahhh ... yes. I flew (briefly) a vegas this weekend in the gorge. Nice, quick, but didn't take it out, so can't really comment. I make the comments because the peter lynns I fly are more like c-kites than sles. In fact, the synergy is compared to fuels in their feel. Since I don't have the time on inflatos, I can't verify that. So, don't take my comments as gospel. But, like I say, my kites are c-like, and my depower is fine.
I'll repeat: horses for courses. What do you want to do with your kite? In the end we're all riding and having fun with them. As far as safety, I saw plenty of people out riding in the gorge with c-kites, and the wind there is nuts! It's true that when it was 30 gusting 40, the c-kites went in the bag. But I said: horses for courses. When the wind is strong and highly variable, it's not fair to compare that to 20 mph, steady winds.
Yes, we've had a fatality here. It was on a c-kite. That might color things. What happens when a rider is on a bow with the stopper pulled in when the sh!t hits the fan? Could be a bad scene. Good judgement and reflexes play a role too. Riding an SLE may offer a false sense of security, since things go wrong on all kinds of kites.
Billy: yes, it's nice to have reps local, but it's the people, not the companies that matter. You were a Best guy, now you're an ozone guy. Couldn't you have become a Cab guy? What if you made a connection to Slingy? It would sure be nice to have more companies here, with more options for demos and stuff, but I'd imagine that if the community grows, the options will grow, too. But, for all of us, no company has made the scene here; it's the guys who are on the beach, on the snow, answering questions, helping, teaching, and keeping the sport alive. Period. Brian himself would say that he wants kiting to grow, and if Ozone benefits, it's just a bonus for him.
If someone comes into kiting in Utah, and decides to buy one kite or another, we will all be there trying to help: teaching them, launching them, and sharing the stoke (and skunk) together.
There are many reasons to choose the kites in your quiver. Almost all modern kites meet a certain standard of performance, but not every kite is meant for the same purposes or fly with the same character. We pick our kites to match our style, and there's no reason that we all have to ride Ozones or Bests. I've really enjoyed my kites, DC Jim is also enjoying his Peter Lynns. Neither of us needed a rep to hold our hand to decide that's what we wanted, and our lack of BOW style isn't ruining our time.
As far as Brad should be concerned: a 2003 kite is missing out on 5 full years of advances in kite design (6 actually, considering that the 09's are trickling out now), and therefore, is probably in need of a new ride. But, given that, he's got a range of choices, many of which he'd be perfectly happy with.
Now, can we all just get along?
Luv,
Justin