Go Fly a Kite
Remember as a kid when the March wind blew in and kite kits with names like Hi-Flier and Top Flite suddenly appeared in toy stores? Flimsy affairs, they sold for cheap and performed like it. You’d construct a diamond shape or box out of sticks of wood and lightweight paper, with a strip of fabric (not included) for a tail. Then came a mixture of fun and frustration, until inevitably it augured in or got stuck in a tree. Well, forget those remnants of the Ben Franklin era.
Today’s kites are magnificent, high-tech affairs that you’ll want to fly all year. Today’s kites look to space-age materials for rip-stop polyester sails. Gone is the spool of cotton string, replaced by the kind of high-performance polyethylene they make bullet-proof vests out of. Wood frames have been ousted in favor of carbon fiber and fiberglass spars—just as light but far sturdier. Colorful tails measuring 40 feet are not uncommon—although you won’t need one if you’re using dual- or quad-line controls, which allow you to stabilize the kite from the ground.
It’s this control that has spawned kite-flying competitions. They fall into two camps. The first is precision flying, in which pilots maneuver their kites through a series of complex tricks and patterns. This can be done individually or by teams flying in formation—something like a cross between the Blue Angels and synchronized swimming. Not surprisingly, there are cut-throat competitions as well, with kite fliers trying to force their enemies to the ground or cut their lines.
Even if you don’t have the instincts of an aerial assassin, just attending a festival is exciting. The kites come in all shapes, sizes and colors, all of which are dazzling as they float through the skies. Of course, birds are popular designs, but also expect to see dragons, octopi and comic book characters. A space shuttle kite even has lights. The largest rig on record is The Hope. The flag-style kite has an area of some 12,000 square feet. America’s biggest celebration of kites is the Washington State International Kite Festival, held on a beach. The biggest one of all is the Weifang International, held every April in China, where kites were invented 3,000 years ago.
