Power Kite Forum

EJECTED...!!!

cheezycheese - 6-5-2011 at 05:56 PM

Got kicked off of my best flying field yesterday by a caretaker. i was approached in a very hostile manner and had words like TRESSPASSING-PRIVATE PROPERTY-POLICE thrown at me sooooo..... decided to pack it in and call it a loss... :ticking: it was an open field that has been empty as long as i have lived in the area. its at least 40-50 acres of open field on the side of a county road. when i asked if i could speak to the owner the caretaker said "i ain't even gonna call him'cuz i know what he's gonna say".... :mad:

indigo_wolf - 6-5-2011 at 06:26 PM

Is the land posted as "No Tresspassing"?

If you can U2U a more specific location, I can trying to dig up the contact info for the owner.

With a written permission from the owner, the caretaker can call the police or play in traffic in the county road with similar results.

ATB,
Sam

buggydanny - 6-5-2011 at 06:40 PM

Marc

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have been there and it is not a good thing.

I would not give up, I would find the owner and turn on your charm and see if you could get your flying privileges restored.

I wish you luck.

Let me know if there is anything I can do to help

Dan

cheezycheese - 6-5-2011 at 06:41 PM

Yeah, it's posted.... I was trying to plead ignorance to that fact since the opening to the field is pretty long maybe 300meters with no sign. However all surrounding woods that are attached have the signs... :no:
I posted the google coordinance in a thread not too long ago about fave flying spots or something like that...

Seanny - 6-5-2011 at 07:00 PM

Aw man, that sucks Cheezy :( Definitely contact the owner. There's no sense in being a douche bag just for the sake of being a douche bag. How much harm could flying a kite on a vacant field possibly be causing? Whatever. It's okay. I hop fences all the time to find a place to fly. I just haven't been caught yet :rolleyes: Hopefully, I won't be shot at.

rocfighter - 6-5-2011 at 07:04 PM

I know how you feel Marc. My local field is off limits now that the hay is over a foot high. Now I need to head to the state park and deal with the Eccon police!! What a job Eccon police!

Drewculous - 6-5-2011 at 07:27 PM

that sucks man, some ayso coach tried to tel me that one time...... i had ammo ready tho, even tho its a soccer complex, its a city maintained park...

BOOYA!!!

it shut him up pretty quick, that and im friends with all the city guys so when they were asked to get me outta there, they just laughed


around here its kites v soccer balls


(hope this all works out for ya tho)

cheezycheese - 6-5-2011 at 07:35 PM

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&...

This is the spot... :flaming:

Seanny - 6-5-2011 at 07:40 PM

:o I would MURDER for a field like that!! Holy @#%*(&#@%()*@#&%(*@#% Cheezy!!!!!

Drewculous - 6-5-2011 at 07:43 PM

:eekdrull:

Kamikuza - 6-5-2011 at 07:43 PM

Great spot! Go chat the owner up :yes:

People come at me with an attitude - I don't care if I'm in the wrong - they get a stonewalling. Go call the police cos I got nothing but time baby, how about you? /rant

Drewculous - 6-5-2011 at 07:51 PM

find the owner... and be cool, bring him/her a gift, offer something like "security" "when i'm there i'll make sure there are no kids out there smokin dope" :dunno:

offer to show them what you are doing, hell you might gain some new kiting buddies

Seanny - 6-5-2011 at 07:59 PM

The cops here are far too busy taking care of dirty, gritty, real cop work (pulling people over for speeding) to bother with things like robberies, meth labs, and the worst of all: kite flyers.

acampbell - 6-5-2011 at 08:01 PM

Go to the County GIS and get the owner's info like name and address. Google "(county name) (state) GIS" then hone in on the address. Then use whitepages.com and if you have to, pay like $2-3 to buy the info. Call me if this does not make sense.

I learned while working for the US Census Bureau last year that neighbors can be hostile but land owners can be cool, but sometimes it goes the other way. Overall I learned that 99.999% of the time, "no trespassing" signs were directed at hunters and solicitors and that anybody else showing courtesy and respect were most welcome, even if the answer in the end was not as you would have liked.

I also learned that I wish I had been in the business of printing "no trespassing" signs. I'd be giving away kites now if that were the case.

Txshooter38 - 6-5-2011 at 08:59 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Seanny
The cops here are far too busy taking care of dirty, gritty, real cop work (pulling people over for speeding) to bother with things like robberies, meth labs, and the worst of all: kite flyers.


Seanny, let us know after you have extracted your first dismembared person from a speeding car. Then you may be qualified to intelligently comment on what cops do and why they do it....:no:

This issue is not about the police....it is about the landowner and his caretaker's perception of the use of the field.

I have to say I would hit up the land owner for sure. You may be at a slight disadvantage having already trespassed but offering to help watch the property or keep trash picked up could be the right track. Good Luck!

indigo_wolf - 6-5-2011 at 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by cheezycheese
This is the spot...


Just sent you a U2U with a bunch of info.

ATB,
Sam

cheezycheese - 6-5-2011 at 09:43 PM

Sam you are amazing !!! Columbo ain't got nothin on you...

PrairieWind - 6-5-2011 at 09:52 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbo_(TV_series)

Just so the young Seanny knows what we are talking about when we mention Columbo....

It is the TV series... not sure why the link doesn't go straight to it...

lunchbox - 6-5-2011 at 11:00 PM

Hey Sam....I had a similar issue and I wanted to contact the landowner...please tell me how you pull up that info? Thanks.

Good luck on the landowner Cheese...let us know how it goes.

shaggs2riches - 7-5-2011 at 12:37 AM

I think that if the landowner is a respectful enough person, then you should be able to come up with some sort of agreement. Sad thing that a kiter has to look at a using a field like a business proposition. If I can fly my kite in your field, I'll provide you wit "x"and "x" service. Definitely fight for it though, its not everyday you can find a spot that good. If no one is using it then who the hell cares. Guess we have it pretty good that way in Saskatchewan. If there's no crop or cows no one will really care. In town parks, people seem mostly cool about things as well. You will always find power tripping disgruntled people no matter what you do.

Good Luck
shaggs

Kamikuza - 7-5-2011 at 02:02 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by PrairieWind
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbo_(TV_series)

Just so the young Seanny knows what we are talking about when we mention Columbo....

It is the TV series... not sure why the link doesn't go straight to it...


Columbo is being shown on HD Sky TV here - been watching it since number 1 OMG where did he get that suit I want one!

kiteetik - 7-5-2011 at 07:18 AM

cheezy--i would def offer some kind of favor/service to the landowner for letting you fly--might just make the difference........

Txshooter38 - 7-5-2011 at 07:46 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by shaggs2riches
Sad thing that a kiter has to look at a using a field like a business proposition. If I can fly my kite in your field, I'll provide you wit "x"and "x" service.


Shaggs is right it is sad. You would hope that people would be forward thinking enough to realize that you are not hurting anything but......

The problem is with the 100 people before you that came on the property and left trash, tore something up, etc.

In the end though we are talking about using someone else's personal property and that requires getting permission/striking a deal. I really do think if you find this guy, take him to lunch, apologize for trespassing,(if he knows) and discuss options this has a good chance of working out.

I see a tendency with kiters (myself included) to have a mindset of "it is better to ask for forgiveness then permission" We should all be aware of this and guard ourselves against walking down that road.

It is important for us to respect each others personal property...including those that own land and do not fly kites or want to share their property.

---Ok off soapbox....

Feyd - 7-5-2011 at 09:08 AM

I'm with Txshooter38. There are times that I've poached under the "Ask forgiveness" premise. Mostly to get access to lakes that have no public access. A lot of the fields we have here are under "current use" statutes which means they are private property but must allow access to public land users in exchange for tax breaks etc.

We have lost a few good spots locally because one kiter decided that he needed to ride more than he needed to be a good representative of the local kiting community. We regained one spot, but another is off limits for good. One spot was a huge field and he actually lied that land owner and the other spot was a local school that he and a friend kept going to during school hours AFTER THEY HAD BEEN ASKED NOT TO RIDE DURING SCHOOL HOURS.

He's one of these guys that tags all the signs at the kite spots with Ozone stickys. Really, what makes him think the conservation committee wants to see that stuff?

I'm not saying that you're anything like that Cheezy. Your a good cat and I think you're just in a tough situation. The land owner probably doesn't give a damn if you kite there unless he's liabilty shy. The caretaker may just be on a power trip or just have been having a bad day.

I would try to work it out, but be prepared to be shut down. It doesn't help your position that the land was posted. But if they haven't said anything until now that's a good sign.

I hope it all works out!

Seanny - 7-5-2011 at 09:46 AM

You guys must really not like me lol. Don't take me so seriously :P

I live in a small town; the city police force only has 6 cars or so. They really do spend all of their time pulling people over... the vast majority of them going 60 in a 55. I've been pulled over for going 57 in a 55 :lol: we are something like 15% over the allowed revenue that can come into the city from speeding tickets. The county police aren't any better... they'll stick you in prison for J walking.

I have seen Columbo before. And I enjoy it, too. :)

We own land and we're friends with many other people who own land also. I agree with Angus. Most land owners are pretty cool about this kind of thing, as long as you aren't destroying anything or disrupting any wildlife. The guy who owns the property shouldn't have a problem with you flying a kite there.

lunchbox - 7-5-2011 at 10:30 AM

Quote:

the vast majority of them going 60 in a 55.


They'd make a fortune over here in L.A. That's what we do when it's 35mph! ;-)

shaggs2riches - 7-5-2011 at 12:42 PM

Yes I definitely don't support the do what you want mentality. My friend and I have a sweet spot and have decided to limit the people we bring there. Next thing you know it your friend will bring their friend and it will turn into a free-for-all of people leaving garbage and destroying things. Its just the way our society has gotten, you need to protect your property or else someone will destroy it. If the landowner sees that you are willing to work to keep that space clean and in good order, then it would be easier to keep yourself in his good books.

cheezycheese - 7-5-2011 at 02:09 PM

Yeah, I'm with you all in the opinion of bartering for my fun. I'm not afraid of a little work. I'm also pretty sure this was just a case of the hate patrol coming at me with a little power trip thrown in. I have in the past made several attempts to get permission. I have left my number with whomever I have seen on the property in the hopes it would be forwarded to the owner. But nothing.... So I figured if I just start flying then maybe someone would approach me. I just wasn't expecting the hostility that I received. If it weren't for the fact that I was wrong for being there his approach could easily been considered provoking... However I know how to pick and choose my battles. And there's no glory in arguing with the low man on the pole. I just couldn't help myself any longer. This spot is the first thing I see every day when I get off the parkway... Talk about temptation. Most of the time it's overgrown and unridable but they cut it in the fall and that was it... My first run across that field was like WOW!!!!
So I will approach this diplomatically and with kid gloves and see what happens...

Feyd - 7-5-2011 at 03:39 PM

It will be interesting to see how this works out. Cheezy I don't know you well but I know you well enough to know you're not some d-bag yahoo or some meat head leader of a dude squad. I'm confident you'll deal with this as well as it can be dealt with.

This whole kite thing is really a mixed bag participation wise. I love kiting. I love kiting with other people. I love teaching other people to kite.

But when it comes to sharing location info I'm a little apprehensive. I've seen it a million times in mountain biking. You have a good trail, or build a good trail and once the word gets out it all goes to crap. Either the neophites come in droves and skid the hell out of it and cause erosion or the dude squads come in and trash the place and leave garbage all over.

With the kite thing it's even more delicate because it's so different and alien to a lot of people. And all you need is one idiot to go out at your local spot, have an accident or do something disrespectful to a local and it gets shut down. We're very selective about who we bring out and if they aren't operating under our rules we don't share local spot info.

I can't keep the idiots from ruining things for us but I'm not going to help them either.

Good luck with this Cheezy. I'm really hoping it works out for you.

It's rare to get to follow this sort of thing in real time so keep us up to date. It will be a good learning opportunity I think.

cheezycheese - 7-5-2011 at 04:27 PM

Well I know I am the only kiter in the area, however in the winter when the snow is down the field is covered with snowmobile tracks. I leave ZERO footprint when I am out there. Who knows... Will definitely keep everyone updated...:Ange09:

kiteetik - 7-5-2011 at 05:22 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by cheezycheese
Yeah, I'm with you all in the opinion of bartering for my fun. I'm not afraid of a little work. I'm also pretty sure this was just a case of the hate patrol coming at me with a little power trip thrown in. I have in the past made several attempts to get permission. I have left my number with whomever I have seen on the property in the hopes it would be forwarded to the owner. But nothing.... So I figured if I just start flying then maybe someone would approach me. I just wasn't expecting the hostility that I received. If it weren't for the fact that I was wrong for being there his approach could easily been considered provoking... However I know how to pick and choose my battles. And there's no glory in arguing with the low man on the pole. I just couldn't help myself any longer. This spot is the first thing I see every day when I get off the parkway... Talk about temptation. Most of the time it's overgrown and unridable but they cut it in the fall and that was it... My first run across that field was like WOW!!!!
So I will approach this diplomatically and with kid gloves and see what happens...
dont take it personally--there are great people everywhere, and also everywhere, unfortunmately, are the buttheads---just remember--living well is the best revenge and that starts with keeping your fav spot!

cheezycheese - 29-5-2011 at 01:56 PM

WWWWOOOOWWWW!!!!! :mad: Talk about sending a message.... The field was mowed this week, and they left a 2-3 foot thick perimeter wall of grass uncut. The grass is at least waist high already, and this "wall" surrounds any access point i had from the road..... Jeez :thumbdown::thumbdown::thumbdown:

flyguy0101 - 29-5-2011 at 04:15 PM

Marc,
Did you ever have any success contacting the owner, I recently was approached by a neighbor when heading out fishing on a private access- he was very confrontational until i explained that the owner had given me permission and he saw that i was carrying a garbage bag to pick up some trash that i had seen there the last time i was there. Immediately changed his tune, but like someone else said i do NOT take friends there because i dont want it to become an issue. Now on the flip side i am one of those pain in the ass landowners- we have a cabin on a small river that we had to post- i orginally had given a couple of neighbor teenagers the okay to fish when we were not there and it quickly turned into people using our Driveway as a parking lot to get to the river- so for the last two years I have unfortunetly told everyone who asks no even though i am sure some of them would have been okay. I suspect that in a year or two, i might say yes again to someone if they approach me but will explain it is for them only and if others show up offer would be recinded. Also for what it is worth i actually have been sending/delivering a small token of appreciation in the spring and christmas as a way to say thank you.
scott

Kamikuza - 29-5-2011 at 05:22 PM

That sucks :( funny thing is, you get the same response from caretakers here - caretakers of public tax-funded state-run parks :o

austexblo - 6-4-2013 at 07:47 AM

Ya know, it is paramount that the landowner is on our side! I own a few properties around the country, and even though I fly paragliders, I would be pissed to find people using my land without my permission! Paragliding, in the early days, had to deal with the same thing. Lesson number 1. Always be respectful and patient with the land owner, cos' in reality, it is his/her private property, not our personal playground.

Bladerunner - 6-4-2013 at 10:20 AM

I know this is an old thread . I looked it through and see that My #1 reason for being shut out by land owners was Liability . It didn't seem to be addressed ?


Now that we have NAPKA if the land owner has liability issues you can join up and get a certificate of insurance for the site. Even if you are holding a practice event and only 1 shows up . One more tool for winning over land owners ! :cool2:

austexblo - 6-4-2013 at 11:31 AM

Great news! It is much easier to deal with the general population's image of Kiting, clearly and professionally. This will enhance the reputation of kiters everywhere, and hopefully prod landowners to see for themselves how this sport works. Also, knowing there is a reputable release form from ANY liabilities, will put people's mind at rest. Sorry this was such a long ramble.

austexblo - 6-4-2013 at 11:31 AM

Great news! It is much easier to deal with the general population's image of Kiting, clearly and professionally. This will enhance the reputation of kiters everywhere, and hopefully prod landowners to see for themselves how this sport works. Also, knowing there is a reputable release form from ANY liabilities, will put people's mind at rest. Sorry this was such a long ramble.