Power Kite Forum

Jumping technique

wexler - 9-2-2008 at 07:39 PM

I was wondering, kites pick me up but when i jump it just gives me alot of distance. What is the best way to get the highest jumps???:puzzled:

BeamerBob - 9-2-2008 at 08:15 PM

I showed him this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCWbIesHAnQ&feature=relat...

Bladerunner - 9-2-2008 at 08:30 PM

2 things that may help.
Hold out until you are being ripped away.
Redirect the kite harder.

wexler - 10-2-2008 at 12:49 PM

O ok thanks ill try that

USA_Eli_A - 10-2-2008 at 01:23 PM

high jumps, big fast kites in high winds. A nice swing away from the direction you traveling, bring the kite back around for landings. The classic 'run and jump' will help. Remember not to reach for the ground with your legs. just hold good form until it's time to land. Big kites will let you down easy. with small kites well you better know what a PFL is before you try that one.

wexler - 10-2-2008 at 01:58 PM

I have learned not to try jumps with small kites

Sthrasher38 - 10-2-2008 at 02:41 PM

Bigger kite big wind! Be careful!!

NPWfever - 10-2-2008 at 07:10 PM

Hey Wex? Whats with the sudden posting fever??

strictlycarved - 10-2-2008 at 07:15 PM

actually thats a pretty good video, is their a difference with a bar i haven't had much success with a bar it still works but handles are just easier, any tips.

wexler - 11-2-2008 at 03:18 PM

Woulden't jumping be easier with a bar. I have never flown with a bar before but it looks like it would be easier.

strictlycarved - 11-2-2008 at 03:48 PM

its easier when your moving but static is a little different.

USA_Eli_A - 11-2-2008 at 04:12 PM

wexler is obviously a pretty good kite flyer if he's looking to jump, jumping is easier with big kites, but as you've read, be careful.

i think handles make it a little easier

be safe!

wexler - 11-2-2008 at 04:36 PM

So Handles are easier to jump with I would have thought a bar would be better because you are hooked on to the kite

Sthrasher38 - 11-2-2008 at 05:12 PM

Jumping with handles to me is better because you can hit the brakes And I seem to have better control with them I have not had to much time in on a bar but I think with them you may want to look into de-power kites. Jumping on a bar with no way to control power is being at the mercey of the wind. and in the wrong conditions can get pretty vicious!:borg: The Blade that is in my Avatar came with a bar But turning is alot more slow I think bars are better for buggying.

Bladerunner - 11-2-2008 at 05:33 PM

I think you can probably get more out of a fixed bridle + be a bit safer on handles. You can jump hooked in with handles or a bar but I suggest you get it down unhooked. One advantage to jumping with a bar is that you aren't going to mess up and apply the brakes without knowing it.

Jumping with a bar and a depower kite is a different game. Then you are better off hooked in so you can trim the kite as you jump.

wexler - 11-2-2008 at 06:41 PM

I didnt know it was possible to hook in with handles:o

NPWfever - 11-2-2008 at 08:39 PM

YAP, strop line, being the son or beamer bob im a bit surprised you don't know this!!! Bob you gotta step up to the plate here man, I can't hold his hand all the time!!! :smilegrin: Just search for strop line on here.

BeamerBob - 12-2-2008 at 05:31 AM

Oh NPW I REALLY don't want you holding his hand! Just the other day he was wanting to jump off the roof with his skateboard. Jumping off the garbage can just wasn't the thrill it once was. :puzzled: I've given the advice of ask me before you ask on the forum, and then if I don't know or don't know enough then say so while asking on the forum. For some reason, I didn't exactly get through though. I'm surprised since he ALWAYS does exactly what I suggest. :rolleyes: The other side of this is that since he has just started on here, he doesn't know that I'm knowledgeable about things he's never seen me do. He hops out of the car and everything is magically in the bag (that I packed and carried) right there on the field. All the lines are attached and adjusted. He's never had to tie a larkshead. Some day he will take ME kite flying though.

Bladerunner - 12-2-2008 at 11:11 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BeamerBob

Some day he will take ME kite flying though.


Thus completing the circle of life.
Can you even Imagine what type of toys Wexler's kid will have when the tables are turned ? :o

BeamerBob - 12-2-2008 at 11:28 AM

Oh, it can't really get any better than it is today. Can it?:wink2: I'm reminded of a fateful comment an uncle made to my mom in 1984. "This computer has 16 kilobytes of memory. That's more than you will ever need". This computer has 4 gigabytes and I get "out of memory" messages.

BeamerBob - 12-2-2008 at 12:58 PM

Ok, back on topic here. I just bought a wichard release on ebay and hope it is the right thing. I looked at West Marine and found a nice one for $100. Uh uh. Checked on ebay and found one that looks suitable for $15. Does this look ok?

release listing

Sthrasher38 - 12-2-2008 at 06:27 PM

Bob do you think you are ready to be strapped to a kite?

BeamerBob - 12-2-2008 at 07:33 PM

Not to the blade in 20 mph gusts but I'm ok with a kite suitable for conditions. I take things slow at first and feel my way through it. I never have strapped in because I've had no way out. You worried about me Thrasher? :thumbup:

Sthrasher38 - 12-2-2008 at 07:47 PM

Well hell yea!! We can't: be getting hurt at this point in the game. I have just been thinking about getting a harness Also. But being pretty new to this buggy thing I am glad for kite killers Because if I get over powered or lose it in a turn I can just let go. And if I am strapped in and just let go and forget to un hook. Not good! So for me one thing at a time. In water it would be a little less scary getting dragged around.But After NABX getting to see some styles and tandem with some pros I may have a different outlook on being straped in.:smilegrin:

BeamerBob - 12-2-2008 at 07:54 PM

Well thanks. Like I said, I won't be hooking in at first in a situation I could even envision having to use KKs. I'll rig up something large that I can get hold of in a hurry if I need to actuate the release. I hope it comes in by this weekend. If you use a pulley with a strop, what goes flying with your handles if you trip the release? If you hook the pulley to the release, it is going to go flying with some momentum.

Bladerunner - 12-2-2008 at 08:19 PM

Flying hooked in is kind of like starting out with kites. At 1st it's all poopy pants scarey and then it's, why the heck wasn't I doing THIS ALL ALONG !!!! I'm a carefull old sod not far ahead of you 2 and for a long time now I have felt odd NOT hooking in. In MANY WAYS it is a safer way to go. Definately extends your fly time to.... as long as you want !!!!
TRY IT...... you'll like it !
I PROMISE !!!!!

You guys think hooking in is dangerous and I think static jumping is ? Must be a Canada , U.S. thing :wink2:

BeamerBob - 13-2-2008 at 07:00 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BeamerBob
Ok, back on topic here. I just bought a wichard release on ebay and hope it is the right thing. I looked at West Marine and found a nice one for $100. Uh uh. Checked on ebay and found one that looks suitable for $15. Does this look ok?

release listing

bump
I was hoping for some feedback on the release I have on the way. Any opinions out there? Well opinions on the release that is.:lol:
please click on "release listing" in my quote above.

NPWfever - 13-2-2008 at 09:18 AM

Looks good to me, should release under load and should let it go. And I hook in all the time when I static anything, except when I jump, then I land undo the strop and then you can get a better throw on the turns and better jumps. And hooking a strop into a climing harness isn't that bad, just hold the QR and pulley (grab it right above the pulley on the line) with your right hand and open the beaner with your left hand. Now I just need to get a QR.......:o Yeah I know I should at least use a homeade QR like that pin tube one I saw on here. Issue is I need $ for PG and $20 for a QR takes that away. Speaking of which, does anyone want to donate to www.helpnickbuyaparaglider.com ?? BTW its not real, don't waste your time. But really though I have lots of photographs for sale, HELP!!!!! :smug:

BeamerBob - 13-2-2008 at 09:37 AM

Yeah, the $17 I spent on the QR came from my newly formed Blade fund. My stars are aligning though. The crystal ball shows a blade 6.5 in my future.

macboy - 13-2-2008 at 10:23 AM

I've seen a few guys using a release that looks like that. Looks like a pin release? I picked up a different one that has served me well. Paid $80 for it and I think when the primary purpose is to let go when the s#!t hits the fan you can't cheap out. My only concern with the pin release was that I didn't know how it would behave if it was under extreme load. The Wichard I have seems to let go no problem (I tested it hanging from my harness and it dropped me to the floor like there was no load on it at all (quite a funny scene if you imagine it) yet it holds tight and doesn't seem too likely that it'll accidentally release.

There's a picture here:
http://www.kitesurfari.com/store/wichard.html

feral - 21-3-2008 at 10:50 AM

Hey, I've watched the video and read most of the posts on this, but I still don't quite understand how exactly do you redirect the kite so that it won't drop you as fast?

BeamerBob - 21-3-2008 at 11:00 AM

It is two-fold. You have to be able to turn your kite at the right time, and your kite has to have the ability to be turned that well. You should already be turning the kite when you jump so while you are in the air, your kite is heading back overhead. Then it will float you down. The thing that I finally got was to run at about a 30 degree angle into the wind. That is what puts you in opposition to the kite to get it to lift you. It is tough to have a kite big enough to float and lift you AND have enough turning ability to be where you need it to be.

USA_Eli_A - 21-3-2008 at 11:10 AM

think zenith is 12 o-clock, to float down, keep the kite between 10 and 2 o-clock, you can even work it from 10 over to 2, back and forth and you'll stay aloft longer. If you take your kite past 10 or 2 that will bring you in for a fast landing.

wexler - 21-3-2008 at 11:58 AM

When I jump it is almost instinct to turn the kite around I do it without thinking.

USA_Eli_A - 21-3-2008 at 12:03 PM

check this out. this kid I know 'kelton' jumps of huge dunes with Yakuza's, he can loop it twice before he lands....another kid micheal got it down too, 2 maybe 3 loops off 'run and jump'

http://www.pbase.com/justcaws/big_jumps_2006aug

wexler - 21-3-2008 at 12:11 PM

That looks like sooooooooooo much fun.:singing:

Sthrasher38 - 21-3-2008 at 06:14 PM

Nice jumps.

Baluk - 21-3-2008 at 09:42 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by USA_Eli_A
check this out. this kid I know 'kelton' jumps of huge dunes with Yakuza's, he can loop it twice before he lands....another kid micheal got it down too, 2 maybe 3 loops off 'run and jump'

http://www.pbase.com/justcaws/big_jumps_2006aug



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