THE KITEFLIER ISSU£ i37 APRIL 2001 PRICE£1.90 -~ ! ~· 0 •.. •I The one stop kite shop we have the lot!! Phone; 01582 662779 Em ail; kitcs@dunsta bJe-ltites.co. ul{ Fax; 01582 666374 Web; www.dunstable-ltites.co.uk ..,- a c: e0 fi 0-· I I I -f ~PIRAGLYf!le ~ · 0- ..1:! • Ill -J- =11 a11 0 W nDSOCKS ·tnDGR El 11 .CH JHE T€RJ. c. The Kite Society of Great Britain P. O. Box 2274 Gt Horkesley In this issue: Colchester Paul Chapman in Essex India CO6 4AY LeCornu revisited Tel/Fax: 01206 271489 Email: [email protected] Cody Kite design http://www.thekitesociety.org.uk The Kite Society 2001 Kite Directo- ry Weymouth final Editorial details Dear Reader We have an interesting line up of talks for the convention, including the first UK appearance of the This is the start of, what may well Letters 4 Drachen Foundation with some of be, an unusual kite flying season. their fascinating archival material, Of course as users of many places and we look forward to seeing as Step Ladder 5 that are deemed to be country- many of you as possible at the Kite side we should all be concerned event. about the current Foot and Mouth situation and do all we can to Event News 8 avoid the risk of spreading this The convention is free, with the any further. exception of the two workshops to Bits and Pieces 11 which a few places are still availa- ble. See page 15 for some more Some festivals are at risk of can- details and the timetable of both Ron Gunter 13 cellation - Stowe has already the convention and the festival. been cancelled and both the Suf- folk Kite festival at Rougham and Kite Design 14 the Swindon Kite Festival are po- Remember the Kite Society Auc- tential cancellations. We suggest tion—this is taking place in the that you contact the ORGANISERS Weymouth Pavilion Saturday Weymouth 2001 15 of the event to double check be- evening from 9:00pm, after the fore travelling. civic reception. All are welcome to attend this. It may the chance Events List 16 to acquire an unusual item! We will strive to have up to date information on the web site so Membership 18 keep checking! Gill and Jon Form Fortunately Weymouth is not one Kite Society 20 of site where F&M can affect it. Directory The Kite Society convention and the Kite Festival are both going India Travels 26 ahead. Aerodyne 28 Front Cover. A blast from the past. Nick Morse showing Midlands Extra 34 off one of his ‘perfect’ Cody kites. Roman Candle 40 Whilst every effort is taken to get the details correct The Kite Society cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions that occur. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the Editors or The Kite Society. Page 4 The Kiteflier, Issue Wall Street Journal Dieppe Night Flight WALL STREET JOURNAL'S George Webster's 'Recollections of spotlights many times, getting small- QUEST FOR A KITE TURNS the 2000 season' and his mention of er each time as it went higher and UP HOT ONE-ON-ONE TALK the big black bats at Basingstoke set higher, and the white leaf shapes (6 Friday, me remembering the night flight at or 8 of them) had a life of their own. Dieppe 2000. We were there for the March 09 04:44 p.m. The last 4 days and found it quite a con- Then the BATS!! I had to laugh out Wall Street Journal's trast to the 1998 festival. It may loud as they careered around, flap- search for a simple kite have been the World Championships ping madly as they sought and failed that gave a different feel to it last to catch their supper. There were turned time - or the weather. two black ones and a white cousin, out to be more complicated all 2-3 metres across. WONDER- -- and XXX-rated -- than Anyway. We'd had quite a busy three FUL !! the paper's Catalog Critic days and watched the spectacle from ever imagined. our motor caravan for a while, then I Eric had arrived by then and was HAD to be amongst 'em. I took my also entranced by it all, capturing it A story in Friday's seagull as an excuse (though it was on video. George's article prompted Weekend Journal on finding a bit windy for it) and WOW!! What a me to transfer it onto the home vid- "a foolproof kite for kids" difference it made to the experience. eo and so be able to re-live the night led the paper to five It was (I imagine) like being 'high' or flight in a small [square] way. models in particular. Since on a 'trip', the kites seemingly ap- one was sold pearing and disappearing as the If there's a night flight around - BE by eToys, the e-commerce lights caught them for a moment, THERE. site that recently went out some of them darted to and fro while of business, the Journal others sat steadily, their long silver Sue Storey helpfully provided the tails shining in the light. The red and manufacturer's phone yellow salamander was caught in the number -- which, unfortunately, had one digit wrong. The Handbook over Time So instead of finding the 1998 Kite Trade Directory (booklet). home of the Sky Pilot 102 entries (including one from 2000 Kite Trade Directory (in maga- Collapsible Kite (which the Guernsey and one kite holiday com- zine). 62 entries (including 2 from paper ranked as the best pany). the Channel Isles and 1 kite holiday value), seekers of a 1998 Kite Group Directory. 33 company) child's toy were referred on groups including STACK. 2000 Kite Group Directory. 34 to a second number. "Hi groups including STACK and 3 late Guys," that message says. 1999 Kite Trade Directory (Booklet). entries. "Welcome to an exciting 72 entries (including 3 from the new way to go live and one Channel Isles and 1 kite holiday As you can see there has been a no- -on-one with hot, horny company) ticeable drop in kite traders but the girls waiting right now to 1999 Kite Group Directory. 29 en- groups have remained about the talk to you. Get ready to tries including STACK same. get off with real working Editorial April 1999 reported 170 girls, housewives, students questionnaires sent out, approxi- David Webster and fantasy girls." mately 80 replies. While there were no kites to An Appreciation be found, live amateur talk I’m sure we have all been supporting sponsorship and now of course the was available for $.99 per dreaded F & M. minute, and live the battle against foot & mouth and our sympathies are with the flood fantasy talk costs just victims (not news items any more!) As a dedicated attendee of events $2.99 per minute. A but what a rotten winter we’ve had! whenever time allows please let me spokesman for the Wall say to all those who worked so hard Street Dark nights, lousy weather at week- last year and are going to do it again Journal says the mistake ends, flooded flying fields, cancelled this year – thanks – there are so was a simple typographical events and now even fewer places to many that appreciate it – and that error and a correction go enjoy our sport. includes you Gill and Jon at “The will run in the paper on Kiteflier” Monday. A few less festivals too this year I hear – not because of lack of enthu- Allan Pothecary siasm for taking on the seemingly thankless tasks just lack of time or The Kiteflier, Issue Page 5 The Step Ladder Kite A variation of Joseph Lecornu’s orginal “Etagere” two pieces of ripstop on each corner, which are 3 design Invented in 1898 inches long by 1 ½ inches wide. These tabs will overhang from the pocket to accept an 8 inch lon- After the article in the January 2001 of the Kite So- geron. ciety magazine regarding Lecornu and his Waffle 7. Next cut lengths of cane which will be just un- Kite, I have set out a plan on a variation of his Shelf der 8 inches long and insert these into the pockets or Ladder kite, which was also mentioned. and sew either end of pockets. Lecornu’s original design comprised of three rectan- 8. Next cut four lengths of dowel with small gular cells stacked. (An Italian kite designer Andreas holes drilled at ¾ of an inch from either end and Casolbani has reproduced Lerconu’s original then before inserting and sewing into the ripstop “Etagere” Kite which you can find on the Internet tabs cut 4 pieces of reinforced tubing about 1 inch under Historic Kites). long and pierced at one end to then slide over the 8 inch length of dowel see fig 5b. This configuration has four cells stacked and is made much smaller than the original and is a good size for 9. On the pocket with Dacron tape sewn on the average single line kite flyer. See picture above. pierce and insert nylon or Dacron line with a button or slider for tensioning see Fig 5a. The kite is made from ripstop nylon , 6mm ramin dowel and cane (I use the green lengths obtained 10. Next cut lengths of dowel for the struts and from gardening centres). also lengths of plastic tube for the joints. The two longest lengths on the side pass through the ten- The kite measures 3 foot high by 18 inches wide and sioning cords.