So, this is something that has been in the works for some time now, and has a lot more tweaking and fiddling to be done. As a new sport kite flier, I was lucky enough to find myself arm and arm with some of the more experienced folks right off the bat. Yet, I still found it a touch frustrating to try and find the tools and resources I needed to advance or move on. Yes, there is a lot of that stuff out there, but it was difficult to find in one directory. You had to know names like 'Dodd Gross', 'Randy Greenway', 'Kitelife.com', 'John Barresi', 'Reed Designs' in order to find the information you might be looking for. The only way to find out about these somewhat obscure names?? By being in the thick of it, or hours upon hours of endless digging. As a new person, how are you to know that there is actually a difference between say the suggestions in an reliable video and a video like this:
The creator of the video is not completely wrong, but this isn't how you should learn to launch a sport kite... right?? Arguably this video has a bunch more views than some of the older more perfectly relevant stuff, so you can see why the uninitiated opens this video first. (It also is one of the first results when searching for 'how to fly a stunt kite').
The gap between the thousands that buy sport kites and think that a few crashes is all there is to flying, and the world of advanced flying full of slack line tricks and putting moves to music.... has always astonished me. There doesn't seem to be an easy bridge between the two, a definable resource that either an experienced person can easily share with a new person, or even better, a new person can find on their own; and then be inundated with the fount of knowledge that is true sport kite flying. This is the main driving reason behind why I (Nic O'Neill) created sportkite.org and the podcast. This is something you will hear me say a lot, and repeat a lot.... why? Because it is so dang important to the growth and future of our sport/hobby etc... It needs to be easier for folks to teach themselves. Nearly every other sport out there has this already clearly established, and yet, we kind of don't.
Alright, let's get to the nitty gritty, down and dirty of this sneak peek and I will get off my soap box.
I am creating a 'pipeline' of sorts. With various levels for people to learn how to fly their sport kite. Starting from a brand new person, to a beginner, an intermediate, an advanced, and maybe more. The idea being that you know roughly what to expect at each level, and what you can choose to work towards. In an age where we might not have the access to stand shoulder with the experts, or attend a festival with fifty other sport kite fliers, learning and looking to the next step has to come from ourselves. (Hopefully, it doesn't seem like I am trying to devalue or replace in person learning. That is always the best way)
So, I present to you, the fine followers and supporters of the podcast, the first beta test for the 'Brand New' level of sport kite flier. The idea is to include a few resources, links to useful websites, some in house information, videos, and the relevant podcast episodes.
Would love to hear what you think. Please keep in mind the idea for a 'brand new' vs. 'beginner' is that they need to set up their kite, launch, turn, land. Beginner starts to get into more detail, and more complex. Shoot me an email at [email protected] with your feedback. (ps. as of right now this is not fully filled out. This is a framework.)
http://www.sportkite.org/brand-new
Also check out a more in depth article about the 4 building blocks of flying I spoke of in an earlier podcast episode here: https://www.sportkite.org/post/the-four-building-blocks