Go Fly a Kite!

Kite Festival crowd

The backdune flats

We recovered from the chili cook off and went to the SPI Annual Kite Festival the following day. This was the 13th year for this event which draws professional and amateur kiters from all over. And, it's big, drawing up to 5,000 people over a two-day period. The festival is held on a backdune flat that is ideal for kite flying, provided the wind can reach 5 knots or more and allow the kites to sail after being knocked down or disturbed by the beach's foredune. Any wind lighter than this will not clear the foredune and allow for easy kite flying, especially for the larger kites.

A professional team- 6 members

Waiting for the wind to pick up

Some larger kites

This delta has a 66' wingspan

Kites fill the sky

We had seen the kites flying en force the day before when we were out walking, so we were excited to go to the festival. We arrived around 1100, parked the car, and hauled our chairs to the area where the competition kiting was being performed. Sure enough, none of the larger kites were in the air, because the wind was less than 5 knots, but Capt. Larry remembered from his windsurfing days that the wind along the beach was often lightest in late morning. He predicted that the wind would build into the early afternoon. The kite competition was interesting with teams and individuals performing stunts with their kites to music. The announcer was very informative and provided the crowd with information about the kiters and what was involved in performing some of the stunts. We heard about the different kinds of kites- deltas, quads, reds, diamonds, sleds, roks, etc., and watched what each type can do. There were kiters from Canada, Mexico, and all over the U.S., and there were professional kiters (not sure what's involved to earn that title) as well as some very good amateurs. We thoroughly enjoyed the performances. We particularly enjoyed the team performances where up to six team members fly individual kites in unison. What some of these individuals could do with a kite was simply amazing.

The Octopus kit gets airborne

Some circular kites

Pufferfish inflatables

Around noon the wind began to pick up substantially. Some of the larger kites were finally able to be sailed. We watched the competition for another hour or so, then figured we had seen enough. We didn't want to be over exposed to the sun, and many of the performances were starting to like they were repeating themselves. We walked through the concessions area and saw a large area with some inflatables that weren't going to be airborne. On a sad note, we learned that this was going to be the last year for this event. It was hosted by a local kite shop on SPI, and we figured that it was becoming too much to put on. Seems like some of the SPI businesses and sponsors would try and find a way to keep it going. We'll see, if we come back in the future.

Kites everywhere

A kite for our Dog Lady!