By Lee Toy
Vol. 3 No.6 – Nov. – Dec. 1980

tails of the city.

FLASH – ZAP – WHOOPEE
We’re legal now! Up until Oct. 26, 1980 we have been flying kites at the Marina Green in violation of Sect. 28 of the POLICE CODE. Mayor Feinstein signed ordinance #458-80 which in effect removes the necessity of obtaining a police permit for flying kites. It does, however, prohibit flying within 25 feet of high voltage conductors or transmission towers. (which we should do regardless)

We’ll have celebrated this historical event by the time you read this but will schedule another kite fly next year around this time to mark it’s importance in Marina Green’s kite flying history.

the 3rd annual aka convention…

There was so much going on it’s really difficult to know where to begin. The Third Annual AKA Convention in Seattle was an overwhelming success despite the winds lack of involvement for the kite contest.

Each day was filled with meeting people we have all heard about in one way or another but had never met. Ideas and information we’re shared and friendships made.

The number of registered partic-ipants was 157 and the list reads like a Who’s Who of the kite community. Thirty states were represented as well as Japan, New Zeland and Canada.

On the first day of the convention we had the General Business Meeting in the morning, followed by workshops and seminars in the afternoon.

That evening we had the banquet at Ivar’s Indian Salmon House. We were served some of the best tasting Salmon I’ve ever tasted and had some speeches and awards for dessert.

Some of the more notable Awards:

Bob Ingraham – for founding the AKA
Red Braswell – For his term in office as President
Dom Jalbert – Parafoil design and research

Everyone joined in cheering the Washington Kitefliers Association for a job well done, and so ended the Third Annual AKA Con-vention.

For those of you who did not attend the convention but would like to see photos of the event Marty Dowling took roll after roll of almost everything of interest and then some. Next time you run into him at the Green ask him for a peek.

George was surprized when the Edmonds Community College presented him with a beautiful plawe commemorating the Giant kite and thanking him for his time and efforts in Seattle.

Sam Urner was up at the convention with one of Tom Henry’s J-10 fighting-foils which he was able to talk with Dom J. about for a while during one of the Giant Parafoil lauching breaks. As Sam explained to Dom, “It’s not unstable it’s manuverable…that’s the way Tom makes them..” Dom replied that “It was not unusual for it to be unstable since that’s the way Tom is…”and after fiddling around with the bridle connections took out the fight an put in some stability.

a day on the green

The Green has been quite busy in the past few weeks before and after the AKA Convention. Curtis Marshall came from Maryland, Nishibayashi from Japan,Rodney Ballingham from Salt Lake City, Utah, and Jim of the Grand Master Kites was down from Oregon.

Curtis brought a collection of the “Delta-Conye” in the 14′ and 24′ size. The 24′ one is the kite that took top honors at the Smithsonian Kite Festival last year. Curt also brought along “CLAUDIUS” a combination of a 100 sq. ft. parafoil and a Lobster (Maine of course!). It was voted spectator’s choice at the Convention. A real work of inventiveness and hard work. While he was here Tom Henry and George Ham helped to adjust it’s bridle which was giving Curt some problems.


Nishi had an assortment of new kites he had been designing. One was a fighter kite with a portrait of himself on it to very good likeness too).

He had his friendship Delta with a long tail message for the Convention kite fly. He also flew an Airplane style kite that placed in the “Most Beautiful” contest in Seattle.


Rodney brought some interesting looking kites which were also along the parafoil design. One was decor-rated with zebra stripes and flew quite nicely. He says that where he lives in Utah there are not many fliers but when they do go out and fly each flier will put up a half a dozen or more kites and it will look like there is an army of fliers out enjoying a great day. I guess we’re pretty fortunate to have enough interested folks around that we never have that problem, in fact we probably have the opposite one

After the AKA convention we were fortunate to have Bob and Jewell Price, Burtonsville,Maryland and Clyde and Dorothy Smith from Belleville, Michigan drop by the Green to share some air with us.

Bob brought several nicely made 8′ tall hollow wooden spared Box kites that flew like a dream. He tried to take a couple pictures of Alcatraz Is. with his flying camera but the winds were not quite strong enough to lift on this day.

Bob also brought along his famous Hobby Horse Reel for flying his kites from. He can sit on his “horse” and reel in or let out line by pedeling. You can bet he attracted a few courious onlookers with that reel!

Clyde has only been into kite flying for a relatively short time and has just introduced his son-in-law to the joys(?) of kiting. Bud and Nancy live in So. San Francisco so we hope to see them on the Green in the future. Clyde brought a beautiful kite made by Lois Clark (Provo, Utah) called “Saggiteraus” a cloth fighter kite that seemed to enjoy it’s new home. Clyde flew a variety of delta kites that he has designed and Dorothy sews. (have you put in any time on the sewing machine yet, Clyde?)

Clyde’s 12′ delta is bright green with an applique of his sailboat -“Lie Lina” sewn on it. He sails on Lake Erie around the South Bass Is. and “Put-In-Bay” (for you historical buffs “Put-In-Bay” is famous for Commodore Perry’s fight with the British) He also had a delta that was in red,white and blue that he flies with the 5/20 group in Detroit.

Clyde told us that he flies off the back of his sailboat sometimes which sounded quite nice.

Geoffery and I taught Bud and Clyde the finer art of Parafoil fighting with a couple of J-10’s of Tom’s design and I believe they are hooked and not afraid to try it again. Clyde had tried to construct or should I say Dorothy made a parafoil from one of the kite books out but due to some unfortunate choice of materials it flew more like a brick than a kite. George calls ’em HANGERS which in other words means a kite to hang on the wall for decoration, which Clyde may end up doing. We did send Clyde off with some spinnaker cloth and a pattern for a J-10 so we’ll just have to wait for the results.


While there are some kites that fly with very little wind, none of them fly very long with none and then only when powered by someone willing to make a quick run into the direction the wind would be blowing if there was any wind. This is quite academic, of course but it points up the fact of wind failure—at the Third Annual Meeting of the American Kitefliers Association. While there was some wind, there never was enough to sustain even the lightest kite for very long. But, was that all bad?

When the dates for kite flys are set, no one can determine what the weather will be. For some perverse reason the weather is seldom good for the kiteflying day designated. It is usually good the day before and almost always the day after, but I have attended more bad day kite flys than good ones and can vouch for this perversity.

As a matter of fact, the kitefly day of the Seattle convention was a blessing in disguise. It wasn’t windy enough but it didn’t rain either and that would have been far worse than a windless day.

At no time were there many kites in the air at one time. But, everyone there did a run-up with his or her kite and showed them off to perhaps even better advantage than if they were up there among hundreds of others.

We don’t want to imply that we think all kiteflys should be windless but after Ocean City and Long Beach with 35 m.p.h. winds and stinging sand, we happily settled for the lovely warm day with only puffs of wind in Seattle, the great sociability and camraderie and the beautiful kites.

I might add that the convention in general was a 100% success and no amount of imagination can comprehend the amount of work and detail that was involved. The Washington Kitefliers Association, one of the two most successful chapters of AKA, staged a wonderful convention that will never be forgotten.

directory assistance

For anyone looking for a kite flying pen pal in BRAZIL we have received the following in the mail:
Dear Kite Flyer, I’m getting involved in kites and kite flying here in Brasil and need help in order to be informed.

Any kind of information on this nice subject is really welcomed: catalogs, newsletters, samples of material, old magazines, addresses for contacts, plans and designs for new models, anything is useful.

I’m starting a research on Brasilian kites and I can send it to you in exchange, as soon as it is completed.

Thank you for your attention and I hope to hear from you. Truely yours, Patricia Golovanevsky.

Patricia Golovanevsky
Rua Piracicaba, 128 – Sumare CEP.:01254 SgO Paulo- SP
Brazil

ed. I don’t know how she found out about us, but if you want to find out more about her – WRITE letters mingle souls….

what’s up,

An exhibit of kite, SKY SCULPTURE, is being organized by the Ball State Art Gallery in the spring of 1981 (April 5-May 31) The show will include selected kites of ethnic origins and creative designs by contemporary kite artists.

We are now contacting you to invite your participation. If interested, please submit slides/photographs of your work which you would consider loaning for the exhibit. November 22, 1980 is the deadline for accepting photographs, which will be returned at a later date. To accomodate our facility, the kites should not exceed an 8 foot span. All pieces will be insured from point of departure to return (wall-to-wall coverage).

Also, the gallery does not ask any commission on items sold.

We are anticipating a unique and exciting show.
For additional information, please write or call: Anne Moore, Curator of Education, Ball State University, Art Gallery, Muncie, Indiana, 47306 Phone: (317) 285-5242

kite flyer’s kite of the month

Joe Frias is no stranger to Marina Green but only recently at Kite Flyer’s ever present peer pressure asked him to put his KITE where his mouth was and – voila – one week later up popped a beautiful yellow “Brazilian” Fighter Kite with a unique cotton ball tail. It’s pre-sence on the Green gathered lots of fcLks and also this month’s kite design. The kite is of the design that Joe remembers as a child while growing up in Sao Luis, Maranha75, a Northern state in Brazil. The kite flies with a distinctive “shimmering” not–unlike –a—time—cut of alignment.
The Brazilians have their own style of kite fighting and although they also use glassed line for cutting an opponent’s line the hand techniques are quite unique from their Indian conterparts.

…and now a Christmas. word
from our sponsors

With Thanksgiving almost upon us,can Xmas be far behind? Here are some HOT items for the KITE FLYER on your list.

A gift subscription to KITE FLYER is $5.00/year. Let us know who you want a gift subscription sent to and we’ll send a Xmas card with your name and enter his/or hers on our mailing list.

3/4 oz. Spinnaker cloth is light weight material for making durable kites. Recipient should know or be willing to learn how to sew. See our Spinaker Cloth notice for details.

Nishi’s Book of Kites ( see pg. 2) $5.50 postage paid. These books are signed by Nishi. Some knowledge of Japanese woul be helpful but not necessary as pictures are worth a thousand words….

spinnaker cloth

We will be offering the following material for sale in limited quan-ities, subject to prior sale:
3/4 oz. Spinnaker cloth 41″ wide for $2.50/yard. Colors: purple,red, dark blue and light blue. Min. order is 5 yards of any combination of colors and yardage available. Please note second choice on all colors.
Add $ 1.50 for postage.
Note: There is a lot of Lt. blue in any amount of length.
If you would like a sample of the colors and weight of the fabric, send a *s.ai. to :
Leland Toy, 1883 Grand View Dr. Oakland, Ca. 9 4 6 18

one above fold.

“One above the fold” is a term used in reference to getting your name and or photo in local news media ie.Newspaper.

But what about “Prime Time”? San Francisco’s Marina Green kitefliers George Ham, Mix Mc Graw and Raymond Lee were seen on AM America several weeks ago. The calls and letters of long lost relatives are still arriving.

By way of standard reference–KITE FLYER NEWS is available six times a year (weather permitting) at the minimal cost of a trip to Doggie Diner–$5.00 a shot. Send all money, trading stamps or gold bars to 861 Clara Drive, Palo Alto, CA 94303.