Flying to very high altitudes may be the most visceral of emotions for the new kite flier. It’s so easy to just continue to let out line until your kite is out of sight – only you know that the line you’re holding is connected to a flying object far out of sight. After this first experience, most of us move on, saying, “Been there, done that,” and really never test the upper limits of our personal flying spaces. But some continue to find ways to go higher and higher.

Flying to very high altitudes may be the most visceral of emotions for the new kite flier. It’s so easy to just continue to let out line until your kite is out of sight – only you know that the line you’re holding is connected to a flying object far out of sight. After this first experience, most of us move on, saying, “Been there, done that,” and really never test the upper limits of our personal flying spaces. But some continue to find ways to go higher and higher.

Harry and Charlie Thuillier are two brothers from the United Kingdom. This August they decided to kite buggy along the coastline of Brazil from Natal to Jericoacoara. They did it without vehicle support, without being able to speak Portuguese, and having only had one lesson in kite buggying. Harry takes up the story…

It’s winter here [in New Zealand]. It’s been fairly mild, so I can’t really complain, but summer seems a long time ago. Last year I didn’t spend so much time in the seat, so when my Christmas holiday approached, I decided that I was going to ride my buggy as much as I could and jam with my buddies. I finished work on Friday, Dec. 17, 2010. I would have 18 days off and I wanted 10 rides. Not an unreasonable target if the wind blows. 

I’m sitting in my office on the 1st of November, taking stock of the interesting events of the past month. It was the 3rd of October when Ali Fujino, administrator of the Drachen Foundation, forwarded an email she had received from Carsyn Gaines, a man asking about two items he was considering bringing to market via eBay. Carsyn had already done his homework and knew a little about what he had. He knew there was one of these in the Smithsonian; he knew the Drachen Foundation might shed light on the objects.

 The oldest known kite in the world has been added to the Peter Lynn collection. Lynn is the noted kite inventor and aerodynamical theorist living in Ashburton, New Zealand.

“I have a vision of the Songlines stretching across the continents and ages; that wherever men have trodden they have left a trail of song…!” – Bruce Chatwin  There are times at the “Cordillera de los Andes,” especially in Aluminé, Neuquén, Argentina, when the wind is not particularly “kite friendly…” 

One of the first archival discussions at the Drachen Foundation came from original board member Martin Lester. It was about a rather small and nondescript canvas tube with several surprises inside: a survival kite that was meant to be launched with a flare gun, automatically opening and becoming a rigid, winged-box kite. Additionally, closer inspection of the canvas tube revealed a sophisticated line-management system that encapsulated the flying line in the walls of the tube.

Until a year or so ago, the Eddy kite was a rather boring thing in my eyes. The kite is quite nice for applications and is suitable as a fast made giveaway for children or other people interested in an easy start in kite flying. Apart from this, the kite is not anything special in structure and everyone who knows anything about kites thinks he knows nearly everything about the Eddy kite and its inventor. 

Tony Rice of Brisbane, Australia, has for years been able to live and thrive largely by giving kite workshops. Teaching all ages, he spreads joy wherever he goes. His secret is his outgoing nature.  An artist at the age of 16, he studied painting and pottery, and in that quirky but wonderful moment of life, he discovered kites. Read more in this 2005 article from the Drachen Foundation Kite Journal.