Friday, September 16, 2011

Some classic kite books to check out!

Gomberg Kite Productions got its start back in the 1980's publishing books on kite flying and kite making.

In this week's "Weekly Update" on the GKPI website three of Gomberg's most popular books have been published on-line and are available for free. These books are out of print so this is an excellent gift to the kiting community to have these books available.

The books are: Stunt Kites! (1988 - 1996), The Fighter Kite Book! (1992) and Sport Kite Magic! (1996).

Here is a link to the books on the GKPI website.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Making your own kite.

Here is a link to a Bloomington Crow post about making a kite from a trash bag.

This post features MKS's own Dave Herzig.  Dave has been a member since 1987. He is a former school teacher and travels around the area putting on kite making events. He's a very busy guy.

You can see Dave in action at the Flying Colors Kite Festival on August 20th in Bloomington. watch the MKS events calendar for more information about Flying Colors 2011.

Dave will also be making kites at the Garlic Festival in Hutchinson, MN.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Kite Art on display in Clear Lake, IA

So what is art? Good question. I don't know, but I think it's something that moves you. It is something that you can hear, see, touch and it creates a feeling in you.

Tom Cross, the MKS president collects all kinds of kite memorabilia. Some of his items are currently on loan to the Hanson Gallery at the Clear Lake Arts Center in Clear Lake, IA. The items are part of an exhibit as part of the Color the Wind Kite festival on Saturday, February 19th.

The Arts center hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. The Arts Center is located at 17 S. Fourth Street. Admission is free. For information, call 641-357-1998 or visit www.clartscenter.com.


Here are some of Tom's items you can see at the exhibit.







Sunday, January 23, 2011

Winter is a great time for flying!

Most people think that kite flying is a nice three season hobby. And they would be correct, I personally think it gets way to hot in the summer...

No really, I think kites are an awesome year round activity. It can provide good exercise, get's you outside or you can even fly inside.  There are also the kite building and collecting parts of the hobby that are definitely year round. Getting out and kite flying in the winter isn't different than going out to ski, skate, sled, fish. They are all great activities.

My favorite place to fly is a frozen lake. You have some extra precautions to take, like making sure the ice is thick enough and dress for the weather.  Couple tips, you can get those little hand warmer packets cheap at your local outdoors stores. Activate them about 1/2 hour before you go out and put a couple in your boots.  Keep one in your pocket for your fingers too.  Also, you can get ice cleats cheap to help you get some traction on the ice.  Then use common sense and dress in layers. Bring extra gloves with in case your hands get wet.

Most of my kites are single line, but I have started getting into some stunt kites. The lake provides a huge open space for all kinds of kiting.  If you have kites that need to be tied down, anchoring your kite can be done in several ways.
  1. If you drove onto the lake, you can attach to your vehicle.
  2. For really large kites, drill a hole through the ice, then shove a 2x4 through with a rope attached you can tie onto.
  3. I love the ice screws you can get from your climbing equipment store. They are expensive, but you usually don't need that many in your supplies.  I picked up a couple on eBay for $20 each.
  4. Sandbags can work good for you.
  5. You can tie off on yourself
Check out the MKS Past Events page and see pictures from our winter events.

Check out the MKS Event calendar to see our upcoming winter kite events. Earlier this month was the Lake Harriet kite fly. Had a great time.  Coming up on January 29th is the Frosty Fingers fly on Lake Phalen in St. Paul, MN as part of the St. Paul Winter Carnival.  In February is the Hudson Hot Air Affair and the 10th Annual Color the Wind Kite Festival in Clear Lake, IA. Color the Wind is a must go!  Join in the fun!


Here are some videos I found that are pretty cool.

Lake Harriet 2010


Some Kite Boarding videos. This looks like a lot of fun.



Here is a link to Kieron Jansch's videos. He has some great videos about kite boarding and kite making.