Year 2000 Events & Recaps:

A lot is planned for this year. :)

The Southern California Sport Kite League (SCSKL) now has 5 scheduled competitions on tap. At this point, the 5th event wil be at SEAL BEACH. We have a link to their site below this schedule.

March 12th will be the always enjoyable "Festival of the Kite". Tom & Ani Fine of Sunshine Kite Company (on the Redondo Beach pier) do a great job of alerting the media & hooking in the community as well. This event brings out alot of local kite builders & a few of the old vets as well. LIVE bands & good winds are on tap this year. A good time is usually had by all - including the rollerbladers!
RECAP: Wow! Great Day! The weather held up & everyone was flying. One of the highlights had to be Tom & his former Specta Sport team flying some formations out by PCH! Check out the pix on the link above...Yes, that's a Weave you're seeing, two kites going one way, & one the other! We even saw a classic - One local flyer had a 30 foot ALL SILK dragon. They don't make 'em like DAT no mo!

Sunday, March 19th, We'll be @ Shoreline Park (take Cabrillo north - 2 min past the pier) for the Early Spring version of the SB kite festival. Come Fly A Kite (Vandena's kite shop), local radio stations, chamber O' commerce & a HUGE portion of the city PARTY! Tail chases, CANDY drops, fighter kite competition (judged by his honor Duane Drake), AND a cool Precision contest for the regulars will be highlighted during the day. SHOW UP!
RECAP: Another super experience in SB. The wind was pretty BUMPY for a while and no cars on Cabrillo ate a kite. Rakesh had all the kids running up & down the field "Chasin' Tail".

March 25th @ Fiesta Island in San Diego will be the first So. Cal Sport Kite League event of the year. The San Diego Kite Club will be there, serving up GREAT food & such. This competition will bring out some of California's BEST flyers, including some of the Northern California contingent...It's a MUST see!!!
RECAP: BEST weather ever for this event. The San Diego Kite Club kept us fed all day & we had BOTH fields set up in record time & both fields were humin' all day! It also helps to have 2 Field Directors & one BUSY Pit Boss. Most noteable happening was the "Hot Tricks" event. The final round pitted Ron Despojado, Susan Shampo, & Steve LaPorte against each other. AKA Regional Director Ron won the event with something we had never seen before...Quadline 360's!!! Ron, you're an ANIMAL!

Saturday May 5th, the So Cal Sport Kite League is putting on the Belmont Shore Sport Kite Classic. Again, Major competitors from the Southwest & Northern Cal plus a few of the Washington State contingent will be dukin' it out! We can hope that the Thrall's from Oregon will show up with their GREAT original kit designs & have their "Kids" fly them. This is more must see material. You can get to Belmont through Long Beach. Go to Ocean Ave & look for kites around Corona St.
RECAP: Once again, the weather held up. We pay alot of money to live in Calfornia, We expect the weather to cooperate! As expected the Berkeley contingent of Miguel & Brian showed up & took home some lucite. As did Naoki Kihara from Japan. Speaking of INTERNATIONAL...The World Championship Pair of Mark & Jeanette (Team Bi Dance from Peterborough, England) has invaded our shore & put on a REALLY BIG SHOW! They delighted us with a style of flying that we rarely see. It looks like they will be hanging out enjoying our weather (and our competitions) till further notice. We all welcome their flying & their kinship. FULL recaps of all the SCSKL competitions can be found on the SCSKL link above.

May 20th, is sure to be a BLAST down at Seal Beach. It's being billed as "Kid's, Kites, & Castles". The fine folks of Up Up & Away Kites & the Seal Beach Kite Club will be puttin on quite the shindig with a kiddie kite building seminar (yeah, this webmaster needs to learn!), CANDY drop, rock climbing, Stunt (PC = Sport) kite demos, which of course will be followed by a "Kite Hospital" and SAND CASTLES!!! Take PCH to Main & hit the pier (whoops, park by the pier, don't hit it).
RECAP: As soon as the Chamber of Commerce left, the FOG lifted & the winds came up to around 9-11 MPH :) Highlights of the day included a BEAUTIFUL display of HANDMADE kites by one of the World's most talented makers - Tiezhi Lu brought with him many of his designs including some VERY lifelike birds that would scare even the the toughest of vultures. The Seal Beach chapter of the International Friendship Association was there to keep our spirits (& our kites) up. A few of our gang from Ventura dropped in to help the SBKC put on a nice little festival. Kudos go out to people like Joseph (who ran the sound ALL day) & Monty from Up Up & Away Kites who ran around on THE SAND all day. where does she get that energy? Speaking of Monty, the SBKC (headed up by President Janis) SURPRISED Monty with EARLY birthday wishes. Try keeping a pie with candles away from Monty's eyes for 90 minutes...it's TOUGH! As the sun went down, Jay took out his BLADE & a few of us took turns being suicidal. Between Mark & Jeanette (YES, they showed up like the good people they are!), Jay himself, & this webmaster, it was interesting (and hilarious!) to see the different flying styles we all exude. Danielle (one half of Against the Wind), was watching all of us with great intent. She has worked up a COMBO routine of our styles! Next time you see her, ask for a DEMO of S,S,B,U! We're quite sure, She'd be HAPPY to show you!

July 8th, we're back in Belmont Shores for the SCSKL Long Beach Sport Kite Classic.
RECAP: The wind was "As Expected". Nice & clean between 8 & 11mph, most of the day. By the time we got to "Hot Tricks", it was blowin' like Fiesta Island (Sand Blasting, Anyone?). Speaking of "Hot Tricks", Quadline Master Ron took away Susan (Kite Gal) Shampo's crown in the final battle. This webmaster was calling the event & decided to bring out a little Jeff Beck music to really "WORK" these two champions on the finale. For official results of the "Sanctioned" events, check out the SCSKL's website link above. We had wonderful help from a vast array of volunteers including another Field Director who actually had a good time! Larry, it was OUR pleasure!

If you recover from Long Beach (which you better!), grab your kite bag & head up to the Reagan Library in Simi Valley on July 9th. Why you ask? Their hosting the 2nd Annual Ben Franklin Kite Festival. Last year was great, over 300 kids got to make & fly their own kites! This year will be even better! They have a different sponser who has donated 1000 kites for the kiddies. They are going to have many vintage & kit aircraft do fly bys & even a sky diving team! Right now, it's a toss up as to whether or not we will be doing indoor demos in the auditorium...Wish us luck!
RECAP: Thankfully, the weather in West Simi that day was bareable. It was only 90! :) As promised, there was more kids & most important, MORE KITES! Wind Wizard Dan, Steve Laporte, & a few of "Our Gang" hung out, did some demos, and got out of the way when the Ventura County Sheriff's Huey took off from the parking lot at the end of the day. Stay tuned, the Library is planning a concert series & there may be a place for our INDOOR exploits as a "Half Time" show...We'll see.

Let us not forget the roadtrip to Berkeley in late July. The West Coast Sport Kite Championship is a NATIONAL event & flyers come out of the woodwork from all over the country. 20,000 spectators over 2 days get way more than their money's worth. This event starts on Saturday the 29th, with Sunday, the 30th finishing out the competition. Then the VERY COOL awards cruise out in S.F. Bay. For more info, click on the "Highlines Kites" link below. Get there if you can, you won't regret it.

Redondo's Summer edition of "The Festival of the Kite" will take place on Sunday, July 30th. Besides the local "Homegrown" bevy of kites to beautify the sky, Tom has some Ballet demos planned along with a "Hot Tricks" battle! This will be a fun day @ the beach!

***Santa Barbara's late summer festival HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO LACK OF SPONSORSHIP. Folks, THIS is a total DRAG. Other than letters to the Paper & call in's to the radio stations, We are at a loss for what to do. :( We're not asking you to fight local commerce, We're just bumed.

Our own Kite Gal, Susan from San Diego, is requesting your presence on Saturday, August 26th for a good ol' fashioned SUAFYK in Huntington Beach near where Brookhurst hits the beach. There is a surfing contest nearby & Susan wants to make sure that the "Hang Ten'ers" know that they are not the only one's having FUN @ the beach.

Glossary:

SUAFYK...Action Phrase; Shut Up & Fly Your Kite!; Used when you want to have fun, without the corporate structure mixed in.

September 23rd kicks off the 2000/2001 season of the SCSKL. Huntington Beach is the first stop Get to Brookhurst & the beach & look for us...We'll be there bright & early for field setup.
RECAP: The rain stopped after midnight & field setup was "A BREEZE"! :) A beautiful day allowed us to have a a very special competition. The While the winds & the turnout were light, that did not stop the enthusiasm of the crowd. Our Hot Tricks battle pitted Seal Beach's own Chris "Quad Man" Thompson against the Novice Class Champion Ben Messin. The judges were SO STUMPED by the action, we had to run the final round TWICE! A full 6 minutes of fever pitched flying! Once again The Seal Beach Kite Club was there to help out Aire Affair Kite Productions put on a good event.

Port Hueneme "Harbor Days" will start Saturday 10/7 & finish on Sunday 10/8. Hang out, fly some kites, listen to live music & eat some GREAT Samoan food. Take Ventura Road South & you'll ram right into it!

Speaking of October, Saturday the 14th will be the first SCSKL competition @ Seal Beach. Tie that in with the Seal Beach Family Kite Fesival & you've got a FANTASTIC Combo. It's a great venue, just north of the pier. Monty from Up Up & Away Kites & the gang from the Seal Beach Kite Club are going to help kick off this inaugural event. The REAL TREAT of the day will be the appearence of our friends David & Susan Gomberg from Oregon! Gomberg Kite Productions is famous for HUGE Air & Ground displays. These two Kite People are the cream of the crop when it comes to all aspects of kiting. Be sure to stop by & say HI, if you can find them under all that nylon! We may even have a "Running of the Bowls". Stay tuned :) There will also be a Single Line Flying area with prizes for different types of kites. Call Up Up & Away Kites @ (562) 596-7661 for more info.

***This Just In!!!***

Saturday 10/21, Pismo Beach, CA.

We've gotten word of a Clam Bake & Kite Festival up @ Pismo! Rakesh & the Pismo COC are putting this one together. More info next week, We PROMISE!

2/28/2012