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Kite Mapping Tips

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10 tips for trouble-free kite mapping

Note: This is NOT a guide for expert kite flyers. It's intended to be a QUICK START guide for people who've never kite mapped before, with as few problems and things to worry about as possible.

Equipment & Conditions

1. Check the wind - don't fly balloons if it's windy; don't fly kites if it's calm or very strong! (Weather Underground has an hourly wind forecast)

0 mph 5 mph 10 mph 15 mph 20 mph
balloon either 9 ft kite 7 ft kite don't fly

2. Use a delta kite - regular, simple triangular kites as pictured below. Nine foot (2.7m) wide for light wind, seven (2m) for stronger winds

3. Use a tail - put a 20 foot long FUZZY TAIL (ribbony, as seen here) on your kite. It will keep it stable and stop it from diving.

4. Recruit kite flyers - 8-year-olds and 80-year olds know more than the rest of us

kite-tail-2.jpg

Launch & Flight

5. Use gloves - made of cloth or leather for string burns. No rubber!

6. Keep tension on the line - if it pulls, let it out as fast as you can.

7. Do a test flight - with no camera, to test the conditions

8. Use ALL your string - fly high! 1000-2000 feet: one large photo of your whole site is far better than 20 you'll have to stitch together later!

9. Running is unnecessary - quickly get your kite up into strong, clean air: have someone release it upwards with 100 feet of tensioned line while walking upwind slowly.

10. Learn to recover from dives - If the kite dives sideways or downward, let out line until the kite rights itself. Don't pull!

kite-launch.jpg