Tutorials

Body Mechanics /The Flare

The Axel 

 The Dead Launch

Backflip Recovery

 

  The Rising Fade
Lesson 1     The Axle

The Axle
Lesson 1:
     The first thing to learn with the Trick Tail is to use the bridle properly.  I will assume that you can do an axle.  When you axle an ordinary kite you pull on the line hard enough to make the kite spin completely around.  This makes slow axles hard to do.  With the Trick Tail you don't have this restriction.  I want you to do the next few things tomorrow when you go out. 
1.  Bring the kite to the right side of the window, left foot resting on the ball of the foot slightly behind the right foot.  Push out with the right hand.  You will notice that the right wing goes away from you.(fig.1)  This is the stall position. (no snap stalls)

tut2.jpg (89126 bytes)

(fig.1)
2.  With your right hand, flick your wrist down (gently), as if you were flipping the ash off of a cigarette(fig.2), as you simultaneously extend your left arm and take a short step forward with your left leg.(fig.3)  This will get the kite's nose away from you and set up the second half of the axle.

tut3.jpg (89284 bytes)

tut4.jpg (91364 bytes)

(fig.2)

(fig.3)
3.  With your out stretched left hand, smoothly pull , don't jerk, the kite back into the nose toward you position(fig.4), also move your left foot back to the original position(fig.5).  From here you should resume normal flight. (you can work on multiple spins later)

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tut6.jpg (85460 bytes)

(fig.4)

(fig.5)

     What should you learn from this lesson?  
b: How that body mechanics helps get you through a maneuver. (left leg moves forward for maximum left hand reach)
c:  How that the Trick Tail can break an axle into 2 separate parts.(2 - 180 degree spins)
d:  How to use just enough force to get half way through an axle. (a flick and a pull)
e.   And that the Trick Tail can do slower axles in real time than others can do in slow motion, with a whole lot less work! 
     Practice these things until you can do them with both hands comfortably.  ( If you notice that the nose dips when it is away from you, you need to take a bigger step forward to give the lines more slack.  In high winds you may need to take two steps forward.)

The Trick Tail Standard   Today's drug of choice!