There has been one festival that I have always wanted to attend….WISKF. The Washington State International Kite Festival was held on August 17 to the 23. It is an immense gathering of kite fliers, kite enthusiasts, media, and kite spectators. A week long kite celebration held on a very beautiful beach in a quaint little town. For me, the festival included the fighter kite world cup and the opportunity to fly with a new group of fighter pilots. The festival also included for me the Northwest Sport Kite League competitions, Rokkaku battles and the indoor events.
Although the festivities started on Monday, I wasn’t able to fly out until Wednesday. I arrived early Wednesday evening in Long Beach as the fog rolled down the main street from the beach. The cooler temperature was very apparent compared to the 90 degrees I left that morning. This was the weather everyone warned me was typical on the coast in Washington. Perfect indoor weather. After quickly checking into my hotel, I drove over to the indoor gym and put together my kites in the hall since it already started. It was fun to watch all the impressive performances. I flew a demo with my Skate later that evening. It was a fantastic start to my WISKF experience.
Although the festivities started on Monday, I wasn’t able to fly out until Wednesday. I arrived early Wednesday evening in Long Beach as the fog rolled down the main street from the beach. The cooler temperature was very apparent compared to the 90 degrees I left that morning. This was the weather everyone warned me was typical on the coast in Washington. Perfect indoor weather. After quickly checking into my hotel, I drove over to the indoor gym and put together my kites in the hall since it already started. It was fun to watch all the impressive performances. I flew a demo with my Skate later that evening. It was a fantastic start to my WISKF experience.
Thursday morning started chilly, grey and with a light rain. The waitress at breakfast hoped I enjoyed the sun the previous day because they never know when it will come out again. Wearing my rain gear, I walk over the dune to fighter kite central. A gathering of one line kite fliers who share an extreme passion for dueling in the air. These skilled fliers are masters at maneuvering the small unstable kites to touch the top or bottom of the opponents’ line to win a point. There are many different strategies, styles of flying and types of kites the fliers use to hopefully dominate the match. Although the goal is to win, a well flown match results in both fliers enjoying the experience of the game. We took turns fighting each other throughout the day. It was a great opportunity to meet and visit with each other.
The winds were light to moderate and the sky slowly cleared until the sun did appear for a short stay in the early afternoon. Later in the afternoon, I walked up the beach to the main kite fields. Although the day remained grey and cool, the sky was filled with an array of kites. After spending some time flying with my Revolution friends, it was time to head over to the indoor demonstration event. There were several more fliers scheduled to perform and the gym was filled with spectators. I flew a routine that included my Skate and Echo. Later, it was great to be asked by a few people for an indoor lesson. After showing them how the Skate works, all of them had a wonderful time experiencing indoor flying.
Friday morning was still cool with dark clouds and a steady light rain. There was also no wind. In the distance on the main kite field, I spotted a lone Manta flying majestically in the sky. I hoped it was a sign for a great day of flying. As the time for the pilots meeting for the Fighter World Cup approached, the rain stopped and the weather started to clear. We started our first matches in almost no wind. The judges had to move the fighter areas many times to accommodate the changing wind direction. Toward late morning the wind continued to get stronger with a consistent direction, allowing for better flying conditions. All of the matches were very exciting and well flown. They would start with one flier almost as the winner and at the last minute the opponent takes the match. I enjoyed flying with pilots who had years of experience and skill. It was an incredible learning experience. I placed respectfully for my first world cup. During the matches, the Revolution Mega fly was taking place in the early afternoon on the main competition field. It was an amazing sight to see 50 plus kites flying together in a grid formation. Later in the afternoon, I put my fighter kite flying on hold to run up the beach for my Pairs Multiline Ballet competition. My pair’s partner and I flew well and took a second place. As kites were being put away for the day, I started to prepare for the indoor competition. Many fliers arrived early to warm up before the event while the audience filled the seats. The gym was small and it was difficult for all the fliers to warm up at the same time. When the competition started, the small gym was filled with eager spectators and fliers. All the fliers did a remarkable job with their performances and the crowd rewarded each of them with enthusiastic applause. Again, another great evening of indoor flying.
Following the indoor event, the night fly and fireworks was going to get underway. A small group of us had a quick dinner and then headed out to the night fly. We didn’t realize that everyone in the town and people from other towns also had the same idea. There were as many people on the beach for the night fly as there were during the day. The dark cool night sky was filled with multi colored lights that were alive with movement. The Revolution kites put on a spectacular display. Although it was already a long and busy day, it couldn’t end until our group visited Scoopers for some Long Beach ice cream.
I was surprised to see sun and a bright blue sky on Saturday morning. I was scheduled to fly in Masters Dual line Ballet and the Rokkaku Battle. The beach was overflowing with kites, banners, kite vehicles, kite displays, kite spectators….It was filled. The crowds had come out in full force. The boardwalk (as they called it) was crowded with people looking in all directions to see the vast amount of kites on display. When I arrived on the field, I was asked if I would like to fly in a second larger Mega Revolution fly. Oh yeah. I had missed it the day before because of my fighter kite obsession. I quickly put together my kite and was given a position in the line. It took a considerable amount of organization and directions for all of the 60 plus kites to successfully fly together in formation. It was an amazing sight and even more fun to be part of it. All the participants were asked to sign a book to document the event. Following the Mega fly, I flew in the team Rokkaku battle. We had a superb team but had some trouble with the tuning of the kite resulting in a crash finish in the first round. Once the tuning was improved, we flew well and finished with an enthusiastic second place. It was so much fun running all over the field trying to figure out what strategy would work best to down our opponents. The wind continued to get stronger throughout the day. When MIB started, the wind was almost strong enough for a vented kite. I flew my standard Jinx and was hoping the wind would not get stronger. As I flew my ballet, I felt a little overpowered at times but I managed the kite well.
I was surprised to see sun and a bright blue sky on Saturday morning. I was scheduled to fly in Masters Dual line Ballet and the Rokkaku Battle. The beach was overflowing with kites, banners, kite vehicles, kite displays, kite spectators….It was filled. The crowds had come out in full force. The boardwalk (as they called it) was crowded with people looking in all directions to see the vast amount of kites on display. When I arrived on the field, I was asked if I would like to fly in a second larger Mega Revolution fly. Oh yeah. I had missed it the day before because of my fighter kite obsession. I quickly put together my kite and was given a position in the line. It took a considerable amount of organization and directions for all of the 60 plus kites to successfully fly together in formation. It was an amazing sight and even more fun to be part of it. All the participants were asked to sign a book to document the event. Following the Mega fly, I flew in the team Rokkaku battle. We had a superb team but had some trouble with the tuning of the kite resulting in a crash finish in the first round. Once the tuning was improved, we flew well and finished with an enthusiastic second place. It was so much fun running all over the field trying to figure out what strategy would work best to down our opponents. The wind continued to get stronger throughout the day. When MIB started, the wind was almost strong enough for a vented kite. I flew my standard Jinx and was hoping the wind would not get stronger. As I flew my ballet, I felt a little overpowered at times but I managed the kite well.
The day ended with some relaxing quadline flying with friends. After packing up our kites, we were off to the banquet to benefit the World Kite Museum. The banquet hall was fill to the brim with Kiters visiting and sharing stories of their days at the event. It was nice to talk with friends that aren’t seen often. One of the activities of the evening was the crazy mask challenge. It was difficult to find the best mask from all the creative entries. I’m not sure who won but they all looked like they had fun. The evening continued with awards and acknowledgements to the organizers followed by an auction filled with impressive kites. I ended the evening watching fireworks and eating ice cream.
Sunday was beautiful. The temperature continued to be cool but the sun was shining and the sky was blue. When I arrived at the beach, the sky was already filled with kites and the crowds were gathering on the dunes to watch the last competitions of the event. I was scheduled to judge for most of the morning. It was great to meet some new judges and see the performances of the fliers. The wind continued to come off the water at a steady and manageable rate throughout the day. It was the nicest day of the event. Later in the afternoon, I competed in Master Multilane Ballet with a field of talented fliers. Following MMB, I was asked to fly in the Tricks event. During the Tricks competition, each flier is randomly paired with another flier and given a 1 minute time limit to fly as many tricks they can to music that is also randomly picked. When the time is up, the second flier on the field has a chance to fly and demonstrate their trick ability. After two tries each, the audience is asked who they thought was the best at flying. The crowd will cheer for the flier they liked the best. I had a great time flying the Hydra which is a fantastic trick kite, but I was paired with one of the best trick fliers in the country who also happens to be a 14 year old kid. He was too cute for the crowd to pass up. No problem for me….on to the next event. I ended the day flying with many of the Revolution fliers well into the early evening. It seemed we all didn’t want to leave the beach and the WISKF experience.
Lisa Willoughby
www.focuskites.com
Lisa Willoughby
www.focuskites.com
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