Adding Line Laundry to Your Kite - Chris Maxa

Hi! My name is Chris Maxa, I am with the Kite Loft. Today, we are going to learn how to fly a kite. In this segment, we are going to adding some windsocks and some line laundry to decorate our kite and to just add flair to it, make it look more enjoyable. Now, that we have learned how to launch the kite and get airborne and it stabilized in the sky. What we are going to do is, add windsocks to the line to create a nice litany of windsocks and color and just an aerial experience.

There are many ways tackle this problem, but what you want to do and the tactic that I have chosen, is to pull the line, hold the spool under my arm to create some slack. Now that Ive done that I created slack in the line. I can make what's called a Larks Head Knot and add my windsock. So, the first thing I am going to do, is grab the line, pull it down, if starts to hurt, or burn or if the wind is blowing too fast, obviously stop. Thats certainly a different problem for a different day and you can add the line laundry in a different fashion.

Today, its perfect ideal kiting weather. So, what do you do to add windsocks to your line, is you create slack, make a loop in the line. You are going to stick your finger and your thumb together, go up through center of the loop, grip round the outsides, creating a knot that tightens upon itself. This is called a Larks Head Knot. Once you have done this, you can reach for your windsock. Hold it while holding the spool underneath your arm, taking our swivel clip, fishing it through our Larks Head Knot and allowing it to tighten. You are going to tighten, your swivel clip back up. Of course all the while holding the spool under your arm, and using our tactic from last segment, allowing the kite to rise.

Okay. That is how you add line laundry to your line. You can do this as many times as you see necessary. Its all matter of taste and preference. There is no right or wrong to answer here and line laundry is something that just allows your kite to accentuate it and adds color to the sky.

In the next segment we will be showing how to bring your line down with and without line laundry.

Chris Maxa, The Kite Loft (Ocean City, MD)

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