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The hover by Aerialis Kites

Stop the kite and keep it still at different points in the wind window.

From the series Aerialis tutorials. Transcript by QuadKites.org. Original article on Aerialis Kites.

The hover by Aerialis Kites

Key takeaways from this video

  • A quad kite can stop and stay still anywhere in the wind window; there are three hovers: upright, inverted and sideways.
  • In an upright hover, relax your arms and upper body and keep your inputs very subtle; too much and you lose the hover.
  • In a sideways hover, extend the arm whose lines go to the lower wingtip and point the handles in the same direction as the kite.

Transcript

  1. Introduction

    0:29

    Ready for another tutorial? I've got my new mic here, hopefully you can hear me. Today I'm going to tell you a little bit about the hover. You know, with a quad kite you can stop it in the middle of the air, anywhere in the wind window, and make it stick there. Hover: the kite is stationary in the air.

  2. Three kinds of hover

    1:12

    And we have three different hovers. You have the upright hover, when the leading edge is parallel to the ground, facing up. Then you can turn the whole kite around and do the inverted hover, meaning the leading edge is still parallel to the ground but pointing downwards. And then you have the sideways hover, to the right or to the left: then your leading edge is not horizontal anymore, but vertical, facing to the left or to the right.

  3. The upright hover

    1:57

    Okay, let's see what it looks like when you fly. Launch the kite and relax your arms and upper body. Watch my handles when hovering: they form a kind of upside-down V.

  4. Inverted and sideways hovers

    2:18

    For the inverted hover, I like to hold the handles differently: I point the lower ends outwards, because that works for me. For the sideways hover, make sure to extend the arm with the lines connected to the wingtip that points down. This will ensure the correct sideways angle of attack. And remember: use very subtle input when tending the hover. Too much, and you will lose it.

  5. Recap

    2:45

    Upright hover: relaxed arms and upper body, handles making an upside-down V, and subtle input. Sideways hover to the left: make sure to extend your left arm in front of you. Inverted hover: rest your hands on the lines, lower ends of the handles pointing out. Sideways hover to the right: make sure to extend your right arm in front of you.

  6. A bonus tip

    3:27

    And here's a bonus tip for you. When you do the sideways hover, try to point your handles in the same direction as your kite hovers: sideways hover to the right, point your handles to your right, and when you do sideways hover to the left, no big surprises here, point your handles to your left. I really hope this all makes sense and that you will try it out the next time you go flying. Thanks for watching, and bye bye.

Keep going

In the series Aerialis Kites quad-line tutorials

  1. Making a sleeved line set
  2. Launch and land
  3. Turning
  4. The hover — you are here
  5. Grab the handles, move your body
  6. The angle of attack
  7. More on the angle of attack

See the 29 videos of the series

Elsewhere on the site

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