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Improve your hovers by Aerialis Kites

Work on orientations and stability through a series of progressive exercises.

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

Improve your hovers by Aerialis Kites

Key takeaways from this video

  • Five progressive exercises: an upright hover at the top of the window, several stops on the way up and down, sideways hovers at 45°, 66° and 90°, then two reverse-flight versions.
  • Hold each hover about five seconds, keep your input subtle, and land on both tips at once, back at your launch point.
  • Step back to add pressure when climbing and step downwind to reduce it when descending; for a sideways hover, put forward the foot on the side you are hovering toward.

Transcript

  1. Five exercises

    0:01

    Hi. In the previous tutorial I was talking about the basics of the quad line kite hover. In this tutorial I'll take it a step further and give you five different exercises that will improve your hovers. So stay tuned.

  2. Exercise 1: an upright hover

    1:04

    Fly your kite slowly to the top of the wind window. When you hit the top, the kite stops and hovers. Hold and tend the hover for about five seconds, then slowly bring the kite all the way down and land simultaneously on both tips. Launch the kite, fly it to the top of the wind window, hold the hover for about five seconds, then slowly bring your kite down and land on both tips simultaneously. Okay, once again, and now with the pilot in view. The hover is stable.

  3. Exercise 2: several stops

    1:45

    Here's the next exercise for you. Fly your kite slowly to the top of the wind window. Make four or five stops and hovers on your way up to the top. Then make another four or five stops and hovers on your way coming down, and when landing, try to touch down on both tips simultaneously. First stop: hover for about five seconds. Second stop: hold for another five seconds. The third stop: hover for yet another five seconds. And then the fourth and final stop going up. Next is repeating it going down: stop and hover, stop and hover, and finally down and land. Here we go again, and now with the pilot in view.

  4. Subtle input and body movement

    3:17

    To make sure, once again note the subtle input required to tend the hover. Too much and the kite will look unstable in the air. Experiment and find your way. Don't be afraid to take a step or two downwind to reduce the pressure in the sail when going down. It makes things easier and the kite looks smoother.

  5. Exercise 3: sideways hovers

    4:09

    Okay, on to sideways hovers. Fly your kite in an arc to, let's say, the left. Stop and hover for five seconds while the leading edge is at a 45 degree angle. Fly backwards, reversing the arc, and land on both tips simultaneously. Try to land exactly where you launched. Then do the same with the leading edge at 66 degrees, and finally at 90 degrees. Let's see it: fly an arc to the left, then stop and hover for about five seconds, making sure the leading edge is at about 45 degrees, then reverse back down and land exactly where you launched. Okay, again, but this time make sure your leading edge is at about 66 degrees when you do the hover, just like this, then another reverse down to your point of launch. And a third time around: now your leading edge should be at 90 degrees, vertical, when hovering. Down, and land. Okay, let's do it all again, now with the pilot in view, and this time, of course, we fly the arc to the right.

  6. Footwork for sideways hovers

    5:33

    By the way, check out my stance: one foot well in front of the other. I find it easier to do stable sideways hovers with a stance like this. I put my right foot in front when sideways hovering to the right, and guess what, I put my left foot in front when I do sideways hovers to the left. Try it yourself and see if it works for you too. Of course, you can go beyond the 90 degree angle when you do sideways hovers. It's just a bit more difficult, but you know, practice makes perfect. And for sideways hovers, make sure to practice in both directions, left and right.

  7. Exercise 4: a reverse hover

    6:45

    Exercise number four. Start with your kite resting on its leading edge on the ground. Take off and fly the kite in reverse, three or four meters up off the ground, then stop and hover for about five seconds. Then fly the kite forwards, down, and land gently on its leading edge. Let's check it out: take off and carefully reverse the kite about four meters off the ground, then hover for five seconds. Next, bring your kite slowly down and land on its leading edge. Let's do it again with the pilot in view. And again, this time reverse the kite a little higher off the ground.

  8. Exercise 5: reverse hovers on the way up and down

    8:08

    Fifth and final exercise. Start with your kite resting on its leading edge on the ground. Take off and reverse the kite upwards. Stop and hover three or four times on your way to the top of the wind window, and make another three or four stops and hovers on your way down. Finally, land your kite gently on its leading edge. Take a couple of steps back to increase the pressure in the sail when ascending, and stop and hold for another five seconds. The final stop and hover on its way up: hold for five seconds. And of course the same goes for going down. I hope this was useful for you. Thanks for watching, and bye bye.

Keep going

In the series Aerialis Kites quad-line tutorials

  1. The angle of attack
  2. More on the angle of attack
  3. The down turn
  4. Improve your hovers — you are here
  5. Straight trajectories
  6. Footwork and body position
  7. Split-screen pilot and kite tutorial

See the 29 videos of the series

Elsewhere on the site

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