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Guillotine: sending the kite behind the pilot

This lesson is part of the Cramayailes indoor 4-line school, restored by QuadKites.org. The text is Thierry Bressure’s, in the first person, translated from French. The video commentary is in French.

Prerequisite: backward flight, leading edge on the ground, hand catch, hand throw.

The figure

Section titled "The figure"

The guillotine consists of making the revo go in a straight line to the opposite azimuth of the flight window. In its simplest version, resting on the ground, the revo passes in a straight line through the pilot’s position and ends up behind the pilot.

Watch the figure: guillotine

The lesson

Section titled "The lesson"

The kite describes a straight line from a given azimuth, in front of the pilot, to the opposite azimuth, behind the pilot, passing just at head height. The pilot must dodge the kite as it heads straight for their head.

In its basic version, the revo starts resting on its two wingtips on the ground, describes a straight line passing through the pilot’s head, goes behind the pilot and ends its course in full flight. It must not fall back to the ground!

Guillotine lesson by Cramayailes

Key takeaways from this video — Guillotine lesson

  • The figure combines the hand catch and the hand throw: the kite passes right over the pilot’s head, and the pilot catches it in flight on the other side.
  • It is the momentum that puts the kite flat, not the brakes. Moving back with the hands as vertical as possible keeps the lines from tangling in the handles.
  • Practice in steps: first make the kite pass well above your head, then pull it lower and lower.

Transcript — Guillotine lesson

  1. A simple but spectacular figure

    0:00

    The guillotine is a simple but spectacular figure, which combines the hand catch and the hand throw.

  2. The principle

    0:30

    Starting from a position on the ground, the kite describes a straight line passing over the pilot’s head. The pilot catches it in flight as it arrives on the other side.

  3. Passing just over the head

    0:52

    For a spectacular effect, you have to make the kite pass as low as possible, right over the pilot’s head.

  4. The critical moment: resuming flight

    1:00

    The critical moment is putting the kite back into flight, which you can miss because the lines are tangled around the handles.

    Or else throwing too low, or with the brakes pulled: the kite does not straighten up fast enough.

  5. Do not pull on the brakes

    1:37

    The mistake is believing you have to pull on the brakes to put the kite flat. That is wrong. It is the momentum that puts the kite flat.

    You must move back while keeping your hands as vertical as possible, so that the lines do not tangle in the handles.

    […] I pull too hard on the brakes while moving back, the climb is going to be immediate.

  6. Practicing step by step

    2:25

    Start by practicing with the kite passing well above your head first. The first step is to learn to move back and put the kite back into flight.

    You also learn to position your hands as vertically as possible, to avoid tangling the lines.

    Then, little by little, you pull the kite lower and lower, until it passes just at head level.

Video page: transcript, series and other uses

Movement

Section titled "Movement"

The pilot is static when the kite comes to them. The pilot must duck or step aside so as not to take the kite in the face. When the kite passes, the pilot must turn around to face it. Then start moving back as in a hand throw, and take the kite back in flight.

Control

Section titled "Control"

The guillotine starts like a hand catch, but aiming for your head. Take both handles in one hand, holding them upright, then grab the two top lines with the other hand and pull them energetically. The pulling force must let the kite cross the flight window.

The pulling height must not be too low, otherwise it will be hard to go underneath in the basic version of the guillotine. It must not be too high either, otherwise you lose the guillotine effect.

Dodge the kite and turn around to face it, since it has gone behind you. While the kite moves away, take the handles in each hand again and keep them upright.

Do not keep the handles horizontal, that is, with the brakes pulled toward you: the lines would tend to tangle around the handles. On the contrary, keep them upright to release the brakes and let the kite, moving away flat, straighten up LE down.

As in the hand throw, you must move back to tighten the lines, especially if you did not pull hard enough or pulled too low. Upright handles put the kite back into pressurized flight position by making the trailing edge straighten up.

When the kite straightens up, the pilot must resume flying. Thanks to the skill of taking off in backward flight from the LE on the ground, this should be a formality.

What comes next

Section titled "What comes next"

In the rest of the course, we will learn to fly at the very top of the window, in the polar circle.

Last updated: — restored Thierry Bressure's guillotine lesson, with the figure reference