How do you self-land your Omega?

[Dave_5280]

What is the best way you have found to self-land your Omega kite?

[Soleas]

Best and safest way to self land my bow kites ( Xbow, SB, Omega ) is to find a heavy or fixed object ( ie my car, a beach trashbin or a tree ) and attach my safetyleash on it which is attached right above the chickenloop. I first release my leash from the harness and attach it on heavy object while my kite is parked at 12 o'clock, I then steer the kite to the edge of the window down to 3 o'clock until it touches the ground, I pop the stopper ball so the kite is depowered and won't fall backwards into the powerzone, I unhook and make sure that the lines and safety leash have tension and when the kite is stable I run to it and park it to the ground.

It is advisible to practise this in light winds to get the feel of it. And it might not work as easy as with an Xbow.

[clamike]

Some people don't know that the Omega (and some other kites) will sit at the edge of the window at 3 or 9. In 1:1 mode you can push the bar out past the over-ride and let go of the bar, with the 2:1 you may have to keep the over-ride engaged and let the bar rest against the over-ride. Either way the kite will settle down on the edge of the window and sit there forever (as long as the wind is not really light or it isn't sitting in water with a strong current).

Once you kite is sitting there with no input from you, you can start the self landing. There are a couple ways to do this. One is to attach your chicken loop to something solid, like a post, car hitch, sandbag, etc. Then just walk up to the kite and grab it. The other way is if you don't have something solid. Always keeping tension on the center lines you can grab onto the power strap (not the bar!!), unhook from the chicken loop and leash and lay it on the ground. Then by maintaining tension on the front lines, climb up the front lines until you get to the kite. The whole time your kite will wait at 9 or 3 until you get to it.

[clamike]

You can do this with all Cab kites including the pulley bar kites (Xbow, Contra, Omega, Revolver), but with the pulley bars you must lock the over-ride in place and let the bar rest against it. If you don't do this the kite will not sit as long at 3 or 9.

[Gigi;)]

Hi, probably all SLE kites can do that IF winds are OK... You can do it with C kites on 5th lines too if you get tension on 5th right...

But self landing on SLEs is tricky one (if you don't have nothing to "fix" the kite), probably still the best is to have someone helping you!

Bye

Some people don't know that the Omega (and some other kites) will sit at the edge of the window at 3 or 9. In 1:1 mode you can push the bar out past the over-ride and let go of the bar, with the 2:1 you may have to keep the over-ride engaged and let the bar rest against the over-ride. Either way the kite will settle down on the edge of the window and sit there forever (as long as the wind is not really light or it isn't sitting in water with a strong current).

Once you kite is sitting there with no input from you, you can start the self landing. There are a couple ways to do this. One is to attach your chicken loop to something solid, like a post, car hitch, sandbag, etc. Then just walk up to the kite and grab it. The other way is if you don't have something solid. Always keeping tension on the center lines you can grab onto the power strap (not the bar!!), unhook from the chicken loop and leash and lay it on the ground. Then by maintaining tension on the front lines, climb up the front lines until you get to the kite. The whole time your kite will wait at 9 or 3 until you get to it.

[clamike]

You are right, it is better to have somebody help you land your kite.

But I would say that not all kites will sit on the edge of the window like this. In my experience some kites will fall back into the window and make it hard to self land using this technique. The Omega will sit there all day so even without an object to fix the chicken loop to, so it is easy to self land. The kite flies off its center lines without much power, so when you hold onto the center lines you can unhook and walk/climb up the lines without the kite moving or pulling.

I have not had any problems self landing like this, but some extra safety tips are: always stay on the upwind side of the lines, and if something happens you can let go of one line (let go of the top line is better) and the kite will depower the same as when you activate the bypass leash.

[klimber]

I still use the old "yank a front line" method. sometimes it rotates, but rarely. but WHY has Cabrinha STILL NOT put both front lines on rings. it would make it so much easier and give you both sides as easy landings in higher winds.

[crash&burn]

Klimber, its not "yank A front line" there is a way to do it so it won't "rotate"

I prefer to land the kite to one side of the wind window , and like Clamike said the kite will sit there all day as long as the wind doesn't flat out die. I take a little different approach from there however. I make sure I am far enough from any kite killing object and after putting the kite down on one side i

let go of the bar
reach up and grab the center line on the side of the down wingtip (in the clip the left side)
as you pull hand over hand (on that one line)the kite flags out on its back
i then follow that line up to the kite (staying upwind of all the lines)

here is a clip of me doing this on the snow, you can't see the bar but you can see what the kite does as i go through the steps listed above. click on the image



I have used this technique in very high winds and it has always worked for me, the worst thing that has happened was the kite lifted up a little and rolled over on its leading edge a little farther downwind than the edge of the window.

This method is pretty much the same as hooking your safety leash to the centerline ring and just unhooking and letting go of the bar. I find that if you do that you end up with a mess.


ps

whats up mike,

Jens

[klimber]

I've never seen anyone rol the kite under before...I'll have to try that!

Usually I just park the kite to the side, let the bar all the way out, grab the webbing where the center lines and pull that behind me, then grab the top center line and YANK. 95% of the tiem the kite just tips over in a parked position.

I'm gunna have to try that on the snow next time. I'm not sure about cutting up the cannopy rolling it under like that on the beach, rocks or a Koshkonong Carp Dorsal fins

[bigwave]

Well, you learn something everyday. I always pull the top line and walk up wind to let the kite fall on the leading edge. I'll have to give your method a try. I always find landing in very powered conditions abit of an adventure. Thanks for the info.