How to Fly a Kite

from Life123.com
By: Laura Evans, Staff Writer

Want to know how to fly a kite? Grab your kite and string and start running.

How to Fly a Kite

Actually, flying a kite is a little more complicated. But, don’t sweat it. It’s easy to fly a kite with a little practice.

First, find the right place to fly your kite. Look for an open area away from houses and power lines. Remember that trees have a tendency to eat kites. Avoid flying kites close to an airport and over roads. If you can, give yourself a lot of space between others who are flying kites. It’s can be easy to get tangled up in someone else’s kite, particularly if you are a beginner.

Next, you need the right type of weather. Never, ever, ever try to fly a kite in a storm, particularly if there is lightning involved. You may literally become a dead ringer for a lightning rod holding a kite.

Wind is what whooshes the world of wonderfully wiggling kites. However, wind can be problematic. If there is too much wind, you can crash and burn your kite. If there is too little wind, there will be very little whooshing. Although the right mile-per-hour wind will vary according to the type of kite that you are flying, your best bet is a medium strength wind of somewhere between five and 25 miles per hour.

If you have a single line kite, you may be able to get your kite up into the air by yourself. However, it may be easier if you have a helper. Determine the way that the wind is blowing. Have your helper hold the kite in the air facing you. Leaving some loose kite string, turn and run into the wind. As the string tightens and the kite starts to catch air, have the helper release the kite. If you don’t have a person assistant, try a bush or a post to substitute for the helper.

Kites away!

"One of the most obvious facts about grownups to a child is that they have forgotten what it is like to be a child." - Randall Jarrell