Hard Line: Flying The Badass By Level One Kites | Sky Rider Limited

Описание: Weather is a funny thing, we as kite flyers generally want some wind but not too much. We would love it if never rained but we want our grassy fields nice and green. Weather played a deciding factor during ‪@sportkite1262‬ 's recent Sport Kite Camp East. The camp was held right in my backyard at Hampton Beach however the remnants of tropical storm Gordon decided to brush past the New Hampshire seacoast and forced us to make a decision on where to go fly Saturday. so off we went to Bug Light Park up in Portland Maine. Like pilgrims drawn forward by the promise of a better land and a better land we found. Instead of winds blow 15-25 mph we found winds between 3 mph and 10 mph and while it was overcast it never rained on us once. On top of that Portland provides a wonderful backdrop, one that Paul de Bakker of ‪@levelonekitesusa69‬ and I could not pass up.

With a backdrop that is both industrial and natural in turns we set to work with Paul’s personal Badass Inland. The Badass is an intriguing kite. At right about 2.35m it is a midsized kite, on the larger side for a free styler. The Badass has just gone through an update to make them a little less expensive and more accessible, both of which are good things on paper. As it turns out they are also good in practice in the case of the Badass. Paul spent some time working out a framing update which sees the kite shift from Level One’s traditional one piece pultruded frames to two piece which make the kite easier to ship and travel with little to no effect on flight. On top of that the frame update to the vented version previously called the Coast Guard and now called the Coastal includes Wrapped, Tapered lower spreaders bringing a snappier feel to the higher wind variant. Additionally, Paul simplified the bridle. From three bridles that were completely unique to three of the previous four versions of the kite we now get one bridle with adjustment points that make it suited for each of the now three versions of the kite. The result is an excellent intermediate freestyler and a delightfully zen flying experience for the more advanced pilot.

As I said above, Paul and I spent time flying his personal Badass Inland which is the standard in the lineup. The bouncy frame and light weighting give the badass excellent balance which opens the door to a truly enjoyable mix of old school and new school tricks that are sometimes lost with some kites striving for the bleeding edge of tricking. Flying a kite that calls back to the early days of freestyle but will access high level (see what I did just there) tricks without much compromise and without demanding a skill level that many find difficult to achieve, myself included, was a refreshing experience and one that has been the calling card of the Badass. It was nice to find little if anything was lost in the update and at the price point the stock color Badass is offered, I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t add one to their bag. I don’t always find filming to be the most relaxing flying but flying this kite and with and getting to spend some time with someone I have considered a friend for a bit more than two decades was an afternoon I’ll cherish for a long time to come.


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