One of my favorite childhood memories is going out to Barranca Mesa to fly kites. We'd go a lot. Mesas were (are, probably) fantastic for kite flying because their very nature causes wind. There's always good wind on the mesa.
We had a ton of kites growing up. And when we'd go to Santa Fe, we would very often stop in the Unicef store and look at all the kites they had for sale. And, on occasion, purchase one. I still have the 12 or so foot long cellophane dragon kite my sister and I pooled our money to purchase one visit. It's probably too fragile to fly these days, but it has lovely memories associated with it.
On moving to Virginia, the kite flying got more frustrating. There are not good, built in locations with a near constant updraft. Plus, life around here is just busier. Still, we did try. And then I grew up and moved on, but I still have always loved kite flying. And every time it gets even a little windy, I have dragged a kite out into our cul-de-sac and tried to get it in the air with varying degrees of success.
Well, youngest has inherited my love of kites. And last week at Costco, we saw a very cool 3 headed dragon kite for $15. And I said, Oh why not, and threw it in the cart.
It is a fantastic kite. The string that it comes with is worth the $15 alone. It's a fantastic reel-style kite string (instead of a plastic circle that you're supposed to just get string burn trying to manage like most cheapish kites come with.) The kite itself is rip stop fabric with flexible rods (not wood). In all, it's a fantastic piece for the price.
And of course, since we got it, he has been dying to try to fly it.
We've taken it out in the front yard a few times and had moderate success (better than we ever did in the cul-de-sac of the old house), but the trees make a wind break and it's been gusty, as well.
But today. Today was perfection. Like a chef's kiss of a day for kite flying. So we finished school and I loaded him in the van with his kite and the two of us went down to the soccer fields that are about five minutes away and we spent about 90 minutes with that beautiful dragon kite soaring up with the turkey vultures who came over to investigate just what it was that was riding on their air currents with them.
I only had to help him for the first ten minutes or so, and then he seemed to get the feel for it. There's a rhythm to flying a kite. You have to feel the tension in the string and know when to reel it in and when to let it out and when to hold it firm. When you shift a little to angle with the wind and when you don't. I'll say this, the kid's a natural.
If he had half as much fun as I did, it was a day he'll remember for a long time.
I can't wait to do it again.
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