Date: Sun, 3 Dec 1995 22:57:11 -1000 From: Andy Wardley Message-Id: Organization: Peritas Multimedia Subject: Andy Preston/Flexifoil's new kite: The Psycho I picked up Andy Preston's new kite, The Psycho, a couple of weeks back, and I thought it was time I told you about it. Like the Stranger, it's manufactured by Flexifoil and available in three colour combinations: Red/Blue/Black, Maroon/Yellow/Black and Butt-Ugly-Every-Colour. Can't even remember what the colours are in the last one, but there's at least 5 of them and they just don't go, IMHO. There's also a rather large, silver "PSYCHO" logo covering about half of one wing. Doesn't do much for me, I have to say. Now if you're the sort of person who likes sensible, dependable kites, you had better change channels now. You're not going to like what you hear. If, on the other hand, you fancy flying something totally radical, almost uncontrollable and a serious blast, then try it out. The kite has a similar shape to a Stranger, but is about half the size. Although they claim the kite flies down in the 3-5 mph range, I have my doubts. I haven't tested it that low, so I'll reserve judgement. Certainly the last time I spoke to Andy, he said the kite was very much designed as a higher wind kite. I've flown it in winds between about 10 and 25. It seems to take a short while to get going, but when it does, it is very fast. Turns exceptionally fast, axels are trivial and it's very recoverable. With flat spins, I found it had a similar problem to the Stranger where the tips tend to get caught around the lines. Where the kite really shone was in doing Yo-Yo's and other tricks where you're rolling the kite towards/away from you. In a few hours I was doing some really bizarre tricks involving kick turns, yo-yo's and flic-flaks. The choice of name for the kite is a good one. It is a totally manic beast that does all sorts of crazy shit. The downside to that is that it is almost uncontrollable. Or maybe it just felt like it. Overall, a good kite to fly if you're into some seriously extreme tricks. Not as dependable as a Box of Tricks or Reflex and that is both good and bad, depending on your point of view. Don't think much of the graphics or overall look of the kite, and I had some trouble with spreaders snapping in the T-Piece (solution, fill ends with carbon or hot-glu) and I lost a stand-off because the hole in the sail was a bit too large for the grabber. Generally though, a well made kite at a reasonable price. Very good fun to fly, but not for the faint-hearted. Cheers Andy Andy Wardley is the man from abw@peritas.demon.co.uk. Thricefold decorated in the winky wars, he loves each and every one of you. No really, he does. Harry "FM" Teazly: "I'm honored and all that crap, but does this mean we're starting another round of quoting each other with the names munged?" -Sean Willyhard" -Andy Wardly = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Date: Tue, 5 Dec 1995 04:33:07 -1000 From: Andy Wardley Message-Id: Organization: Peritas Multimedia Subject: Re: Andy Preston/Flexifoil's new kite: The Psycho I writes: [...] >Where the kite really shone was in doing Yo-Yo's and other tricks >where you're rolling the kite towards/away from you. In a few hours >I was doing some really bizarre tricks involving kick turns, yo-yo's >and flic-flaks. I've been asked to explain these tricks. I think they've all been mentioned on the group in the last week or so, but that might have been in email. My memory ain't so good these days.... A kick turn is as follows: Fly right to left, let some slack into the upper wing (right hand) and then pop an axel with the same hand. Instead of giving slack with the left had, hold tight, and as the kite's nose turns away from you, the kite should stand up, with the nose pointing up and the back of the kite towards you. Another tug with the same hand should bring the kite nose back down and now heading back towards the right. In a good kick turn, you change direction and come out of the turn at the same height you went in. One of the variations I was trying with the Psycho is to put the kite into the kick turn but instead of tugging with one hand to bring it out of the turn, you tug with both and then give slack. The result is that the kite flips downwards and rolls around the lines that you feed. Having got the lines wrapped around the wings several times, you pull again to unwrap the kite the other way. This is essentiallay a yo-yo. The other variation is to let the kite wrap only once, and then tug it out and let it wrap the other way. If you think of a cascade where you axel left, axel right, axel left, etc., this is kind of the same but with the kite rolling towards you, away >From you, towards you, etc., as it falls down the window. You can also do this across the window, as you see Andy Preston do in the Psycho video. Known (by me, at least) as a flic-flac. Peter Peter's Home Page (www.win.tue.nl/win/cs/fm/Kites/basics/flying.html) describes some of these and others following some of our recent email discussions. I think the other names he has for the flic-flac are the cuckoo clock and/or poison ivy. Cheers Andy Andy Wardley is the man from abw@peritas.demon.co.uk. Thricefold decorated in the winky wars, he loves each and every one of you. No really, he does. Harry "FM" Teazly: "I'm honored and all that crap, but does this mean we're starting another round of quoting each other with the names munged?" -Sean Willyhard" -Andy Wardly = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Date: Fri, 8 Dec 1995 23:27:00 -1000 From: Cakitin@msn.com (Zoe Salloom) Message-Id: <00001f81+00001893@msn.com> Organization: The Microsoft Network (msn.com) Subject: RE: Andy Preston/Flexifoil's new kite: The Psycho thanks for the review....i appreciate reading such a comprehensive, positive and negative, view about a kite. Keep the wind at your back ZOE = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =