Sport Kite Tips

TIPS AND HINTS
Useful info about your kite and kiting
FLYING TIPS
CARE AND FEEDING
Picking a place to fly
Cleaning
Your choice of flying field is the single most important

ingredient for success with your kite, and most trouble
beginners have comes from picking a spot where the wind is
turbulent and gusty from obstacles in its path. Like whitewater
in a river, wind that flows past trees, buildings and hills
becomes gusty and choppy and can make controlling your
kite difficult to impossible. The best place to fly is a beach
or field with wind blowing in from off the water. If you have
such a place available, it's worth the extra travel time to get
there because you'll learn to fly in literally a fraction of the
time. If you have to fly inland, look for wide open fields with
no trees, buildings, or hills for at least a half mile upwind.
The advanced materials in your kite are durable and designed

for a long life with minimal maintenance. Keep your kite out
of the sun when not in use to keep the sailcloth from fading.
Beach sand is abrasive and will wear on bridles and fittings,
so do what you can to dust off the sand after a session at the
beach. Compressed air works great for this if it's available,
and a freshwater rinse is a good idea if your kite has been
swimming in salt water. Keep your kite out of hot car trunks
and avoid using solvents to clean the sail as they can dissolve
the adhesives in the seams.
CAUTION!
People
Airports
Your kite can fly faster than 50 mph

in strong winds. NEVER FLY NEAR:
Power lines
Cars
Storms
Flying in light winds

Light wind flying is a special skill and the more you do it the
easier it will become. The trick is to keep tension on the lines
at all times by constantly moving around on the field. Gain
altitude by walking backwards, and regain lost ground by
moving forward while the kite glides downwards. You will
not be able to keep the kite in the air for long by standing in
one place.
Use a shorter, lighter lineset on calm days to decrease the
weight and drag on your kite, and to give you the control
you'll need to make the most of the wind. Moving the bridle
attachment points upward will change the kite's angle of
attack and maximize lift (see Tuning and Adjustment).
Flying in strong winds

There are several things you can do to set your kite up for
strong winds. One of the first is to make sure you have the
right lineset. For most kites, you'll want at least 150# lines;
if you have a kite like the Legacy or a Stylus that pulls a lot,
200# or even 250# lines are the minimum for windy days.
You'll also want to use longer lines. Longer lines slow the
kite down with their drag, and give you more time to react
in a bigger wind window.
Slow the kite down and decrease its pull by adjusting the
bridle attachment points. Start at the factory setting, and
move the bridle attachment points down in 1/4" increments
until the kite has the speed and pull you want.
Storage
To fold up your kite the way we do at the factory, disconnect
the upper and lower leading edges at the joints and fold the
lower leading edges up against the upper leading edges. Then
fold the leading edges against the spine so all the spars are
next to each other. Tuck the standoffs into the sail and roll
the sail neatly up to (but not around) the bundle of leading
edges and spine. Try to avoid wrinkles as you fold as they
break down the coatings in the sail and cause it to stretch
out. Use the Velcro strap provided or a rubber band to
bundle it all together, and don't forget to include your upper
and lower spreaders.
Frame repairs
The carbon spars in your kite will not fatigue over time, but
occasionally you may break one learning new tricks or pushing
the limits in high winds. Replacing a spar is quick and easy and
many pilots carry a couple of extras when traveling just in
case. Spare parts for all Prism kites are available direct from
our website at www.prismkites.com.
About your flying lines

Your kite can be flown on a wide variety of lengths and
strengths of Spectra flying line depending on the wind
conditions. Longer, stronger lines slow the kite and reduce pull
in strong winds, and shorter lighter lines reduce drag and let
you fly in the very lightest winds. Many pilots travel with
three or more linesets to get the widest wind range out of
their kites. Use only Spectra fiber lines for flying your sport
kite; Spectra is extremely low stretch and slippery for
maximum performance. Recommended lengths and strengths
for our different models are listed on our website at
http://www.prismkites.com/new-site/line-set-selection.htm.
Line maintenance
Lines can also wear and break if you fly regularly in fine sand
or strong winds. Retie the two ends using a blood knot if it
breaks in the middle, or tie a new loop in the end using a
double overhand loop if it breaks at the end. Then stretch both
lines out together and tie a new end loop in the longer line so
that your two lines are once again equal in length (within ").
The Double Overhand Loop- for retying end loops:
1.
2.
3.
The Larks Head Knot- for attaching lines to wrist straps or bridle:
ht
Pull tig
The Blood Knot- for splicing broken Spectra lines:
Sail repairs
Your sail will last a long time unless you like to fly near cactus
or barbed wire fences. Tears can also happen during assembly
or disassembly if a spar slips in your hands. Most tears and
punctures can be invisibly repaired using a special transparent
adhesive film called Tedlar, which sticks to the back of the
sail and is unaffected by moisture or UV from the sun. Tedlar
repair tape is available from the spare parts section of our
website.
If your repair requires sewing, remove the frame from the kite
and send us just the sail so we can get you a quote and take
care of it for you. There are very few mishaps that can't be
effectively fixed by our talented in-house repair team. To send
in a repair, download our repair form from the website and
include it with your sail so we know who you are and how
we can help.
WARRANTY
At Prism our warranty is simple: If you're not happy, we're
not happy. If you have a problem with your kite, contact us
directly by phone, fax, or e-mail and and we'll do what it
takes to make things right.
Please bear in mind that your kite can travel as fast as 60mph
and experience over 400g's in a crash. Breaking a spar
occasionally if you push the limits is a normal part of sport
kiting, especially with the more fragile, higher performance
designs. Replacing a spar only takes a minute and many pilots
keep a spare or two in their flight bag. Spares for all our kites
are available from our website at www.prismkites.com.
TUNING AND ADJUSTMENT
MOVING UP
While its not necessary to adjust your bridle, small

adjustments will help you fly your kite more easily in a wider
wind range. The more you fly the more you will be able to
feel the differences that tuning makes. Detailed tuning
information is available in the Kite Tuning section at
www.prismkites.com
Learning tricks
THE PRISM 05 ALL-AROUND SERIES

See our complete product line at www.prismkites.com
On sport kites kites, the bridle determines the exact angle

the kite holds to the wind as it flies (the "angle of attack").
Tipping the nose slightly further forward or further back
affects the speed, pull, and turn radius of the kite.
Angle of attack adjustments can be made by moving the
pigtails you connect your flying lines to along the bridle legs.
Your kite will come with the pigtails on the factory setting,
which is indicated by a silver or black mark on the outer yoke
of the bridle, or the midpoint between two knots spaced
about 1 apart. The factory setting works best in the light
to moderate side of your kite's wind range.
Once you've gotten to know your kite, try moving the pigtails
slightly above or below the factory setting, moving them only
1/4" at a time. You'll find that the kite flies easier in light
winds with the pigtails slightly above the marks (nose tipped
forward), and in strong winds you'll find it turns easier and
pulls harder with the pigtails below the marks (nose tipped
back). AT NO TIME SHOULD YOU MOVE THE PIGTAILS
MORE THAN 3/4 FROM THE FACTORY MARK.
SPECIAL TUNING FEATURE (Quantum and Mirage only):

Switch between the forgiving setting (for easy control) and
the radical setting (for tighter turns) by loosening and moving
the inner bridle loops above the upper knot on each side of
the kite.
Line clip
Accessories
High performance linesets, kite bags, repair materials, spare
parts, T-shirts, hats, and instructional videos are available
direct from the factory at our online store in the "Accessories"
section. We do not sell our production kites direct; consult
your local retailer to order any of our production models
Your next kite

If youre having fun in the wind, youll eventually want to add
to your collection. The worlds leading sport kite manufacturer,
Prism builds a wide range of designs for novices to world-ranked
competition pilots. Our equipment is recognized for
exceptional craftsmanship and unbeatable flight performance,
and each design has a stunningly unique appearance in the
sky. Choose from our great All-around models as well as
specialized designs for Power, Freestyle, Ultralight, Competition,
High Wind, and Team flying. Check out our complete line at
www.prismkites.com.
CONTACT US
Radical setting
Inner yoke
(goes to center T)
Once you can keep your kite in the air and land it without
mishap, the fun begins and you're ready to start learning
tricks. Many of the basic tricks can be learned with a quality
beginner kite, but once you get hooked you may want to
upgrade to a freestyle kite designed for the full range of
acrobatic maneuvers such as the Mirage, E2, Elixir, or Quantum
Pro. We strongly recommend our instructional DVD, Freestyle
Pilot (available from our website and packaged with certain
models), for a complete course on trick flying. It will teach
you the moves in the right order so you don't get frustrated
and will take you all the way to the most advanced moves in
the repertoire. On our comprehensive website we also offer a
video clip library and training animations to teach you the
basics of trick flying.
Forgiving setting
Tough and affordable for the first-time flier.
Skill:
Speed:
Pull:
Wind:
Size:
Novice
Fast
Medium
4-22 mph
5-foot wingspan
Agile and responsive, packs up tiny for travel.
Skill:
Speed:
Pull:
Wind:
Size:
Novice-Intermediate
Moderate-Fast
Medium-Strong
3-25 mph
7-foot wingspan
Solid pull, full-sized stability and performance.

Amazing value for all skill levels.
Skill:
Speed:
Pull:
Wind:
Size:
Novice-Advanced
Moderate
Medium
3-25 mph
8-foot wingspan
STY L US P -SERI ES
Skill:
Speed:
Pull:
Wind:
Sizes:
Smooth winds and happy flying!

Prism Designs Inc.
4214 24th Ave W.
Seattle, WA 98199
C 2005 Prism Designs Inc. All rights reserved
Novice
Very fast
Light
5-20 mph
55 wingspan
Precise and balanced, perfect for learning

freestyle tricks. Includes instructional DVD.
Feel free to contact us as you discover sport kiting. We love

to hear about your adventures and we're always happy to
help if you need technical support of any kind. Our hours are
9am to 5pm Pacific Time Monday through Friday.
206-547-1100
206-547-1200 fax
Skill:
Speed:
Pull:
Wind:
Size:
[email protected]
www.prismkites.com
Novice-Intermediate
Moderate-Very fast
Medium-Strong
5-25 mph
P.1 - 5 wingspan
P.2 - 6 wingspan
P.3 - 9 wingspan
Our ram-air parafoil designs are

fast, hard pulling, and have no
frames to break. 3 sizes to
choose from.

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TIPS AND HINTS

Useful info about your kite and kiting

CARE AND FEEDING

Picking a place to fly

Your choice of flying field is the single most important

The advanced materials in your kite are durable and designed

Your kite can fly faster than 50 mph

Flying in light winds

Flying in strong winds

About your flying lines

The Blood Knot- for splicing broken Spectra lines:

TUNING AND ADJUSTMENT

While its not necessary to adjust your bridle, small

THE PRISM 05 ALL-AROUND SERIES

On sport kites kites, the bridle determines the exact angle

SPECIAL TUNING FEATURE (Quantum and Mirage only):

Your next kite

Tough and affordable for the first-time flier.

Agile and responsive, packs up tiny for travel.

Solid pull, full-sized stability and performance.

Smooth winds and happy flying!

C 2005 Prism Designs Inc. All rights reserved

Precise and balanced, perfect for learning

Feel free to contact us as you discover sport kiting. We love

Our ram-air parafoil designs are

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