Microns

I've mentioned before that we are always on the look-out for something 'different' to do in our arena slots in addition to typical choreographed routines, flown with high-end professional kites. Something that will appeal to the public, and maybe even make them pick up a kite.

One possibility I thought about takes us back to the early days of our kite-flying. We then bought a Prism Micron, and shortly after, a stack of five Microns. The single Micron is mental when the wind picks up, whereas the 5-stack, with its colourful presence, always put a smile on our faces.

So could we actually fly the single and the 5-stack together in a routine? They sure fly differently, have different flying characteristics, but can we make use of that in a routine? It would certainly be something not seen at kite festivals!

One way to find out: fly them together ...

We tried it with me flying the single Micron, and Irma flying the 5-stack. So the stack is following the single kite. We flew them on 25m lines with and without 5m leaders; 30m in total works better for flying both together. Any longer (like our standard 45m), and the kites just vanish at the end of the lines due to their small size (remember, they have a wing span of just under a meter).

The kites are fast and skittish, especially the single Micron. So we would not create a classic fully choreographed routine, but that was not our aim. There are certainly possibilities, with the stack in fast pursuit of an even more frenzied singleton.

Key question now: what music to fly it to? It must be fast and furious, not too long (less than 3 minutes ideally; it takes quite some concentration to avoid crashes with these fast kites) and clear hooks are not so important (as we simply use the music as backdrop). I have some ideas myself (e.g. Flight of the Wounded Bumblebee, or maybe Heart's Barracuda), but happy to hear suggestions!