Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2011 9:56:27 GMT
With all the ‘stuff’ involved in putting on a Kite Festival these days, with H&S gone mad, sponsors and local councils cutting their budgets, people like me moaning etc. it was a pleasure to be at one of the old favourites in the bowl that is Stamner Park in Brighton. I am sure that behind the scenes leading up to the festival there must have been feverous action to get it all together and successfully hold the festival, even if the date had to be brought forward as the Park was booked for a music festival on the usual, annual date BKF always have use of the park.
Spare a thought for the organisers, who almost thanklessly spend months in preparation for us ‘ Weekenders ’to enjoy our weekend of kite flying, and as well as us camping, cater for the unexpected. Things that go unnoticed like the first aiders, St Johns Ambulance on site 24 hrs. / toilet rolls in all the loos, appropriate fire stations / hired generators, BBQ’s and PA systems / security / invited guests etcetera, all pre arranged and usually unnoticed by me…..as long as I can pull up and put my kettle on, fly a kite, I’m happy, but that’s hardly what the public come to see!
Due to the ridiculously gusty winds there was not the usual display of big kites on the slopes, those that tried paid the price of broken lines and runaway kites! The turbulence in the big ‘bowl’ where Stamner Park is situated, surrounded by trees meant that although it was gusty at 100ft and above, the display arena below suffered with erratic wind conditions, giving invited flyers a challenge to put on a show in lighter winds and down drafts! The predicted rain never really showed till the festival was all over late on Sunday, but the overcast skies were threatening enough to make the public attendance down from other years, or was it that this was held on a bank holiday weekend, unusually, and some public had other planned things to do?
Personally I had a great weekender, Friday to Tuesday, as did many others that took advantage of the longer than norm festival dates. Kite flying was a challenge but I managed to get some in, and acquired a new kite! The annual meeting of friends was as ever, eventful and for many of us ‘kitists’ the after hours antics and banter is as important once the organised parts of the festival are over. Long may it continue!
Is this a fair write up of the festival, or a sermon, heck you know what I’m trying to say…..
2010 festival I found on YouTube...
Spare a thought for the organisers, who almost thanklessly spend months in preparation for us ‘ Weekenders ’to enjoy our weekend of kite flying, and as well as us camping, cater for the unexpected. Things that go unnoticed like the first aiders, St Johns Ambulance on site 24 hrs. / toilet rolls in all the loos, appropriate fire stations / hired generators, BBQ’s and PA systems / security / invited guests etcetera, all pre arranged and usually unnoticed by me…..as long as I can pull up and put my kettle on, fly a kite, I’m happy, but that’s hardly what the public come to see!
Due to the ridiculously gusty winds there was not the usual display of big kites on the slopes, those that tried paid the price of broken lines and runaway kites! The turbulence in the big ‘bowl’ where Stamner Park is situated, surrounded by trees meant that although it was gusty at 100ft and above, the display arena below suffered with erratic wind conditions, giving invited flyers a challenge to put on a show in lighter winds and down drafts! The predicted rain never really showed till the festival was all over late on Sunday, but the overcast skies were threatening enough to make the public attendance down from other years, or was it that this was held on a bank holiday weekend, unusually, and some public had other planned things to do?
Personally I had a great weekender, Friday to Tuesday, as did many others that took advantage of the longer than norm festival dates. Kite flying was a challenge but I managed to get some in, and acquired a new kite! The annual meeting of friends was as ever, eventful and for many of us ‘kitists’ the after hours antics and banter is as important once the organised parts of the festival are over. Long may it continue!
Is this a fair write up of the festival, or a sermon, heck you know what I’m trying to say…..
2010 festival I found on YouTube...
