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PEELS.
Peter Lynn makes various models of his Peel, (looks like a section of an orange peel) to cover almost any wind speed. They are as large as 10 square meters and as small as 3.6 meters. The peel is a high aspect ratio kite with eliptical tips and was designed to be an efficient traction kite. There are reefer models available that cause the envelope to "accordian" as gusts hit the kite or as you pass thru the center of the wind window. There is now a quadline version although I have never flown one. I have flown a 5 meter peel and a 10 meter peel both are powerful traction kites. The 5 meter peel is difficult to turn but manageable. I thought the 10 meter peel (Andrews old peel)the most difficult kite to turn I had ever flown. It did provide traction at pretty low wind speeds, in this case about 6 mph, but took several seconds to come around on a turn. With as much arm extension as I could manage I still had to use the buggy by turning up wind then at the last second making a hard downwind turn. There is no doubt in my mind that many people would be intimidated by the kite. I am used to flying quad line kites and did not particularly like the peel, but I suspect it is only a matter of learning the different technique required. Here in the northwest only a few people own peels and most of them rarely use them for beach buggying. At Ivanpaugh dry lake the most accomplished buggy drivers used peels and could attain higher speeds than any thing else there in very light winds.
SPUTNIK 4.
I have seen two Sputnik 4s and both were very nice performers. One was made by Steve Bateman from Whittier, Ca., a nice guy and a craftsman, he did a great job. It seemed to perform somewhere similar to an equivalent sized peel. Ken and Lynn Serack also made an equally nice 3.6 meter version that I got to fly and buggy with. I was very impressed with how easy it was to turn, the cantenary bridle system places the bridle points much closer together than one would expect with a kite as large as the 3.6 meter version. A comparable size peel does not turn as easy. Ken quadlined his sputnik an it flew great as a four line kite. Click Here to see a picture that details the quad line bridle configuratiion. Click Here if you want to see a picture of the quadlined Sputnik 4 in flight. If I make one it will be a 5 meter version as there is a gap in my buggy engine sizes that it would fill. For a version that large I would opt for a fatter airfoil and a lower aspect ratio because it would be used in light winds (probably 9 to 12 mph). In this range the emphasis should be on initial acceleration rather than terminal speed. I could feel the pull on Kens' sputnik start out fairly low then come on very strong with increased speed, somewhat reminicent of a flexi. If you are an accomplished sewer then the Sputnik is an economical way to get one or more traction kites. The plans are contained in "STUNT KITES II", and the disk that can be purchased with the book allows you to change the various design parameters and plot the configuration of the kite. The book also contains a good chapter on the technical aspects of the Buggy system.
Other Traction Kites.
To be sure, there are other traction kites. There are other quadliners that are probably ok. I haven't heard of any real design break thrus though and they look (at least in the pictures) like they are of similar design to the mainline kites. I know some people use framed kites usually in a stack, but they spend a lot of time setting up the kites to initially launch or after a crash. Single large framed kites are generally too fragile to standup to heavy long term use that involves a crash or two.
SUMMARY OF MY THOUGHTS ON BUGGY ENGINES.
Large kites are necessary for low wind speed buggying. The lower you chose to go the larger the kite must be and the narrower the wind range over which you can use the kite. If the wind is at all gusty, then at times you will have just barely enough kite followed by periods where you are overpowered, sometimes to a dangerous extent. Large kites are the most expensive, sometimes costing several times as much as a smaller more versatile one. It is my opinion that you buy a large kite (6 square meters and up) only after you have at least a couple of kites to handle the mid range of wind speeds.
For beach buggying here in the Northwest I would recommend as a first kite something around 25 to 30 square feet to learn on. Good candidates would be a Skytiger 26, a Quad Trac 3, or one of the other foils in this size. With a kite this size you can start to buggy at about 13 mph wind speed up to where you get scared or your arms stretch too much.
The second kite to get is something around 35 to 60 square feet depending on how heavy and strong you are. I recommend this size because the winds are more likely to be lower than your first kite can handle than they are to be higher. Good candidates are the Quad-Trac Pro 4, or 5, or the Skytiger Hi-40. Note these are all Hi Aspect Ratio Kites. If you are male and weigh upwards of 180 lbs and are strong, then the SkyTiger HI-60 or the Quad Trac pro series in a 7 or 9 size may be the answer.
The third kite should probably be something around 12 to 20 square feet depending on the size of your first kite. I recommend a kite in this size range rather than a large kite to cover the other end of the wind speed range simply because this costs less. Good candidates are the Skytiger 18 (that is what I chose) a Quad Trac 2 or any other foil in this size range. Some one needs to come up with a Hi-Aspect kite in this size range, as of now I don't know of any.
The fourth kite would be your low wind kite. This kite will have an area of at least 50 square feet if you are a light weight and up to over 100 square feet if you are heavy, strong and young (lots of testosterone). And also have lots of money. My personal choice was a F10 6.6 meter(72 square feet). The particular design is now obsolete. It works fine down to about 6.5 mph and is a REAL LOAD at any thing over 12 mph. On days where there is an offshore breeze (usually more gusty than on shore ones) of around 8 to 10 mph with gusts to 15 mph this kite is a bit scary and beats you up pretty good. I now use a SkyTiger Hi-60 Icarex to cover the low wind range. It provides traction at wind speeds lower than my F10 6.6 meter. I have not had the opportunity to try a Quad Trac Pro 9, also a HI Aspect design, with its larger area it could be a very good low wind performer. My reservation about the Hi Aspect Quad Tracs is that with the narrow chord the brake lines distort up to one third of the airfoil during turns or breaking, while narrow chord kites with trailing edge flaps do little in the way of distorting the airfoil.
I did not give any recommendations for two line traction kites because I have very little experience using them. I know that if you use long lines and keep the kite moving you can extract some more energy from the wind than you can with a quad line kite that you just set in the groove and let it go. I know if I owned a peel I would probably sew flaps on the trailing edge, much like the Skytiger, and convert it to a Quad. For the average buggier this would likely make the kite easier to use. I am equally sure hi performance buggiers are appalled at such an idea.
For additional and more comprehensive insights on traction kites see Peter Lynns' Buggys, Boats and Peels.
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