Kite Flyer
Release: 10/13/2004 Route 66 Kite
Club (R66KC)
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Kite Club Phoenix, AZ
(New) |
Table Of Contents
(Just Click On The
Left Item Of Interest. It is recommended that all articles be read)
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Hot Buttons |
Descriptions
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The Next Couple Of Weekends |
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What Happened The Last Couple Of Weekends |
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Long Term Dates And Plans |
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Other Items Of interest |
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Questions To The Club |
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Unanswered Questions From Before |
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HELP ME! |
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Fun Stuff From “The Editor Of The Inquirer” |
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Fun Stuff From E-Mail |
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Lost Puppies And Things For Sale |
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Club Fields That We Use (New) |
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Club Survey Of Recommended Stores (New) |
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Club Structure etc. |
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Cover My Ass Legal Ease |
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Please Help Yourselves |
Notice And Reminder: I will be
publishing anything and everything that comes my way that relates to kites. If
you wish to communicate with me, and
DO NOT want something used in the Kite Flyer, please indicate what part of your
E-mail is private. Otherwise, everything is fair game. Send me
something, come on, I dare you! thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
Upcoming Flying Events
This Sunday’s Off Weekend Fly, 11/14/99, will be held from approximately
12:00 noon, to 5:00pm will be at Fountain Hills, (see the new Kite Field Recommendations section for
directions). There is supposed to the a Fountain Hills days with lots of
vendors attending all weekend. This might be a good time for some non-kiter
visibility. Please contact me at: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com
if you plan to attend on Sunday, so that we can coordinate the attendance of
this event.
The Following Sunday’s R66KC Fly, 11/21/99, again held from
about 12:00 noon to 5:00 PM, will be at the new Plateau Park so that all will
be able to check out the new, or old find. See the new Kite Field Recommendations section for
directions.
Note: By popular demand and the desire
to socialize after a fly with a meal and possibly drinks, the club flying
events will be moving, periodically,
to SATURDAYS!!! Stay tuned as to when
this will start. Park selection will be
alternated so that no single group of individuals will have to drive a long way
all of the time.
Special
Note: Jane
and I have purposely bought three
indestructible Beetles for guests! Please
do not hesitate to ask for them when you have a guest attending our events.
Latest Fly Report
Report On The Sunday 10/31/99 Fly. There were some great winds
blowing in my part of town last Saturday and Sunday mornings. I managed
to make it down to my local field (Sherminator Park, see the new Kite
Field Recommendations section for directions), for a couple hours on both days, but I arrived
too late in the day (both days) to take advantage of the really good
winds. By the time I got down there in the early afternoon, the winds
were mostly calm with some brief gusts - pretty typical stuff.
- By Chris (The Sherminator) Schermann
Report On The Saturday 11/06/99 Fly. Special charity event
for the Glendale Chapter Of The Harley Owners Group (HOG). Our own Billy Mad
Dog Dines attended at the request of the Gadget Man and Hummingbird Manson.
This was an experiment with the HOG group and Sunshine Acres. This will give us
some insight into our charity events in the future. The following is the
article that is being recommended to the “HOG Lines” newspaper.
The Sunshine Acres Children's Home run was on a
beautiful Saturday 11/06/99. The kids went wild when we arrived and for a
couple hours prior to lunch several of us gave the kids rides around the
complex on our motorcycles. Some of us played with the kids on the playground,
some played catch with a football, and some kids were taught how to fly a stunt
kite thanks to a member of the Route 66 Kite Club who joined us for the day.
The kids raffle was fantastic with David Sivadon
donating five of the eight bicycles. All of David's bicycles were new, and one
was a large 18 speed, with the other 4 being smaller BMX bicycles, 2 boys and 2
pink girls. The rest of the stuff that was donated was great with one of the
hot items being a remote controlled Barbie Harley. There were plenty of items
with every kid getting a bottle of bubbles, a yo-yo, and a candy cane with each
raffle ticket. When all was said and done, there was plenty left over for
Christmas, including one of the small pink BMX bicycles.
As for money, Earnest Shroud donated $50; Someone
riding a Goldwing wanted to know what was up with the bikes and kids and
donated $20; The auction for the shirts and sandstone coasters collected $227;
Registration netted $540 from 36 people; For a grand total of $837.
The most touching part was with a girl, about 13
years old, who did not arrive at the raffle until late because she was waiting
for her father who didn't show, and received her raffle ticket from her house
parent who was holding it for her. She became despondent when time and again,
her number wasn't called, until the very end. Her ticket was third from the
last, and when she finally was selected, she promptly walked up and took a
small pink BMX bicycle, which was way to small for her, and when questioned,
stated that it was for her sister. (WOW) I insisted that she stay, and when the
last two had picked their prizes, I asked her to select another prize for
herself. Just too much for this old
biker.
Well I want to thank all of you for making this
day a great success, with fun for all, and hope to see you all at next years
Sunshine Acres run, the kids will be waiting!
- By Tom (The Gadget Man) Manson thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
Report On The Sunday 11/07/99 Fly. This was a great fly at
the Original Hippie park, AKA Jim Jennings Park, with a shocking observation.
Jimmy was not the first one there this time. We all assumed that he just lived
in the park and figured he must be out sick with double phenomena of something.
Come to find out that he does sometimes go home and do honey dews. In any
event, the wind and the attendance started out bad, and as the day picked up,
so did both. We had some new members from the Harley Owners Group (HOG) join
use, Paul and Sue Bennett, who have been flying single lines for years, and
have just come out of the closet to join our group. They even bought a couple of new kites to join us with but
unfortunately the wind was not supportive of the single liners. They did get a
slick plastic bat kite up for a while in the later part of the afternoon. Our
long lost friend Valli, along with her two kids, Squiggles and Fringus, who we
met for the first time, was able to join us after a long absence. Valli will
have to tell us what the kids think of my new names for them. The ultra lights
had a good workout, and fun was had by all. A flag football game was held at one
end of the field by some watchers, which did not interfere with our fun in any
way. Dennis the Menace was able to coax another friend from work to join us,
John, Maria, and their little son who is cute as a bug. John brought a line
snare along just to get our attention. Well it worked, and Dennis, Ryan, John,
and I had great time setting up his lines. Mad Dog Dines also assisted John in
setting up the kite he brought which had a bridle that I had not seen before.
Hope that they will be able to join us in the future. Catch you all on the
field next time.
Report On The Monday 11/09/99 Fly.
Monday, desiring to fly and not finding the wind to be cooperative at my
usual park I remembered Mad Dog Dines
telling me about a park on 16th street.
So off I went to find this new park.
BONANZA!!! What a great place to
fly! The park has EVERYTHING you need:
Wide open space, enough for 8-10 flyers at one time; the elevation is higher
than the surrounding area, nothing to obstruct the wind; a great view of the
distant mountains; the flying area is at the base of 2 small mountains that may
contribute to wind generation by creating thermals. These small mountains face
to the west so they heat up all afternoon.
When I was flying the wind was directly out of the west and steady.
Another neat thing was with the wind and the sun light coming from out of the
west my kite was highlighted( the
colors were brilliant) in the air with the mountains in the background. The area I flew on is a ball field that
doesn't appear to be used for playing ball.
There are basketball courts, a playground for small kids, rest rooms
(locked) or plenty of whiz-tree's/bushes. Hopefully you and Bill can get over
this way soon to check it out. The park
is located approx. 1 mile north of Union Hills off 16th Street. Go north on
16th from Union Hills to Wescott, turn
right, the parking lot is about 100yds in on Wescott.
Hopefully, I can go back this afternoon just make sure it's really there
and I wasn't dreaming. I'll keep you posted.
- By Dennis (The Menace) Hardy (Edited by the Gadget –
Because of this park being elevated, I have dubbed the park Plateau Park)
(Special Note: We need to find more parks with an audience to introduce
more non-fliers to the sport. Some discussion at the last fly was made of
parks that might fit the bill. Please send in your recommendations ASAP
so that we can start trying them out. thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.)
Future Events
Sunshine Acres Children’s Home/Orphanage Charity Event –
Currently being worked on. And has yet to be determined.
04/07-04/09/2000 - Kite Fest 2000 to benefit Homeward Bound. It will be at Del Webb's anthem this year, and
promises to be bigger and better than Kite Fest '99 was!!!! Lynn Trochelman is
on the planning committee again, and will be getting in touch with the local
flyboys and girls to recruit volunteers to help with a few things for this
year. Lynn will keep you posted as she gets more nailed down. Lynn can be
contacted at: flykites2@aol.com
05/12-05/14/2000 – Route 66 Kite
Club Fly With Our Sister Club the San Diego Kite Club (SDKC). Come and tryout some really great winds with
loads of fun for the whole family. Sea World, Old Down, Seaport Village,
Mission Bay, Mission beach, the ocean, shopping, and a myriad of other things
for the family to do. We will be joining the SDKC, (http://www.sdkc.net) at their Mission
Bay Park for a Sister club fly on Saturday, with a night fly on the beach
Saturday evening. A Saturday evening barbecue will be promoted as well. We
would like to have everyone stay at the same hotel if possible for easier logistics.
The “Beach Cottages” hotel is on Mission Boulevard and right on the beach for
everyone’s enjoyment with lots of shops and restaurants within easy walking
distance. The rooms run from $80/night through $250/night for a two-bedroom
cottage. Jane and I have a one-bedroom
cottage that we all can congregate at, so my recommendation is the cheaper
rooms. Everyone should get their
reservations in early because this is a popular place. Hope to see you all
there!
09/22-09/24/2000 – September
San Diego Sister Club in San Diego w/ the San Diego Kite Club Event.
More information to follow when available. See the 05/12/2000 event for lodging
information.
(The Southern California Open has moved to March. This
may become just a sister club event.)
10/08/2000 – One Sky One World
(OSOW) Annual kite event for world piece. More to follow as information
becomes available.
Note: Any ideas for events, please
contact the Gadget Man at: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
Other News
New kiters are calling from all
over the country. Thanks to
our listing on the AKA web site, and in the AKA magazine, I have received four
calls from what appear to be snowbirds looking for someone to fly with in
Phoenix. We have also had a few new locals contact us, and we hope that we can
coax all of them to join us on some of our flies. Welcome aboard one and all,
and we hope to see you on the fields real soon.
I (the Scherminator), purchased
a new Rainbow Elixir last week from Gone With the Wind Kites. It's a real beauty! I
couldn't wait to try it out last weekend. I'll be the first to admit that
I am nowhere near the point of being able to take advantage of this kite's
capabilities. Hopefully though, with a lot of practice, I'll be able to
do some good tricks with it someday. For now, I'm happy just watching
this 8-foot beauty streak across the sky.
– By Chris (The Scherminator) Schermann
Our sister club in San Diego (SDKC) has indicated that having group
get togethers would be wonderful. They have expressed interest in
joining us in our Kite Fest 2000 that Lynn
Trochelman (flykites2@aol.com) is working on for the April time frame.
More details will be following for the May event with our hopes of having the
SDKC join us after the Sister Flight event for a beach cottage bar-b-queue. The
SDKC has also indicated that the Southern California Open Kite Fest has moved
to March, so we will be re-evaluating the September Kite gathering in San Diego
as well. Perhaps it will become a joint Sister Flight and Harley Owners Group,
joint event. Any ideas, please send them to the Gadget Man: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
New Questions
Warning: We need responses to the following questions in a timely
manor, from all of the
membership. If we cannot get the needed responses, we may have to call an
actual meeting, eeeeeeuuuuuuuuwwwwwwwww.
:-(
No new questions at this time. Please review the next section, “Old Questions
That Still Need Answering”.
Old Questions That Still Need
Answering
The following Questions Need Answers From All Of You! Some of you have responded, but we need all of you to respond, at least with a minimal of info. Please Respond As Soon As Is Possible! Thanks thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
1. Due to popular demand for our shirts at Kite Festivals, Roman has recommended that we order extra shirts with slightly different labeling. If we can only change the labeling a little, we can defray the cost of club member shirts a little when we sell the shirts to outsiders. Recommendations are needed on how to change the logo, (see the top right hand corner of the cover sheet), so that we can still identify the club member shirts from the non-member shirts. As an alternative, we can keep all of the shirts the same, and request that an additional $5 be added to the cost of a shirt, with a valid AKA license, and add these people from other states to the club roster. We need your input people. It is my opinion that adding people from other states to our roster would be the way to go. But that is just my opinion. This would also spread our Kite Flyer all over the states, and generate interest in people flying with the club when in town. Again, we need your input.
2. The question has arisen regarding the R66KC shirts. And
that is a good question. I need to know everyone’s shirt size. And I mean
everyone! You are not committing to buy
a shirt now, just sometime in the future. In order to get a break on the cost
of the shirts, I have to order quantity. If I order only ten shirts, the cost
is like $35 per shirt. If I can place an order for 25 to 30 shirts, the cost
drops to about $20 to $25. There are also two types of shirts, the standard
T-shirt in gray, or the Polo style shirt with a collar in light blue. Please
respond to me via E-mail at your earliest convenience, with three answers.
Which type of shirt, how many of each, and what sizes. If not interested at
all, I need to know that as well, and as soon as is possible. I personally have
two of each, and my wife has two of the T-shirts, (the polo shirts did not come
in small).
Needed Input
1.
Jonathan Dellmar has posted that his new sewing machine is up and running and
the cutting table should be finished in the next few weeks. Jon also wants
input on the Route 66 banner? I have several ideas on this, and Jon has
suggested that he would like for all the club members to have a chance to have
some input on what it's gonna look like. Jon has several ideas as well, so
bring your thoughts on the banner to the next couple of flies for review. All ideas are needed, and none will be
rejected.
(We still
need input on this one. John will have his first practice banner ready for
review soon.)
2. Input for R66KC articles is always appreciated and always needed.
Please send all items for publication to Gadget Man Manson at: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com. Please
include R66KC in the subject of any E-mails. If you find any information
relating to kiting, even rumors, please forward them. Information on new Arizona stores that have kites, places that
have kite building materials, new web sites, and especially humorous ideas for
“Inquiring Minds Want To Know”, etc., are all desperately
needed. Anyone wishing to publish
his or her own articles or columns will gladly be accepted. Used kites that
anyone wishes to sell will also be published. Remember, it takes more than a
couple of people to make a club happen.
Inquiring Minds Want To Know
Fly’n Ryan, son of Dennis the
Menace Hardy, has a secret goal every time we fly together. It is very
subtle, but if you watch this guy, you will notice the he takes a shot at
flying everyone’s kites, one at a time. Fly’n Ryan is a good flier with natural
talent, so we all consent, but this guy is systematic, and he always gets a
chance to fly everyone’s kite. Even in the beginning when he joined us at the
Secret Park (see the new Kite Field
Recommendations section), a long time ago, and I had my four line
Revolution out, this dude finagled a fly, and flew it great right out of the
shoot, better than the Menace too. There is some suspicions though that he may
be related to that new alien race of kite fliers that our Region 12 Director,
Ron Despojado (region12@aka.kite.org),
has been courting to fly in next years competition. We feel that he may be an
advanced scout trying to feel out the competition, and learn our kiting ways.
So check him out the next time he flies with us and see if you can tell if it
is just natural talent, or alien instinct. And keep an eye on the kites that he
flies, he will find a way to fly everyone’s kite, and just wait, he will ask to
fly yours too.
Signature Lines To Remember
From Chris The Scherminator
Schermann.
It's good to be part of
the club! I believe it was Will Rodgers who said, "I wouldn't
belong to any club that would have someone like me as a member."
Just an old, funny quote.
From Our Kite Festival
Coordinator Lynn Trackelman
Take care....
And, remember, if the
wind sucks, you're flying backwards!!!
Lynn
From Our Editor the Gadget Man, and stolen with permission from Robyne Gardner
of AKA. Tom added the Kilroy face for fun and to play with your minds.
,,,,,,,
_____________,,,,_{ô¿ô}_,,,,______________
You don't stop playing because you
get old,
you get old because you stop playing!
_____________________________________
Used Kites For Sale And Lost Kite Listing
We still have a little lost sole
in Big John’s bag. You can
contact him at: dellmar1@home.com. . Please look through all or your bags
as John has requested, (I did), and review what you have. John has a big heart and
has offered to go to extreme measures to return the kite to it’s owner. So lets
all take a little time to help Big John out.
No
Kites For Sale At This Time
Kite Field Recommendations New
Note: Park names derived from primary user’s nickname,
recommended name, or a unique feature of the park.
Fountain Hills Park (Way East By
Northeast) This park is in
the center of city of Fountain Hills. From the north side of town take Shea
Boulevard all the way out to Saguaro Boulevard which is just before Highway 87
or the Beeline Highway. From the east side, take the Beeline, or Highway 87
north to Shea Boulevard, and head west to the first light, which is Saguaro
Boulevard. Once there, go north on
Saguaro Blvd. until you find the lake with the odd looking fountain in the
middle. This is the largest fountain in the world and usually goes off every
hour, creating it’s own wind, and cooling, which is great for the summer. Take
the first road past the lake, and you will find the place to fly on the north
side of the lake.
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Rating: |
Great But Far |
Restrooms: |
None |
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Kiters That Can Fly: |
30 |
Drinking Fountains: |
None |
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Non-Kiter Visibility: |
Good |
Amenities Close By: |
4 Miles |
Original Hippie Park (North)
Was the “Jim Jennings Park”, and can be located by going north on I-17 to Bell
Rd., west on Bell to 29th Ave., then south on 29th to
Grandview, and finally west again on Grandview for two blocks.
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Rating: |
Great |
Restrooms: |
None |
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Kiters That Can Fly: |
30 |
Drinking Fountains: |
None |
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Non-Kiter Visibility: |
Poor |
Amenities Close By: |
1 Mile |
Plateau Park (Northeast) (New) This park is located
approximately one mile north of Union Hills on 16th Street. Take
I-17 north to Union Hills, and go east to 16th Street. Then go north
on 16th Street to Wescott and turn east. Parking can be found about
100 yards east of 16th Street on Wescott.
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Rating: |
Great |
Restrooms: |
Locked |
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Kiters That Can Fly: |
15 |
Drinking Fountains: |
Yes |
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Non-Kiter Visibility: |
Poor |
Amenities Close By: |
2 Miles |
Secret Park (Northwest) This park may soon be removed from the list due to
new housing development. This park can be located southwest of the intersection
of 51st Ave. and Northern. From there go west to the first street
that goes south and then follow that to the end, about three blocks, where it
ends at the park. This park was rated good, but is slowly being downgraded due
to the open fields being filled with new houses.
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Rating: |
Good Moving To Poor |
Restrooms: |
None |
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Kiters That Can Fly: |
8 |
Drinking Fountains: |
None |
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Non-Kiter Visibility: |
Poor |
Amenities Close By: |
1 Mile |
Sherminator Park (East)
This was the “Chris Schermann Park” and can be located on the southeast corner
Miller Rd. and Roosevelt St. in Scottsdale. Miller
runs north and south, midway between Scottsdale and Hayden Roads, and Roosevelt
is located one-half mile south of McDowell Road. The park is just west of,
the Indian Bend Wash/Park which has been deemed unsuitable due to the wash that
it was built in. Parking can be found at the Yavapai Elementary School
just to the south of the field.
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Rating: |
Good |
Restrooms: |
None |
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Kiters That Can Fly: |
18 |
Drinking Fountains: |
None |
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Non-Kiter Visibility: |
Good |
Amenities Close By: |
1 Mile |
New Park Recommendations:
1. Hi Tom,
Here are the directions to the park we were talking about: The park is
located on the northeast corner of 7th Ave. and Grovers. Grovers is
1/2 mile north of Bell Rd. The entrance
to the parking lot is approx. 100 yards north of Grovers on 7th Ave. Hope we can arrange a Saturday or Sunday
fly. If you want to go for dinner and
drinks afterward there is numerous places in the immediate area.
See ya - Dennis (The Menace) Hardy
Note: We need more park recommendations
with non-kiter visibility. Please send your recommendations to: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com.
Kite Store Recommendations (New)
This section is a listing of Web Sites and Kite
Stores that have received an overall approval rating from the membership.
Recommendations, pro and con, for stores and web sites are needed. The input
will be kept private and will not be published. But to be listed, a shop will have to have more positive
than negative reports in the areas of price, selection, service, and
customer satisfaction. For example, if a store receives one overall
positive report and one overall negative report, they will not be listed.
Someone submitting information on a store can register up to four negatives,
four positives, or any combination of four per store, per person. One positive
or negative vote for each of the following categories: price; selection;
service; and satisfaction. So each of
your honest votes does count and does matter. New entries are always
welcome, and votes on listed entries encouraged. The positive results only will
be published here. Any member with concerns about the results can request the
director, Mad Dog Dines, to review the tallies.
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Name |
Contact |
Location |
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Gone With The Wind |
Dan Whitney |
Web Sales Only |
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Into The Wind |
(800) 541-0314 |
Good Catalog To Hand Out Ask For Copies |
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Kite Country |
Victor & Yaya (619) 233-9495 |
566 Horton Plaza San Diego, CA 92101 |
General R66KC
Information
Billy Mad Dog Dines is currently the
R66KC Director, with Tom Gadget Man Manson the Assistant Director, and Jane
Hummingbird Manson as general supporter of kite madness. All related R66KC
business, memberships, etc., will be handled on the flying fields. All
communications will be handled via E-mail at the following address: thomas.m.manson@boeing.com. All publications
will be through E-mail. A R66KC web site will be forthcoming that will better
outline all areas of the R66KC. The AKA affiliated R66KC is Phoenix Arizona
based, and a non-AKA-affiliated club located in Tucson Arizona, called Coyote
Kite Club, can be contacted via: jagbry@theriver.com.
R66KC membership requires an AKA pilots license for all persons, with family
membership discounts available, (see: http://www.aka.kite.org),
and an annual $5.00 per person registration fee with the club. The R66KC
supports all efforts of AKA, and the safety guidelines referenced therein. The
R66KC of Phoenix AZ is a part of AKA’s Region 12 and the current Region 12
director is Ron Despojado who can be contacted at: rdespo@ixpres.com
Disclaimer
The Route 66 Kite Club (R66KC), the editors of the “Route 66 Kite Club - Kite Flyer” (currently Thomas Gadget Man Manson), the American Kitefliers Association (AKA), and any contributors to this editorial, make no claims concerning the accuracy of materials appearing in this publication. Any and all information relating to kiting, rumors or otherwise, will be published without efforts in authentication or verification of the source. Efforts will be made to screen out items of malicious intent, without any guarantee of the success of these efforts. Updates or clarifications of previously posted information or rumors, are requested, and will gladly be posted in the following edition.
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