Tied to the Sky

Our Story :: Great Canadian Kite Company

The Great Canadian Kite Company is a family owned and operated business based in Taber, Alberta Canada. We enjoy the sport of Kite flying and we fly everything from single line kites to stunt kites.  It's about having fun flying kites!

We have established ourselves as a premiere source of quality kites to kite flyers of all levels and interests throughout North America. As kite flyers, our vision is to expand the sport, [provide quality information, products and service and to become the ‘first choice’ supplier of quality kites and accessories in Canada.  

WHY KITES??

We are often asked how we found ourselves flying kites. It started over 20+ years ago. I was married, two kids and chasing the "American / Canadian dream" trading Agricultural Commodities up and down the western side of the continent. This always demanded more time. At the same time I pursuing a passion for ministry which took tons of time too. As you may appreciate there were never enough hours in the day for other important things like my family and some sanity breaks for myself!  

Well, my dream came true, and I started ministry full-time and building a ministry that would care for people with no strings attached. We did a youth drop-in centre with an indoor skateboard park, we had a clothing bank, furniture exchange, give away food to anyone in need with no expectation of return. While it was a dream come true, there are more issues, more people experiencing challenges than one

guy or even a small team could handle. I found that I was working 16 plus hours a day, seven days a week. As you have probably guessed, I was getting pretty ‘toasty’. I knew I needed to cool things down a bit as I didn’t want to burn out. In conversation with a friend, he encouraged me to slow down a bit and suggested that I spend more time with my family and spend more time with a hobby. A hobby? What’s that? 

Near the end of the week, doing the tourist thing in Ocean Shores, we stumbled into a store that sold kites. It was like the lights went on. You know like this holy light shines down, and the Hallelujah chorus starts playing – your right, no one else heard it, but I sure did! I started talking to the salesmen, and I discovered these were a lot of different kites than the $2.95 plastic Bat kites with the yellow eyes I had as a kid. He explained to me what they could do, how to set them up and basic flight techniques. I was sold…. I bought my first stunt kite.  

As you can guess, we all fell in love with kites and have expanded our kite collection into various kinds of kites, and we spend many afternoons, evenings and
even sneak away from the office for here and there to fly kites. Kite flying was an answered prayer for me as it is something my entire family enjoys, it is economical way to spend real time with your family! You can do it almost anywhere at any time, and it has proven to be a great way for me to relax and unwind from the pressure of my work.

A couple of reasons – We are ordinary people, who enjoy kites, know what we like and want to share this passion with others. We want to promotes the sport, shares the fun, and provide  and accessories at fair prices, provide good service and hopefully make some new friends along the way.  

After two decades of hard work and fun, we are pleased with what the Great Canadian Kite Company has become, where it is going, and this is in no small part from you, our customers!  Thanks for your business and friendship!

So check us out! If you don’t see it, ask! Looking forward to meeting you all on the flying field! 

 

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We Fly Kites! Kites are what we do!

Great Canadian Kite Company is truly a well rounded Kite Pro Shop.  In addition to fun single line kites for all ages, and beginner trick kites, along with quality Sky Shark framing, parts, and the knowledge and expertise to provide solid advice and troubleshooting.

We are proud to provide our customers with quality Spectra and Dyneema line in dual line and quad line sets.  We also offer bulk line, kite line sleeving kits, Kite bridle line and much more!

We can also customize your Kite package.

• change line, add line or if you have lots of line - sell you a kite only
• add ground stakes, tails or any replacement parts you may require

With Revolutions Kites we can:

• Customize your Kite line
• Customize you Rev Kite handles
• Help you design and order your custom-made Revolution Kite sail

Don't see it in our shop?
We do special orders all the time!  We pride ourselves in satisfying our customers with fast, knowledgeable service.  We are here to help you make an informed kite purchase, and are committed to helping you even after you have made your purchase.

 

 

Kite Resources / Information

Information on Kite History?  Our website features an expanding array of kite resources to help make sure your kite flying experience is all that it can be.   These free resources cover everything from Kite flying safety, to how to tie a Larkshead knot.  You can find links to kite-flying tutorials, how to fly stunt kites and stunt kite anatomy.  You will also find helpful links to weather sites and much more!

We are 100% Canadian Family owned online Kite Company.  We are kite flyers.  We are passionate about kites, and we love sharing kites with others! 

  

 

 

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Why do we Sleeve Spectra Kite Lines?

Kite line Sleeving 

 

(You can find this article in our Kite Resources section too!)

Line sets are an important and costly necessity of flying your multiline sport kite, so it is important to make sure that you take steps to protect your line sets to maintain performance, increase longevity of the line and save you money.

Sleeving is like a tube sock that we put on the ends of spectra kite lines or any place where we tie a knot. Sleeving is made of hollow braided Dacron and is usually positioned at either end of each line where the line connects via a Larkshead Knot to the flying straps or to the kite tow point.

Spectra kite line, while stronger than steel, has a relatively low melting point.  Wherever there is a knot in the line this is a place of friction which creates heat and will significantly reduce the strength of your spectra line and will be the point of a line break.

This sleeving material acts like a heat diffuser by reducing and diffusing the heat generated by friction at the knot.

Sleeving Your lines.

At Great Canadian Kite Company, all of the sport kite spectra line sets we sell comes pre-sleeved. We are pleased to offer a variety of quality kite line that provides good braid braid, performance and kite line life. That being said it is possible to purchase line sets that are not sleeved, or perhaps you wish to buy bulk kite line and make your own line sets and then a kite line sleeving kit is a valuable tool.

To make your own line sets you will first want to stretch your lines and make them equal length.  With cheaper line (even cheaper spectra labeled line) you can expect lines to stretch as much as 12-15% where quality line sets may stretch 4-6%.   The point is line will stretch with use and it may be necessary to equalize your lines from time to time.

Once your lines are stretched and measured you are ready to sleeve each end. Our Sleeving kits come with simple instruction, two different colours of sleeving and a sleeving tool.  Here are the basic steps to sleeving your spectra kite line:

• Sleeve one end of the line at a time making sure that you use the same colour of sleeving for both ends of the same line.  This is really helpful to help you keep straight which line goes to each side of the kite and which its corresponding flying strap.
• Insert the sleeving tool through the sleeving. Pull the tool a few centimetres through the sleeving.
• After the tool is inserted through the sleeve carefully take a lighter and melt the ends of the dacron for a clean looking sleeving job. This will keep the sleeving from fraying.
• Thread your Spectra line through the end of the sleeving tool and pull the tool back through the dacron sleeving bringing the kite line with it.
• With the sleeving now on your line, you can remove the sleeving tool.
• Slide the sleeving towards the end of the line being careful not to go too far or you will have to reinstall the sleeve using the sleeving tool.
• Tie a knot in the very end of the line (including the sleeve).
• Stretch the sleeving back up the line so it won't bunched up.
• Tie another knot at the end farthest from the end.
• Bring these two knots together and make a loop as shown below. Make sure this loop is big enough that you can easily tie a Larkshead knot to attach to the kite or flying straps.  Ensure these loops are the same size on each end of each line.

The end of the line is now sleeved and you can repeat the process for each of the other lines.  Remember: make sure you have the same colour sleeving on the ends of the same line. 

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It's a Spring Thing - Revolution Reflex Kites

The Reflex Spring is attached to the vertical spreaders, and the effectively changing the way the sail loads and air moves over the sail.

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Taking Flight against Cancer

 

Hi Friends,

In July of 2019, I received a phone call no one wants to receive - I had stage 3 Ductile Carcinoma. 

This news was very difficult to hear and was the beginning of a difficult journey through chemotherapy, surgery, radiation and hormone therapy. Thanks to a fantastic cancer care team knowledgeable about the most up to date research and the best treatments available for breast cancer, I am one year cancer free! 

This May and June the Great Canadian Kite Company will donate the net proceeds of each Pink Ribbon kite purchased to the Canadian Cancer Society to aid in cancer research and help other women just like me. 

- Andrea, co-owner of Great Canadian Kite Company

 

In celebration of Andrea's 1st Anniversary of being Cancer Free, we are donating the net proceeds of each Pink Ribbon Large Easy Flyer Kite purchased to the Canadian Cancer Society.  You can order your Pink Ribbon Kite here.

Post your pics of you flying your Pink Ribbon kite to social media with the hashtags: #CancerSucks #kitescanada #Betheend #researchmatters

 

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5 Reasons Why we Think Kites are Freakin' Awesome

We think kites are amazing!  They are fun to fly, great exercise and a chance to get out in the outdoors and away from our screens!  Here is a list of why we think Kite Flying is a great hobby and a wonderful family activity.

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5 Reasons Kites Make Great Gifts - Fathers Day

Last year we spent a stellar day hiking and kite flying one Alberta's premiere provincial parks - Writing on Stone.  It was a great way to get out in the fresh air for some quality time together as a family  One of the best aspects of it was there was no cell service!  What this meant was we had to talk to each other (novel idea, eh? LOL!), climb, laugh and fly kites together - we had a blast!  I tell ya,  my wife & I didn't think about work once and felt like we had a truly refreshing day.

Many folks are looking for great gift ideas for Fathers Day this year.  We know that kites are one such gift idea and it is a fun, enjoyable and here are a few reasons why.

1) Fresh air is underrated!  How good it is to get outside enjoy blue sky, the sun and the great outdoors.  We fly kites all year round - including winter!

2) Physically active - Getting out and moving does a body good!  There is a kite for just about every kind of physical ability from the gentle to the full on extreme - glide kites,  single line kites to carving up the sky with a trick kite.

3) Reduces Stress -  Getting away from the day to day grind is a first great step for stress reduction.  Add the gentle flight of kites on the breeze or flying your stress through your stunt kite through the sky, flying kites have demonstrated to be an effective ways of reducing stress.

4) Promotes creativity - Many quality kites are flying pieces of art and many with tails make for a lovely display in the air.   But stunt kites can be a great way to express yourself as well!  I love to listen to music while I fly and in a very real sense fly my kite to the music.   Some folks like to soul fly and toss and flip and manoeuvre their kites as an expression of what's going on inside them.

5) Great way to spend time as a family - Lets face it, there are a lot of things competing for your time, and we all want to make time for quality activities to do as a family.   With quality kites, a good wind and a place to fly, you and your family can make some great memories!  One thing my wife and I enjoy doing together is flying our four line Revolution kites together, side by side.  We play follow the leader, hover side by side and fly forms together.  Lots of fun and good for a few laughs if you don't take it too seriously!

Looking for exciting Fathers Day gift ideas? Great Canadian Kite Company sells a variety of kite for many different interests, ages and abilities. Browse our online Canadian kite shop to buy your kites online.  Don't see what you are looking for?  Drop us an email!

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Ray Bethel - Tribute

Matt Nie directed this Tribeca Film Festival Best Documentary on Vancouver kite flier, Ray Bethell  (March 1, 1928 - December 18, 2018).

Wikipedia - "Ray Bethell was a professional kite flyer who resided in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He holds multiple endurance world records related to simultaneously flying three stunt kites, one from each hand and one from his hips. Using the same technique he can fly multiple stacks of kites."

Ray was a real treasure to many - especially in the Kite world.  Check out Ray's website: http://www.raybethell.com/html/n_01.htm

 

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Nic O'Neill Flies Kites!

An interesting TED presentation by Nic O’Neill.  Nic is the former president of the American Kitefliers Association (AKA), and shares her passion for kites of many different kinds. Whether flying on the beach doing loop-de-loops or snowkiting with skis, Nic shares the freedom and magic of kites.

 

 

 

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