Date:	Thu, 20 Apr 1995 06:41:20 -1000
From:	dgomberg@ednet1.osl.or.gov (David Gomberg)
Message-Id: <199504201641.AA10503@ednet1.osl.or.gov>
Organization: Harvard University Office of Information Technology
Subject: Berck sur Mer Festival



I've just returned from a GREAT festival in Berck, France. Ten days 
of wind, wine, wonderful friends, and fantastic kites on the
northern coast.

Here a re some highlights:

Two hundred thousand people on the Saturday of Easter weekend. That's
200,000!!! An incredible crowd - unbelievable by American standards.

Giant kites. Five Peter Lynn Octopusses (Octopi?) were on hand
along with Fugu, Centipedes, Turtles, and a Trilobite. The place 
looked like a Peter Lynn Showcase.

Fliers from throughout Europe. Germany, England, Holland, Belgium,
and of course, France were well represented.

One Italian team launched a series of kites shaped like classical
instruments. In the center was a "conductor" kite. It was a fine
show with a symphony drifting out form the sound system.

Aircraft and Lung Ta did incredible performances. How do they
manage axles and stalls in a Beaufort 5 ?

An Aerial Photography exhibition was open nearby with some of
the best shots of castles and historic buildings I have ever
seen. Historical materials were included as well.

An art kite display featured 40 edos painted by Normandy
artists. When all of them were launched together, the show
was awe-inspiring.

AKA President Pete Dolphin took first place in one of the two
Rokkaku battles. (I got 2nd in the other.) French rules allow
"natural fibers" line, which means jute, hemp, and other fuzzy
stuff we would call ROPE over here. It cannot be cut! I finally
protested by launching a kite on several hunks of telephone
cable. For the actual match, I switched to regular fighting
line ("black death"), but we had to fly doubly well to survive
in a sky that couldn't be sliced - no matter what.

On Thursday, we were treated to land yacht lessons. These are
three wheeled vehicles with masts and sails. (Sound familiar?)
Hard to imagine Gomberg on a buggy, but it was great fun and we all
went back out for another high-wind effort on Friday.

Great food and comraderie. This is the best part of any festival.
Each night, we sat for hours over dinner, drinking, eating, and swapping
stories in languages we only half understood.

Well - enough of all that. You get the idea. Thanks - to  Gerard Clement
and his crew for a well-organized, world class event. Join us there
next April.


--
David Gomberg/Cascade Kites               phone 503-996-3083
Box 113, Neotsu Oregon 97364 USA          fax   503-994-9692
   Specializing in BIG "show" kites and Peter Lynn Inflatibles
   For info, see http;//www.kite.com/~crowell/casckites.html


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