1. Tell us a little bit about yourself. I’m Gary Morey, live in Houston, Texas, and love to fly on the Texas Gulf Coast from Galveston down to South Padre Island. Deb and I often fly with S.H.A.R.K. and Surfside Flyers kite clubs. We like to fly from September to June, when the Texas heat is bearable, but we never miss the Fourth of July and, in August, we travel to Colorado, flying in the mountains and the deserts of New Mexico. We always take along our two Catahoulas and dachshund mutt whenever we are kiting. If you see our signature big hot pink shark kite in the air, stop by and say howdy!!
2. Why did you join the AKA? Abel Ortega invited me to join in 1990. Soon thereafter, I competed in the Texas Gulf Coast Stunt Kite Challenge in Galveston, only to decide that, for me, competition is the antithesis of kiting!
3. What is your favorite kite to fly? The kite in the air is always my favorite! Some of my best memories are flying my stacked Hawaiian Team kites, pulling like hell, roaring across the sky!
4. Where is your favorite place to fly? Our favorite place to fly is on Surfside Beach or across the bridge at San Luis Pass. The winds are, generally, strong and steady, inland, and warm. The best thing is that we can drive onto the beach and fly right out of the back of the pickup..
5. If you could fly with anyone dead or alive, who would it be, and what would you fly?My Dad! I was five-years-old when Dad pulled out two balsa wood sticks and said, “Let’s make a kite!” So, we got a sheet of the classifieds, a ball of cotton string, and a bottle of mucilage (old-time glue). Soon we had a diamond kite and, to Mom’s chagrin, a tail from a cotton bedsheet. We went to the street and launched the kite between the houses, coaxing it gently into the sky. Up, up it went, way up! When we reached the end of the string, Dad gave me a wink, pulled another 500′ ball of string out of his pocket, and tied it on! We had tied on three balls of string and let the kite out 1500′ when the line broke— the kite soaring higher and higher and eventually out of sight. Dad laughed. I was horrified about losing our new homemade kite, but also hooked for life!
6. Where is the next place someone can find you flying a kite? Surfside Beach! On the next free day with wind and no rain
AKA Featured Member – Gary Morey
