I just wanted to drop a line as your friendly kite flying President and check in and see if you have had heard about some of the goings on here at Virtual AKA HQ.
Poll
We still have a poll up and running, but only for another week and a half. Head over to the Members’ only webpage and click on the link on the homepage that says ‘Poll’, or you can click on the link below. (you will need to be logged in to access the poll)
https://members.kite.org/Sys/Poll/296
Your participation in this poll is completely anonymous, but the 2 minutes it takes you to answer the questions goes miles for myself and the rest of the Board of Directors. Please consider taking a few minutes out of your day to give us feedback. If you have any issues with the poll or logging in, please do not hesitate to email me directly.
T-shirts
Last weekend I was on the beach at the Grays Harbor Kite Festival, enjoying the stunt kite competition, and mingling with the many single line fliers stretched for miles down the beach. In true fashion, I was sporting this snazzy t-shirt from one of our previous t-shirt runs. I have worn this shirt on many kite fields, in several countries, and don’t mind admitting that I have slept in it on several occasions. It is just that soft and comfy!
Well, as I am standing there having a conversation with some up and coming competitive stunt kite fliers from Whidbey Island (Rachael and Gary Nikkola) they asked “Where can we get that shirt?” Like others that have asked in the past; I told them that this was a short run t-shirt print, and to keep their eye out as we have been thinking of rerunning it.
Well, after looking over the various e-mails, and even MORE pleas sent in after photos from that event went public, well, I have been persuaded! This shirt was one of our best shirts, and we have brought it back. But this time, we have tweaked the graphics, and changed the color options. So even if you already have one of these in your closet, you should consider getting another one. Myself, I bought another one in Red and I am eyeing picking one of the bright blue ones.
I could tell you that grabbing one of the blue ones, or even the purple ones will give you superpowers. I could tell you that wearing said shirt at any given kite event makes you THE star of the show by proving you really are what other kite fliers aspire to be. I could tell you that wearing this shirt grants the wearer one free pass for tangling lines with another kite flier, or popping an anchor. I could tell you all of those things, but I can’t tell you if they are true or not. So instead I will tell you that I love how comfy it is, and that you only have 3 weeks to order one. So go pick one up now:
https://www.bonfire.com/awesome-kite-flier/
Convention Registration
DRUM ROLL PLEASE……. Convention registration is open!!! Go to kite.org and logon to the members’ only portion and you should see a prompt on how to register for the 41st Annual AKA Convention October 15-20th, 2018. This year we will be in Shreveport, Louisiana. While you are at it, why not also go on over to our Facebook Event page and let others know you are going. Looking to carpool, room share, have questions? This will be the place to share!
(https://www.facebook.com/events/381816052290121/)
Hope to see you there! Remember, We Fly Higher Together.
Nic O’Neill
President – American Kitefliers Association
kite.org
Link to my TED Talk about The Power of Kite Flying: https://youtu.be/5qADGVBNxfQ
AKA Youtube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/FlyWithAKA
AKA Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/akasocial/
Instagram americankitefliers
Twitter akakiters
Snapchat kite.org