Tempest

Tempest is an outdoor dual line sport kite designed for precision with dual line teams in mind.

Ultralight: $450

A ligher version of the Tempest. Flies comfortably in 1-7mph winds.

Standard: $475

The original design, flies comfortably in ~5-12mph winds.

Other variations are still being designed, check back for updates.

About the Tempest

Tempest is a dual line kite designed for use in teams.

After competing in quad line individual and dual line pairs at World Kite Cup in 2024, I took notice of the kites teams were using. This market was mostly dominated by kites like the l'Atelier Avatar, and Robertshaw's Fury: both oversize kites, but on opposite sides of the framing spectrum. The Avatar was very soft making for great pressure management and precision, but making stalls and landings more difficult. The Fury was stiff and capable, but is not easy om the arms. Both of these kites were commercially available, in the $400 - $500 range per kite.

One of the things that I've wanted to see more of in American sport kiting is dual line team. There are many hurdles to overcome for a team to come together, but I figured that the cost of outfitting a dual line team with kites that behave the same is certainly one of them.

So, I identified two niches to fill:

Something in the middle between the Avatar and the Fury. A kite that has great precision, doesn't pull too hard, but can still land, stall, and half axel easily.
Something affordable -- not through reduced quality or undervaluing my time, but by making the plans available for free so would-be teams can make their own kites at home, saving a lot of cost.

When designing a kite, I like to start from somewhere. Of the kites I've built, the closest thing to a team kite was the 100Sixteen, mostly because it's already a bit oversize. So, I started with the 100Sixteen, and started making changes and experimenting before finally landing on the Tempest.

The tempest has a carefully selecting frame and shape to achieve what I set out for: great precision, manageable pull, solid landings, accessable half axels and stalls.

As intended, the plans for the Tempest are available on my website, here. However, I am available to build Tempests to-order for those willing to pay for the effort. Each tempest ordered from this page is hand made to order by me, Spencer "Watty" Watson.

Here are some overall specs:

Category	Specification	Notes
Wingspan	100in / 254cm	Distance between wingtips when kite is assembled
Leading edge length	63in / 160cm	The length from the nose to the wingtip
Package length	42in / 107cm	This is the length of the kite when folded down and stored
Ultralight Weight	~270 grams	The weight of the entire ultralight kite
Standard Weight	~500 grams	The weight of the entire standard kite
Ultralight Frame	Skyshark 2PT Skyshark 3PT Skyshark P2X 5mm pultruded carbon 3mm fiberglass rod 1.5mm fiberglass rod	Upper leading edge Lower spreader Spine and lower leading edge Upper spreader Standoffs Winglet baton
Standard Frame	Skyshark 5PT Skyshark 7PT Skyshark P400 5mm pultruded carbon 3mm fiberglass rod 1.5mm fiberglass rod	Upper leading edge Lower spreader Spine and lower leading edge Upper spreader Standoffs Winglet baton
Fittings	3D printed TPU and Nylon	Black by default -- other colors considered upon request depending on availability
Sail Material	Icarex PC31	Color selection may vary depending on availability
Leading Edge material	Ultralight - Ripstop Nylon All others - Dacron	Black