TRICKS I guess it's just a beginning but here are some of the tricks we're learning. Hanging the tail out When turning at the end of a reach, by good coordination of kite and buggy it is possible to do beautiful controlled tail sweepers. This is not necessarily the fastest cornering technique when racing but it sure does impress the locals! Reversing For how far and fast can you travel (under control!) while going backwards flying the kite over your head? Tacking Upwind turns are possible by bringing the kite up to the apex and down to the other edge while turning up through the wind. You must have good velocity before starting this manoeuvre. I confess that this is generally beyond me and I usually end up executing a somewhat inelegant "three point turn" but I have seen it accomplished often enough, even occasionally during racing. Upwind tacking is immensely easier on low rolling resistance surfaces. On runway tarmac it's almost easier to turn up through the wind than to execute the usual down wind turn which on fast surfaces carries a strong risk of overrunning the kite - A.W. Luffing. 360 Degrees It is possible to do a 360 degree spin while at speed and continued the course basically uninterrupted. Actually it's more a matter of courage than skill, the skill comes in getting it right every time. Two Wheeling In suitable conditions this is quite easy, even for runs of 150m's and more with at least some directional control. The technique is to start from a downwind course on a hard surface and simultaneously hook the kite into some pull, turn across wind and force your downwind thigh against the side frame. Upwind Courses Not really a trick, more an advanced technique. When you're going upwind and right on the limit of tire adhesion, lean forward to put the kite pull nearer to the front wheel. This balances the side pull more evenly between all three wheels and will improve upwind performance significantly. Two Up You can buggy two up. Get your passenger to sit in front of you, feet on the steering bars inside yours. Be very careful especially with children, make sure they wear safety gear, keep their feet out of the front wheel, and watch you don't fold their legs under the buggy frame or wheels. High Speed Buggying More than one Buggier now claim speeds above 90 km/hr and although these speeds are a little scary the basic handling is sound at these and I believe, the higher velocities that will come. Highest speeds come, as for speed wind surfing, with strong winds and downwind courses at about 120 degrees from the true wind. Axiomatic for high speed buggying is that your kite must be capable of high speeds (except for straight downwind courses in 80 km/hr + wind!) There is no way a buggy can reach 75 km/hr plus if your kite tops out at 85 km/hr. Interestingly, kite M.M.R. is not a problem for speed runs because as buggy speed approaches and exceeds wind speed the kite's apparent wind when at the edge rises to what it would normally only experience when at the centre anyway. A consequence of this is that for very high speed buggying sometimes the fastest runs will come with a little smaller kite than the maximum size that could be handled when flying statically. As the apparent wind rises, the larger kite becomes overpowering. An important assist to high speed buggying is a firm surface. Even on the hard sands of Fano sideways grip becomes a problem when reaching at 75 km/hr plus. I'm not sure I would have the courage to max. out along say an asphalt airport runway in a 30 km/hr wind! At the old Munich Airport during August 1992, I recorded 40 km/hr buggy speed while my "Skywatch" was only showing 5 km/hr true wind. Of course, the true wind at kite altitude would have been more than this, but I think that speeds of 4x true wind are now being realised. No doubt as higher speed records are established, timing and verification will get to be more formal but I find the best current system is to use a digital bicycle speedometer attached to the front wheel.