Naperville Sun - Frontier Kite Festival News
Posted: Mon, Jun 04 2007, 05:13 AM
From the Naperville Sun
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/nape ... S1.article
High-flying fun in friendly skies
Kite enthusiasts flock to festival
June 4, 2007
By Lauren Sutherland Staff writer
Even the most whimsical child might have a hard time believing that one could find work as a professional kite flyer.
They rarely refer to themselves as professionals, but many of those who took to the fields and skies of Frontier Park during the Frontier Kite Fly Festival on Saturday and Sunday have elevated the simple leisure activity to new levels of artistry and sport, and are even compensated for flying their kites at exhibitions and competitions all over the world.
"It's a beautiful sport, beyond belief to watch," said avid kite flyer Udi Arieli, 55, of Park Ridge, motioning to a group of men choreographing an intricate, airborne ballet with their colorful quad-line stunt kites.
Families at the festival organized by the Naperville Park District watched kite experts from Chicago Kite, Sparling Kite Entertainment, Chromatic Kites, and the Illinois Kite Enthusiasts fly a variety of kite designs, and also were invited to bring their own kites to fly. Those who came to the park empty-handed could purchase kites from Chicago Kite, or assemble their own using a kit provided by the Park District.
The festival was a celebration of aerial exploits in general. For $5, children could enter the NASA fun area, sponsored by Saturn of Naperville. The fun area featured an inflatable rocket ship slide, a parachute simulator and a G-force apparatus, in addition to a rock-climbing wall and a penny arcade.
The kites and festival-goers alike danced to music provided by a disc jockey from 95.9 WERV The River on Saturday, and local band The Licks on Sunday afternoon.
This was the inaugural year of the Frontier Kite Fly Festival, although its coordinator, Park District Superintendent of Recreation Corrine Kroger, 24, hopes the tradition will take flight.
"Naperville has great parks and great people, and I look forward to doing it again next year," Kroger said.
Even sporadic bursts of rain and ominous storm clouds did not bar more than 1,000 people Saturday, and several hundred Sunday, from coming to the festival. Following a bout of rain on Sunday, the clouds were chased away by a flock of florescent stunt kites, a magenta salamander, and a 30-foot multi-colored prehistoric crab.
The most eye-catching kites of the event were manned by Alan Sparling, 49, a Naperville resident whose talents have taken him to exhibitions around the world.
On Saturday, Sparling unfurled a 90 ft. octopus more reminiscent of a sci-fi alien than a common kite. Recently he broke world kite flying records by managing 30 of the beasts simultaneously at a kite exhibition in France. In Thailand, he was invited to display his craft at a celebration of the King's 60th year on the thrown.
"The King couldn't even come, because by custom he can't be in the presence of anything taller than he is," Sparling recalled.
Most of the other kite flyers have not had adventures comparable to Sparling's, but many were just as passionate about a sport they claim is as meditative and relaxing as it is difficult.
"For me it's like throwing a fishing line off of a dock on your favorite lake," said IKE member Denny Simpson, 54, who came to Frontier Park from Bourbonnais. "Most days out of the week I have a very high stress job, and there are days I just walk out the back door of my office and start flying my kite. It's zen-like."
Arieli agreed.
"It is a sport like any other sport, and it's absolutely beautiful to see what these people can do," Arieli said. "It is good to have events like this that get people involved. "
Contact Lauren Sutherland at lsutherland@scn1.com or 630-416-5212.
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/nape ... S1.article
High-flying fun in friendly skies
Kite enthusiasts flock to festival
June 4, 2007
By Lauren Sutherland Staff writer
Even the most whimsical child might have a hard time believing that one could find work as a professional kite flyer.
They rarely refer to themselves as professionals, but many of those who took to the fields and skies of Frontier Park during the Frontier Kite Fly Festival on Saturday and Sunday have elevated the simple leisure activity to new levels of artistry and sport, and are even compensated for flying their kites at exhibitions and competitions all over the world.
"It's a beautiful sport, beyond belief to watch," said avid kite flyer Udi Arieli, 55, of Park Ridge, motioning to a group of men choreographing an intricate, airborne ballet with their colorful quad-line stunt kites.
Families at the festival organized by the Naperville Park District watched kite experts from Chicago Kite, Sparling Kite Entertainment, Chromatic Kites, and the Illinois Kite Enthusiasts fly a variety of kite designs, and also were invited to bring their own kites to fly. Those who came to the park empty-handed could purchase kites from Chicago Kite, or assemble their own using a kit provided by the Park District.
The festival was a celebration of aerial exploits in general. For $5, children could enter the NASA fun area, sponsored by Saturn of Naperville. The fun area featured an inflatable rocket ship slide, a parachute simulator and a G-force apparatus, in addition to a rock-climbing wall and a penny arcade.
The kites and festival-goers alike danced to music provided by a disc jockey from 95.9 WERV The River on Saturday, and local band The Licks on Sunday afternoon.
This was the inaugural year of the Frontier Kite Fly Festival, although its coordinator, Park District Superintendent of Recreation Corrine Kroger, 24, hopes the tradition will take flight.
"Naperville has great parks and great people, and I look forward to doing it again next year," Kroger said.
Even sporadic bursts of rain and ominous storm clouds did not bar more than 1,000 people Saturday, and several hundred Sunday, from coming to the festival. Following a bout of rain on Sunday, the clouds were chased away by a flock of florescent stunt kites, a magenta salamander, and a 30-foot multi-colored prehistoric crab.
The most eye-catching kites of the event were manned by Alan Sparling, 49, a Naperville resident whose talents have taken him to exhibitions around the world.
On Saturday, Sparling unfurled a 90 ft. octopus more reminiscent of a sci-fi alien than a common kite. Recently he broke world kite flying records by managing 30 of the beasts simultaneously at a kite exhibition in France. In Thailand, he was invited to display his craft at a celebration of the King's 60th year on the thrown.
"The King couldn't even come, because by custom he can't be in the presence of anything taller than he is," Sparling recalled.
Most of the other kite flyers have not had adventures comparable to Sparling's, but many were just as passionate about a sport they claim is as meditative and relaxing as it is difficult.
"For me it's like throwing a fishing line off of a dock on your favorite lake," said IKE member Denny Simpson, 54, who came to Frontier Park from Bourbonnais. "Most days out of the week I have a very high stress job, and there are days I just walk out the back door of my office and start flying my kite. It's zen-like."
Arieli agreed.
"It is a sport like any other sport, and it's absolutely beautiful to see what these people can do," Arieli said. "It is good to have events like this that get people involved. "
Contact Lauren Sutherland at lsutherland@scn1.com or 630-416-5212.
