Hello... From The Corner Of Lake Michigan And Wisconsin

[BillLamm]

Does any members live up near the Lake and the state line?!?! I have enjoyed kites for years and just recently a friend encouraged me to dip my creative hand back into this pool... (all he did was say "Lets go fly..")

I can't make it to Oswego or my home town of Decatur but I will watch for other big event... I live right next to Illinois State Beach in Zion so if any one is looking for clean lake air and fresh roasted coffee let me know... I can provide the coffee, and some one to fly with...

[Mike]

Hiya Bill,
welcome to the club!
I've never flown there. Is there plenty of room or does it get too crowded with peoples during the summer?
Maybe we'll have a club fly there someday. (Better stock up on the coffee!)

The Naperville event probably attracts the most club members, you may want to try to make that.

[Jeff]

What do you like to fly, Bill? Sport kites, single line, power kites...?

[Jynx]

Welcome aboard! ...A hop, skip, and jump, north of ya!

[Jeepster]

Bill,

Welcome to a great sport and a great group of flyers.

Cheers,
Tom

[BillLamm]

Hiya Bill,
welcome to the club!
I've never flown there. Is there plenty of room or does it get too crowded with peoples during the summer?
Maybe we'll have a club fly there someday. (Better stock up on the coffee!)

The Naperville event probably attracts the most club members, you may want to try to make that.

Thank you all for the warm welcome (Love the smiley's on this forum... )

The south Unit of Illinois Beach State Park has the best wide areas for flying, it can get crowded but it is pretty long so usually you can find some empty area... the north unit is no swimming so it gets less traffic, just not as wide an open area so the risk of getting side ways into trees is higher

I will pencil the Naperville event on the calendar...

What do you like to fly, Bill? Sport kites, single line, power kites...?

any thing I can get my hands on... I have a duel line stunt kite, just a little entry level thing, but I am intrigued by the quads... I grew up building model planes so I think I will try making a kite next... (easier when you have more time than money)...

tell me how many coffee drinkers are coming a week in advance and I will roast enough coffee so it is as fresh as it gets...

[BillLamm]

:welcome1:

Welcome aboard! ...A hop, skip, and jump, north of ya!

Yeah I know that little corner of Milwaukee... we just had a family vacation up there... we went to the big glass domes, some little lunch place with cheese in every item on the menu and American Science and Surplus to top of the day

[Jeff]

...but I am intrigued by the quads...

And so it begins...welcome to the dark side... :D

tell me how many coffee drinkers are coming a week in advance and I will roast enough coffee so it is as fresh as it gets...

You're speaking my language there, Bill. I'm a coffee snob, er, I mean...aficionado. I haven't yet done my own roasting, but I've practically got Intelligentsia on speed dial. I get all my stuff roasted to order, and I love sampling lots from around the world. I generally like the high elevation Central American coffees the best. Been thinking about getting a home roaster for quite some time...

[Mike]

At Naperville we plan to have a team of 8 quad fliers, all together for the first time, flying routines in synchrony.
Should be pretty cool.
http://www.180go.com

[brownssl]

welcome to the club bill

[BillLamm]

...but I am intrigued by the quads...

And so it begins...welcome to the dark side... :D

tell me how many coffee drinkers are coming a week in advance and I will roast enough coffee so it is as fresh as it gets...

You're speaking my language there, Bill. I'm a coffee snob, er, I mean...aficionado. I haven't yet done my own roasting, but I've practically got Intelligentsia on speed dial. I get all my stuff roasted to order, and I love sampling lots from around the world. I generally like the high elevation Central American coffees the best. Been thinking about getting a home roaster for quite some time...

And so it begins...welcome to the dark side... :D

Hmm.. how many spare kite parts do you have vs how many spare coffee roaster parts I have... LOL

[BillLamm]

Thank you brownssl... Mike.. that will be cool.. I like the stuff I see you guys doing in the videos... but to see the real deal is always better...

I just flew a few hours with a friend, crossed lines and now I get to learn how to make up some new line sets I was reading the discription but it makes perfect sense after I looked at his ends... the air was on and off so it was a challenging time... in a good way..

[Frodos Majik]

Welcome Aboard Bill. Nice to see some new screen names here. Hope you can make it out o a fest or club fly in the near future.

[Jynx]

Yeah I know that little corner of Milwaukee... we just had a family vacation up there... we went to the big glass domes, some little lunch place with cheese in every item on the menu and American Science and Surplus to top of the day

You hit three of five... Now DON'T FORGET:

TWC Family Kite Festival ~ May 23-24, 2009 - Milwaukee, WI
Mots Kite Festival ~ September 12-13, 2009 - Milwaukee, WI

This 1's 4U...

[Sailor99]

I generally like the high elevation Central American coffees the best.

Costa Rica rather than Colombia I assume (Columbia is OK but nothing special, unless you end up with the stuff that has a little "extra" Colombian ingredient as it were). Nice and acidic usually, but only arabicas. IMHO you need a kick of robusta or you end up with something that is so thin it would do well in McDonalds (Sorry Jeepster I know you love McD). Beware - arabicas not the easiest to roast with out burning off all the oils that give it its wonderful aromas.

You should have told me you liked coffee - I used to be a coffee buyer, but was not that tallented at it so had to move into another profession.

(Did you know robusta varieties are banned by law in Costa Rica?)

[Jeff]

I generally like the high elevation Central American coffees the best.

Costa Rica rather than Colombia I assume (Columbia is OK but nothing special, unless you end up with the stuff that has a little "extra" Colombian ingredient as it were). Nice and acidic usually, but only arabicas. IMHO you need a kick of robusta or you end up with something that is so thin it would do well in McDonalds (Sorry Jeepster I know you love McD). Beware - arabicas not the easiest to roast with out burning off all the oils that give it its wonderful aromas.

You should have told me you liked coffee - I used to be a coffee buyer, but was not that tallented at it so had to move into another profession.

(Did you know robusta varieties are banned by law in Costa Rica?)

Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala...one of my very favorites is from El Salvador.

I've only bought arabicas, and I try to buy single origin, or at least a very regional blend. Robusta has such a bad reputation for cheap filler, I don't even know if any of the specialty places I've bought from deal in it.

I do like to sample varieties from different places. Right now I've got a supply of a lot from Columbia called Finca Santuario from Micay, Columbia.
http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/fil ... 030209.pdf

I've also really liked some that I've gotten from Rwanda, they seem to be getting better.

I like sampling the differences in countries and regions and keeping the experience changing. Coffee is not like Pepsi. It's organic. It grows differently in different places, and the lack of sameness is interesting to me.

[BillLamm]

Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala...one of my very favorites is from El Salvador.

I've only bought arabicas, and I try to buy single origin, or at least a very regional blend. Robusta has such a bad reputation for cheap filler, I don't even know if any of the specialty places I've bought from deal in it.

I do like to sample varieties from different places. Right now I've got a supply of a lot from Columbia called Finca Santuario from Micay, Columbia.
http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/fil ... 030209.pdf

I've also really liked some that I've gotten from Rwanda, they seem to be getting better.

I like sampling the differences in countries and regions and keeping the experience changing. Coffee is not like Pepsi. It's organic. It grows differently in different places, and the lack of sameness is interesting to me.

they are different year to year as well... I encourage you to check out Coffee Ambassadors they are a direct trade coffee roaster in the Chicago area.. they roast weekly and if you order weekly or subscription then your coffee is usually fresh roasted the week you get it... you can visit their coffee shop at Ipsento in buck town... they have a really nice Guatemala and Honduras ... as well as a Tanzanian decaf and a new Ugandan I have not had the chance to sample... I like the back ground story's on the family's and orphans they are supporting through the coffee

When you are ready to try roasting... let me know, I can share what I know and help you make a good first choice... their is a green coffee forum like this one full of mistakes you don't need to repeat :)

Kites... I am living on the cheap (same as every one else in this booming economy) I am thinking of making a kite or two... maybe start with a bigger duel line stunt because I have one to use as a model... would love to build a Cassiopeia or Freedom am I nuts to want to build? should I be ebaying my old toys and getting a used quad so I have a better understanding of what I am trying to make?? right now I have more time than money.. but if their are used kites that can be had for the price of making one I would be interested...

[Jeff]

they are different year to year as well... I encourage you to check out Coffee Ambassadors they are a direct trade coffee roaster in the Chicago area.. they roast weekly and if you order weekly or subscription then your coffee is usually fresh roasted the week you get it... you can visit their coffee shop at Ipsento in buck town... they have a really nice Guatemala and Honduras ... as well as a Tanzanian decaf and a new Ugandan I have not had the chance to sample... I like the back ground story's on the family's and orphans they are supporting through the coffee

When you are ready to try roasting... let me know, I can share what I know and help you make a good first choice... their is a green coffee forum like this one full of mistakes you don't need to repeat :)

Good stuff, I'm sure.

I'm a big fan of Intelligentsia in Chicago. Been on their roasting works tour a couple times, took the barista enthusiast class. They do Direct Trade and their buyer, Geoff Watts, is pretty famous in the specialty coffee industry. (Interesting profile of him in the book, God In A Cup)

They roast 4 or 5 days a week, and never hold any inventory over night. All orders are roasted to order and shipped the same day. And I must be on a UPS fast track, because even with normal shipping, I can order on Sunday, it's roasted and shipped Monday, and sometimes I receive it Tuesday, although usually Wednesday but never later.

If I'm in the city on the north side, I stop by their retail store on Broadway.

[Mike]

Quads are easier to make than dualies.
Try to join up with some of us at a festival or club fly and give a quad a try. If you don't fly a real Rev first, you wont know if the one you made flies the way it does because of pilot error or sewing error.

[Anne]

Welcome to the Club! Well let's see Kites, beaches, kites, friends, beaches, kites, friends and now coffee.....I LOVE IKE!

Nice to meet you!