The Morpho Grandé Glider
This kite has a 14 foot wingspan and has 21 feet of leading edge. Shown here dancing over the crowd at the last Phish show in Coventry, VT. The Morpho Grandé is big, clean, and light. A low-drag shape means it will park in as little as 1.8 mph of wind (yes really). This delta-derived design is one which has probably gone through more generations than any other kite in my portfolio. The rounded and supported nose and re-curved trailing edges are responsible for the truly mind-boggling efficiency. In the low end of its wind range, the signals that are transmitted down the line make it obvious that there is almost no wasted energy. I build this kite in four sizes from this one down to a 17" model.
The coolest feature, and what sets this kite clearly apart from any other delta, is the balanced glide angle which is achieved by adding weight to the nose and also bowing the nose up. A special 'liquor bottle' E-Jam™ fitting provides adjustable nose-bow. The added weight (lead or water) in the front of the kite makes it glide like a huge paper airplane. So, fly it like a kite, then slack the line and it will turn on command and glide for hundreds of feet completely on its own. The two wings are carefully adjusted by position of the spreader to be self-correcting for turbulence during glide mode. We believe this kite's unique performance characteristics put it into a class of its own.
The day these shots were taken, the wind was at about 2 mph. The lift generated by each kite was exactly enough to lift the 200 feet of line and the winder. When you held the the winder, it felt as though it was weightless, but there was virtually no pull either. It seemed as though you could let go of the winder and just let it float there...although we didn't have the guts to try it.