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Time to get our gear playa-ready

The desert beckons and come the end of March, you'd better be listening. No excuses for having gear failures on the playa. A few simple steps now can help assure a mellow, dusty, buggy-filled playa time.

The most common problem I've encountered in my 14 years in buggy-land is with the lines on the kite. Specifically the bottom lines. Most often they are too short causing the brakes to be "on" all the time.

Here's what's happening: Spectra lines don't stretch but you can notice some "creep" as the braid straightens and aligns. This is noticed first on the lines that take the majority of the strain (the top lines on a power-quad/foil). Having your top lines creep a few inches is the same as shortening your bottom lines a like amount.

I don't like making adjustment on the leads off my handles. I don't like dangly bits. I add a foot or so of some 200# braided Dacron to the end of the bottom lead. I adjust each brake line until the kite just backs up with full-reverse.

That's my tuning tip: Full-reverse on the handles makes the kite back-up. If the kite collapses as it backs-up, the brakes are on a bit. I don't like that. I don't think my kite can penetrate all the way to the edge of the wind with the brakes on a bit. So I lengthen the brakes until it stops collapsing. After a few times flying the kite, I trim the excess Dacron. I don't like dangly bits. Having your kite trimmed like this means YOU must adjust your skills to take advantage.

What about when things start going wrong?

First: Full-reverse on the handles.

Second: Grab the bottoms of the handles in one hand and reach and pull both brake lines with the other. This will reverse and invert the kite. Solves many if not most problems.

Third: Let Go! Yep, the kite is up-side-down and backwards. It's not really a kite. It's falling fabric. All the energy stops working on you.

I practice steps 1 & 2 occasionally while I buggy. I know I have to have these learned responses. When that moment arrives, there might not be time to think of all the options.

Tires and tire pressure are another area of concern. I believe it began when a certain Texas buggier (who shall remain nameless-Troy Gunn) started the e-tale about tires exploding on the dry lakes. I mean, we've all heard accounts about the hot, dry desert. Tires swell right up and explode. I know a guy who's brother's friend was there!

Truth is the tires were worn 2-ply wheelbarrow tires. They work fine on the beach but the playa surface can eat them up in no time, especially if you like to spend some of your buggy time sideways. So we run 4-ply tires with 30 psi. Surface this grippy, we don't need but the middle of the tire for sufficient grip. On grass I like about 24-27 psi for the rear tires and 22-24 psi for the front tire. I've heard some putting only 10-12 psi, probably thinking that low-inflation will magically make the tire bigger and more floaty for the sand. Plastic rims have failed because the sidewall on the tire isn't carrying any load. Watch your tire pressure.

Oh Yeah. Low pressure in your tires also makes you slower. Some un-named buggiers have no other option if they want to be faster than you.

Believe what makes you happy. I believe I'll have another drink.