Kite Line Reeling Device

A line reeling device for reeling front and back lines of a kite, the device including:

• a reeling mechanism comprising a first reel and a second reel which are located in an enclosure and on which the front and back lines are, in use, wound respectively, the reels being arranged so that their rotation in one direction retracts the lines and their rotation in the other direction deploys the lines;
• reel connecting means which is operable to cause the reels to rotate in harmony in one configuration and rotate independently in another configuration;
• a braking mechanism for controlling rotation of the reels;
• and
• a control mechanism which is operable between a first, locked position and a second, released position;
• wherein movement of the control mechanism between its locked and released positions controls the reel connecting means between its different configurations and the breaking mechanism to adjust the braking force.

A method of operating a kite using a line reeling device including a reeling mechanism having first and second reels which are located in a housing and on which the front and back lines are, in use, wound respectively, the method including the following steps:

• connecting the kite to the front and back lines which are wound on the reels;
• operating a control mechanism from a first, locked position into a second, released position, thereby engaging reel connecting means to cause the two reels to move in harmony and releasing a braking mechanism to allow the reels to rotate and thereby deploy line from the reels;
• and
• operating the control mechanism from the second, released position into the first, locked position, thereby braking the reels by applying the braking mechanism, disengaging the reel connecting means to allow the reels to rotate independently from one another and locking the reels to prevent them from rotating in a direction deploying line, in use, while flying the kite.