Ray Bethell (March 1, 1928 - December 18, 2018) was a professional kite flyer who resided in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He holds multiple endurance world records related to simultaneously flying three stunt kites, one from each hand and one from his hips. Using the same technique he can fly multiple stacks of kites (up to 39 kites in total). Bethell has travelled extensively since 1991 displaying his prowess at International Kite Festivals. [1]
He was the subject of a documentary short film by Matt Nie of the Vancouver Film School, "Good Stuff", which won first place at the 2005 TriBeCa Film Festival in New York City. [2]
In October 2006, a commemorative bench was unveiled at Ray's home flying spot, Vanier Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This project was initiated by Michelle Welsford and Gary Mark of Toronto and an international campaign to raise funds for this bench began in January, 2006.
A kite is a tethered heavier-than-air or lighter-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create lift and drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have a bridle and tail to guide the face of the kite so the wind can lift it. Some kite designs don’t need a bridle; box kites can have a single attachment point. A kite may have fixed or moving anchors that can balance the kite. The name derives from its resemblance to a hovering bird.
Vancouver is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The Greater Vancouver area had a population of 2.6 million in 2021, making it the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada. Vancouver has the highest population density in Canada, with over 5,700 people per square kilometre. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada: 46 percent of its residents are not native English speakers, 44 percent are native speakers of neither English nor French, and 51.6 percent of residents belong to visible minority groups.
SkyTrain is the medium-capacity rapid transit system in the Metro Vancouver Regional District, serving Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. SkyTrain has 79.6 km (49.5 mi) of track and uses fully automated trains on grade-separated tracks running on underground and elevated guideways, allowing SkyTrain to hold consistently high on-time reliability. The name "SkyTrain" was coined for the system during Expo 86 because the first line (Expo) principally runs on elevated guideway outside of Downtown Vancouver, providing panoramic views of the metropolitan area. SkyTrain uses the world's second-longest cable-supported transit-only bridge, known as SkyBridge, to cross the Fraser River.
Hollywood North is a colloquialism used to describe film production industries and/or film locations north of its namesake, Hollywood, California. The term has been applied principally to the film industry in Canada, specifically to the areas of Vancouver and Toronto. The level of Canadian production has increased since the ratification of the Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement in 1988. The total value of foreign location and service production in Canada, consisting of films and television programs filmed in Canada mainly by foreign producers, was $4.86 billion in 2019 of which British Columbia accounted for $2.81 while Ontario accounted for $2.16 billion. In 2021, total spending in Vancouver reached $4.8 billion, while spending in Toronto was at $2.5 billion.
Diana Jean Krall is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, Billboard magazine named her the second greatest jazz artist of the decade (2000–2009), establishing her as one of the best-selling artists of her time.
Davie Village is a neighbourhood in the West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is the home of the city's LGBT subculture, and, as such, is often considered a gay village, or gaybourhood. Davie Village is centred on Davie Street and roughly includes the area between Burrard and Jervis streets. Davie Street—and, by extension, the Village—is named in honour of A.E.B. Davie, eighth Premier of British Columbia from 1887 to 1889; A.E.B's brother Theodore was also Premier, from 1892 to 1895.
The 1990 NHL Entry Draft was the 28th NHL Entry Draft. It was hosted by the Vancouver Canucks at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 16, 1990. It is remembered as one of the deeper drafts in NHL history, with fourteen of the twenty-one first round picks going on to careers of at least 500 NHL games.
The Chilliwack Bruins were a major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL) based in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada. The 2006–07 season marked the Bruins' inaugural season in the WHL. The team played at Prospera Centre, which was expanded to 5,386 seats for the arrival of the team. The Bruins were sold after the 2010–11 season and subsequently relocated to Victoria to become the Victoria Royals.
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Fighter kites in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan fly on abrasive string called manja. In Brazil, similar string is called "cerol", and in Chile "hilo curado".
Kite running is the practice of running after drifting kites in the sky that have been cut loose in kite fighting. Typically the custom is that the person who captures a cut kite can keep it, so the bigger and more expensive looking the kite, the more people can usually be seen running after it to try to capture it.
Fighter kites are kites used for the sport of kite fighting. Traditionally most are small, unstable single-line flat kites where line tension alone is used for control, at least part of which is manja, typically glass-coated cotton strands, to cut down the line of others.
The kite can be used for many applications. Different kites such as water kites, bi-media kites, fluid kites, gas kites, kytoons, paravanes, soil kites, solid kites, and plasma kites have niche applications. Some animals, such as spiders, also make use of kiting.
Kites are tethered flying objects which fly by using aerodynamic lift, requiring wind for generation of airflow over the lifting surfaces.
The Vancouver trolley bus system forms part of the TransLink public transport network serving Metro Vancouver in the Canadian province of British Columbia. In operation since 1948, the system presently comprises 13 routes and is managed by the Coast Mountain Bus Company, a subsidiary of TransLink. It uses a fleet of 262 trolley buses, of which 74 are articulated vehicles.
The Weifang International Kite Festival is an annual kite-flying festival held from April 20 to 25 in Weifang, China.
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The Edgewater Casino is a former casino that was located at 760 Pacific Blvd South Vancouver, British Columbia. It was in operation from 2005 to 2017.