Schalksmuhle – Sven Reinstadler is a kite flyer by passion and sits many hours in front of the sewing machine to realize his ideas. He also met his great love through the hobby.
Sven Reinstadler from Schalksmuhle met his wife Jessica at a kite festival. "I hadn’t heard from him for two years after that, but then he got in touch," reports the wife, who is six months pregnant. Amy (7), Finja (2) and Ben (11 months old) are already "infected" with their parents’ hobby.
"I like to pass on my knowledge about kite flying and have also given workshops in schools," says Reinstadler, who makes everything himself by hand. From the idea to the production of the templates to the sewing, many weeks and working hours pass, which the 41-year-old invests. "For the unicorn, I easily spent 40 hours sewing so that everything was perfect," he says, looking at his wife’s favorite kite, which is over five meters high and four meters wide, was specially inflated on the driveway for demonstration purposes and has an imposing appearance.
Since the age of twelve, much of Reinstadler’s life has revolved around kite flying. "I started with stunt kites and that’s how everything took its course. This is my great hobby, I can’t earn any money with it, but we have built up a large circle of friends and acquaintances through this common hobby. People meet at the individual dragon festivals and enjoy spending time together," said the Paderborn native, who has lived with his wife in Schalksmuhle for two years.
Previously they lived on a farm in Herford. "There I could store the kites well and had plenty of space. Now the kites are downstairs in our cellar, here we also have a lot of storage space."
Founding of the team "The Kiteflyer
For better networking Reinstadler founded the team "The Kiteflyer" with his wife. "We are now ten people and try to meet as often as we can at dragon festivals, but we also keep in touch privately. And if someone needs help or their dragon is broken, I’m always there to help," says the cheerful character, who is happy about the good camaraderie.
Last year, Reinstadler and his team even organized their own kite festival. "We have put on some really great days in Attendorn. That was also a lot of work, but we will try to repeat that as soon as possible and are also again in negotiations with an operator of a glider airfield.". With his current project the hobby tinkerer invests again a lot of working time. For the Schloss Beck amusement park, Reinstadler builds the mascot Becki, a castle ghost, as a five-meter kite.
In order to lay out his stencils, the kite flyer is allowed to go to the gymnasium at Loh. "It will take me two or three hours. And I can only start sewing when our children are in bed," explains Reinstadler, whose sewing machine is currently being repaired by his father. "It’s made of cast iron and it’s really old, but I get along with it very well. I have a spare machine for the meantime though so I can get on with it."
Up to 300 euros in material costs
The hobby is not only time-consuming but also cost-intensive. For the mascot Becki, Reinstadler spent 250 to 300 euros in advance on material costs (fabric). Nevertheless, the family would never hang up kite flying. "Flying kites is simply a great thing to do. In addition, the children are out in the fresh air and don’t hang around in front of the console," says Reinstadler, whose best ideas usually come at night. "Then, when I get a good idea for a new kite, I get up and start drawing. My wife usually takes care of that on the day."
Another important task for the kite flier, who can call more than 40 kites his own, is the honorary administration of the kite owner liability insurance in Germany. This comes across as very unwieldy, but Reinstadler explains it in simple terms: "The kites are not allowed to fly more than 100 meters without a special permit, otherwise they interfere with airspace traffic and possibly cause an obstruction. If something happens, I will be contacted and have to give my expertise on it. So far, thankfully, this has not been the case and everything has gone smoothly."
Aid organization against child poverty
For this year, Reinstadler still has a very special goal. He wants to go to the kite festival in Berck-sur-Mer, France, the Mecca of kite flying. "There are people from all over the world and present their kites, that is already a very special celebration. I’ve signed up for it, though it’s up to the people in charge whether you get an approval or a rejection."
At the kite festivals, Reinstadler is not only among like-minded people, but also supports a good cause. "Eddy hilft" is an aid organization that campaigns against child poverty and accepts donations in the form of toys, old dragons and also money at the festivals. "We are very active in this. Our children are also busy, and our oldest willingly gives away many toys so that we can get a lot of donations together," Reinstadler explains.