A Lofty Pursuit : Kite lovers harness the wind and adorn the skies with innovative models.

As kite flyers go, Bill Everett hadn’t exactly ascended to the world-class fame of, say, Benjamin Franklin. But members of the informal kite-flying club were not about to let the recent death of their comrade pass with out a traditional memorial flight.

They assembled at their usual spot on Santa Monica Beach, placed flowers in the sand and signed their names on the wings of their friend’s favorite delta kite. After a brief eulogy, the kite was raised into the breezy, blue yonder. At 500 feet, the string was cut, and, with a poignant moment of silence, everyone watched wistfully as the kite sailed . . . across Pacific Coast Highway and into a clump of palm trees.

And there it remained aflutter, its string snagged on a sturdy branch, long after the afternoon’s final kite had been reeled to Earth.

“It was still up there flying when we all went home,” said Tyrus Wong of Sunland, who has been piloting kites of his own creation at the beach and at Hansen Dam Park near his home for the past 12 years.

“That wasn’t supposed to happen. It was supposed to just keep flying.”

OK, so things didn’t go according to plan. But then, few things do among kite enthusiasts. In fact, members and their kite clubs--like Franklin’s key and the archaic diamond kite he elevated in an electrical storm in 1752--are joined by the thinnest of threads.

On any given windy weekend, a visual feast of kites adorn the skies above area parks and wide-open spaces. In Lancaster, members of the fledgling Antelope Valley Kite Club gather informally at Tierra Bonita Park once a month to schmooze, loft their kites and lift their spirits.

Likewise, dozens of kites share the airspace above Encino’s Balboa Park on weekends when wind conditions are favorable. Their owners relish the relaxation they say comes with harnessing the wind.

“No dues, no officers, no extras. . . . just a group of people who like to get together to fly their kites,” said Jon Small, owner of The Kite Ranch in Palmdale and unofficial president of the Antelope Valley Kite Club. “In (most) clubs, people have to be willing to be secretaries, and kite flyers are very independent people who sort of meet informally. It’s hard to charge dues for something that’s free, like the wind.”

Yet form will prevail--at least for one day--on Saturday for the fourth annual Quartz Hill Kite Festival at Quartz Hill High School.

Sponsored by The Kite Ranch, one of only three kite retail stores in Los Angeles County, the festival attracted more than 200 participants last year. The other two kite stores are Sunshine Kite Co. in Redondo Beach and Windworks in Panorama City.

Festivities will include various contests and demonstrations involving the latest high-tech creations of the world of tethered aviation.

“Kites sure have changed since I was a kid,” said Chuck Meyers, 44, of Valencia, a regular among the Santa Monica group of about a dozen members, most of whom are in their 20s and 30s. “They’ve not only changed, they’ve gotten more expensive in the past several years. You can easily spend $50 on a kite today.”

Indeed, for all their longevity, kites--said to have originated in China 500 years before the birth of Christ--have experienced a renaissance of sorts in the past decade. Technological advances have contributed to a bevy of innovative models ranging in size from that of a postage stamp to giant, wind-filled “para-foils,” parachute-like kites with multiple strings and hundreds of square feet of surface area.

Stunt kites, stealthy, multistring models designed to perform loops, figure-eights and various tricks, have soared in popularity in recent years. Small, who opened his store two years ago and is scheduled to open another in Valencia this month, said they are the fastest-growing models on the market.

Many state-of-the-art kites are crafted with tubular fiberglass and rip-stop nylon, light but sturdy materials commonly used in hot-air balloons, hang gliders and sailboats.

“Weight is an enemy in any type of aviation,” Small said. “Kite flyers are always searching for new lightweight materials.”

Some kite builders are equally concerned with aesthetics.

Wong, an 85-year-old retired movie-studio artist, has constructed hundreds of creative kites, blending modern techniques with ancient materials such as bamboo and rattan. His collection includes a 120-foot centipede, a giant panda, a yellow butterfly, and strings of doves, swallows and owls, all of which flutter separately while tethered to a main string.

Wong routinely is sought after for advice by kite builders and has been featured along with his wares in various kite publications. “I call Tyrus ‘The Master,’ ” said Meyers, who also crafts his own kites.

Wong said he has refused offers of as much as $100 for kites he has made.

“You get a certain satisfaction in making them, and you get a certain satisfaction flying them,” Wong said. “Some are attention-getters, but that’s not what I’m after. I used to go fishing a lot, and I love fishing. This is just like fishing, except in fishing you look down. Kite flying, you look up.”

Added Meyers: “And instead of waiting for fish, you wait for the wind.”

Wong and Meyers, whose club does not have a name, periodically loft their kites at local parks. But both prefer the beach’s “clean wind,” a mild, onshore breeze undisturbed by canyons, trees or buildings.

In the Antelope Valley, kite flyers are blessed with about 300 days a year in which wind conditions are ideal, Small said. Stunt kites and para-foils perform well in strong winds. Lighter, single-string kites fare better in milder wind.

“Strong winds are no good for my kites,” Wong said. “That’s why I come down here to the beach.”

Wong and his friends will travel to Santa Monica Beach again April 22 for another memorial flight to honor the passing of another member. Wong hopes that this time the ceremony--and the kite--will fly.

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WHERE AND WHEN

What: Quartz Hill Kite Festival.

Location: Quartz Hill High School, 6040 W. Ave. L, Quartz Hill.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Price: Free.

Call: (805) 274-2791.