Ray Bethell (March 1, 1928 - December 18, 2018) was a professional kite flyer who resided in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, British Columbia, Canada. He holds multiple endurance world records related to simultaneously flying three

stunt kite A sport kite, also commonly known as a stunt kite, is a type of kite that can be maneuvered in the air. A related kite, also controllable and used for recreation, but capable of generating a significant amount of pull and used for providing move ...

s, 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. He was the subject of a documentary

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

by Matt Nie of the

Vancouver Film School Vancouver Film School (VFS) is a private entertainment arts school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1987, it has achieved international recognition. The Vancouver Film School has campus locations around Downtown Vancouver ...

"Good Stuff"
which won first place at the 2005

TriBeCa Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In October 2006, a commemorative bench was unveiled at Ray's home flying spot, Vanier Park in

, 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.

References

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External links

Bethell's website
Canadian kite fliers Sportspeople from Vancouver 2018 deaths 1928 births {{Canada-sport-bio-stub