05/14/2026
Thanks to our friends at the AKA! And thanks to all of you for the great memories over the past 46 years!
𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁:
For many of us, the name 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱 has always simply been there.
Long before websites, Facebook groups, and online shopping, there were kite festivals, AKA Kiting magazines, mail-order catalogs… and Into The Wind.
𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟵𝟴𝟬 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿, 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼 𝗯𝘆 𝗚𝗲𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗘𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗝𝗶𝗺 𝗚𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀, Into The Wind grew from a small kite shop into one of the most recognizable names in American kiting. If you flew kites in the 1980s or 1990s, chances are you remember their catalogs arriving in the mail. Many of us flipped through those pages over and over again -- like a Sears catalog, circling dream kites, discovering new designs, learning about line sets, wind ranges, stunt kites, giant inflatables, and the rapidly expanding world of modern kiting.
And here’s something younger fliers may not realize…
Back in the “old days,” before the internet, there was something called the Yellow Pages — thick phone books delivered to homes across America. Businesses fought for visibility there, and Into The Wind seemed to advertise in nearly every directory in the country. No matter where you lived, you saw their name under 'KITES'. 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗸𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮.
KiteLines magazine — edited for decades by Valerie Govig — helps document just how long Into The Wind has been part of the American kite scene. As far back as the early 1980s, the company appears not only in advertisements, but in reports about local kite festivals and community events in Boulder. Through the pages of KiteLines, you can actually watch the company grow alongside modern American kiting itself — from early mail-order catalogs to one of the most recognizable names in the hobby.
But what may be even more impressive is this: 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱.
Through changing trends, through the rise and fall of kite crazes, through the transition from printed catalogs to websites and social media, Into The Wind kept showing up. Issue after issue. Year after year.
The broader kite community recognized that dedication in 2012 when Into The Wind co-founder George Emmons received the 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗞𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗠. 𝗜𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗺 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 — one of AKA’s highest honors, presented for outstanding service to the organization and the advancement of kiting. It was a fitting recognition for someone whose company had already spent decades helping connect kitefliers across America through festivals, catalogs, education, retail support, and a deep, ongoing commitment to the community itself.
For decades, Into The Wind has also supported the American Kitefliers Association with full-page color advertising in Kiting magazine — helping support the publication that arrives in our mailboxes four times each year.
That matters.
Because companies like Into The Wind are not just retailers. They are part of the infrastructure of kiting. They helped connect isolated kitefliers before online communities existed. They introduced countless people to their first real kite. They supported festivals, organizations, publications, and the broader kite community through both good years and difficult ones.
𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀 𝗸𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘀 “𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗱.” 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗹𝘆… 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹.
Today, their storefront on Pearl Street in Boulder remains one of the iconic kite destinations in America. People still describe walking into the store as an experience that makes them “feel like a kid again.” Others simply call it a must-visit stop whenever they are in Boulder. Surrounded this time of year by spring flowers and tulips, the storefront feels like a reminder that some things are still worth preserving in a fast-moving world.
So this Month, the AKA shines a spotlight on one of the longtime members and supporters of our extended kite family: Into The Wind.
https://intothewind.com/
𝗗𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱?
Maybe it was your first catalog.
Your first stunt kite.
A visit to the Boulder store.
A favorite purchase.
A festival connection.
Or simply seeing those famous ads in Kiting magazine year after year.
Share your memories and photos in the comments below. Let’s celebrate one of the companies that helped generations of kitefliers discover what it means to look up.
𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱 — George, Jim, every employee and your entire family, thank you for supporting AKA, and supporting Kiting magazine, and supporting the kite community for so many years.
- sf 👍
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FURTHER READING:
https://www.kite.org/2012-george-emmons/
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