Amusement Park Reopens

Freestyle Music Park, just a 30 minute drive from the island, reopened on Memorial Day Weekend.

The park is rebranded from the former Hard Rock Park. Pricing has been reduced-daily tickets are $39.95, kid ticket prices for kids 3 to 9 at $29.95. Residents of the Carolinas are eligible for a $10 discount off the daily admission price through June 14th.

New rides have been added for the kids, and the same exciting roller coasters from last year's park remain. Park hours will be limited to afternoons and evenings during the week through much of June, so check the park's website for schedules before you head down for fun.

Sunset Properties $5,000 Sweepstakes

On June 22nd, one lucky guest is going to win a $5,000 check from Sunset Properties. Weekly reservations* made on or before June 20, 2009 will be entered into a drawing to win $5,000. Most weekly reservations don't even total that much! The winner will be able to use this prize money to pay off their vacation, as fun money while on vacation, or maybe even make plans to come back later in the year at little to no cost. However you spend your check is totally up to you. The sweepstakes runs until June 20, 2009.

If you would like to enter the sweepstakes, check out our websites for the perfect beach house at www.sunsetproperties.travel. We have over 430 vacation homes to choose from in all budgets. For more information on our sweepstakes, CLICK HERE. It's going to be a great summer!


* The first deposit must be paid on the reservation by June 20, 2009 to be eligible for the $5,000 sweepstakes.


Written By: Jake Foutz - Marketing Supervisor, Sunset Properties

A Fun Time at the 1st Annual Sunset Beach Kite Competition

Today marked the 1st Annual Sunset Beach Kite Flying Competition, hosted by Sunset Properties. Anyone could join us on the beach to fly kites, it wasn't just open to our guests. The weather couldn't have been any better for flying kites! We had sunny skies and temperatures in the upper 80's with a good steady wind blowing across the beach. Although we only had a few participants, it was fun meeting new people and "working" on the beach.

A simple reception was held back at our office with guests and participants. Sunset Slush was there scooping out free Italian Ice, and the winners claimed their prizes. Trey Krise (Longest Flying Kite) and Griffin Krise (Best Performance Under 12 years old) both won a gift certificate for free Italian Ice from Sunset Slush. Doug Hill from Sunset Beach, NC won a gift certificate to the Isles Restaurant for his unique homemade kite, made out of a bed sheet and PVC pipping.

Keep your eyes out for next year's Kite Festival!

Written By: Jake Foutz - Marketing Supervisor, Sunset Properties

Come Join In the 1st Annual Kite Competition

Sunset Properties is hosting the 1st Annual Sunset Beach Kite Competition on the beach strand at Sunset Beach Saturday May 9th from 12 noon until 2 pm.

The event is open to both our rental guests and the general public. The registration fee is $10, and the full amount will be donated to the volunteers of Bird Island to help with the cost of their summer educational tours of that island. Registered participants will receive an event t-shirt. Just fill out the registration form and either send or drop it at the main Sunset Properties office on Sunset Beach.

We'll have a table set up near the island's gazebo that day for the event, and plan to hand out some awards afterwards at a brief ceremony at our office. One of our PERKS CLUB partners-Sunset Slush-will be serving free Italian Ice at our office for everyone's enjoyment that afternoon.

So if you'll be in the area, come on out to either fly a kite, or just watch. If the weather doesn't cooperate, we'll try it again the next day on Sunday starting at noon (though we hope we don't have to take up any of Mother's Day for the event!).

Kite Flying Tips

I’ve been flying kites at Sunset Beach for 30 years and as an Island homeowner would like to offer you some information and a few tips.

Safety First!

Flying any kind of kite on the beach can be dangerous because of shifting, “fluky” winds, experience level, and speed & control issues. Landing a kite or crash landing a kite in the dunes can cause problems. Climbing into the dunes to retrieve your kite causes the type of erosion we are trying to avoid. In the dunes your feet and your kite will find sand-spurs and the sand grasses will cut the rip-stop nylon many kite sails are made of. Landing a kite on the beach requires a healthy sense of awareness of the people around you and your kite’s “intended” landing spot. Think …“what is my contingency plan if I have a problem landing?” Here are 4 additional safety tips:

1. Always put other’s safety first
2. Fly at low tide so you have plenty of space.
3. If you are working on your skill level consider flying at the East or West end of the Island

Types of Kites There are 3 basic types of kites.

1. Single line. The traditional single line kite that we fly/make as kids- usually diamond shape or maybe a box kite. Now available in all kinds of shapes, sizes, and materials. Accessories include light kits for night flying, and things that can be sent up and down the kite string while the kite is in the air. Great for the beach.

2. Rokaku. This is single line kite flying designed for “kite fighting” where the object is to knock an opponent’s kite out of the air. These kites and their strings come in many different sizes, shapes, and materials. The Japanese have done this for centuries. This is a specialty form of kite flying and requires a special venue.

3. Stunt Kites. These are dual or quad line kites that are controlled by the “pilot” and are the ones you have seen doing crazy spins, dives, crashes and other “stunts” at the beach. They are a lot of fun and come in all kinds of shapes, sizes, and materials. Usually they are diamond shaped with a long tail (a great beginner kite), or delta shaped, or bat-winged shaped, or parafoil shaped. They cost anywhere from $20 to $300 dollars and come with sophisticated strings that may be 85 to 150 feet long requiring 300 feet of diameter for a safe ground pass. Great fun for the beach but requires extra attention to safety principles. Usually stunt kite competitions are broken into 3 categories:

1. Precision, speed, and acrobatic maneuvers
2. Ballet- set to music and flying “pretty”
3. Formation flying- with two-four pilot

History of the Stunt Kite -How to buy and learn to fly a stunt kite.

I learned the basic skills to fly a stunt kite safely by using a diamond shaped kite with a 40 foot tail and dual control lines- still made by Trylby. What I like about this kite, for learning the skills, is that the tail makes it stable and slows it down enough that you can make mistakes and still recover. The kite is forgiving and can take repeated crashes, comes complete as a package and is inexpensive. There are many other beginner kites out there, but I like this one. You can find it on the internet or at most kite stores or at Kligs Kites of Myrtle Beach. After you have mastered safe flying skills you can decide on a more sophisticated kite as an investment. I have about 20 stunt kites, but my favorites are still the ones I bought 25 years ago made by Top Of The Line Kite Company- The Hawaiian Team Kite and the Spinoff Kite. Four guys from California made a few dual line kites brought them to an air show demonstration, the Blue Angels were performing, saw the kites and liked them, asked the guys to make them some, and the rest is history.

Ambassadors for the Sport – A Final Thought.

Each of us has a responsibility to be courteous and safe- mindful and respectful of all people at the beach. Kites can be noisy and they can travel at speeds of 60 mph; Kevlar strings can hurt and cut. Please go above and beyond to be friendly, courteous, and safe. Have fun, help each other, and give our sport a good reputation so that we are always welcome at the beach.


Written By: Ted Janes, a homeowner at Sunset Properties