Here, the availability of carbon fiber spars for bows, mylar, orcon film and tyvek for sails at a price we can all afford gives us higher performance at a price the average Indian would find unreachable. Line touch lets us keep the kites, which gives us durability of ownership as well. This outlook and the kite designs that come from it are a nartural development to me. The paper and bamboo kite was developed from materials at hand and refined into it's current form. I'm certain that if anyone developed a fighter kite from paper and bamboo in India that outperformed the current standard for the same cost, it would immediately change the shape of Indian kites, since the competitive spirit thrives there, too.
Fighter kites are very interactive things.
You test your skills against the wind and each other - and you refine your skills and learn to cooperate. Our refinements in kite design are also an outgrowth of short line competition. The arms race we've started to see who can improve their kites to get an advantage in competition makes sense given the conditions and limitations we have. Despite this, we still cooperate to a high degree. I've gotten very good kitebuilding advice from Jim Wilson, Bruce Lambert, Jeff MacInnis and Brian Johnsen to name just a few, and helpful tips in flying and tuning kites from other association members at club events.