Ride the Wind Day 🪁

Overview

Ride the Wind Day, observed annually on August 23rd, is an unofficial holiday that encourages individuals to acknowledge, appreciate, and interact with the natural force of wind. It's a day to embrace outdoor activities like flying kites, sailing, or simply feeling the breeze, celebrating the wind's power and its presence in our world.

Origin and story

Kites, a popular way to 'ride the wind,' were invented in China over 2,000 years ago.

Wind is a vital source of renewable energy, generating electricity without burning fossil fuels.

Quick facts

• DateAugust 23
• TypeCultural / community observance
• Great forFriends, Families, Classrooms, Teams

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Ways to celebrate

Before the Wright brothers ever built a powered airplane, they rode the wind on kites. They tested nearly every idea about wing shape and control on tethered kites first, and picked Kitty Hawk, North Carolina specifically because the National Weather Bureau told them it had some of the most consistent wind on the East Coast — high dunes, soft sand for landings, and steady breeze all in one place.

Actually fly something

• Fly a kite, even a simple one, and pay attention to how you constantly adjust the line as the wind shifts — the same feedback loop the Wrights studied before ever building a glider.

Read how the Wrights used wind before they flew

Helpful resources: The National Park Service traces their kite-to-glider-to-airplane progression in "Road to First Flight."

Feel it without equipment

• Step outside and simply notice the wind — its direction, gusts, and steadiness — the way early aviators had to before instruments could measure it for them.

Did you know?

The Wrights chose Kitty Hawk sight unseen, based purely on weather data — they picked the isolated village because of its wind, not because it was convenient to reach from their home in Dayton, Ohio.

Fun facts

• Kites, a popular way to 'ride the wind,' were invented in China over 2,000 years ago.
• Wind is a vital source of renewable energy, generating electricity without burning fossil fuels.
• The fastest recorded surface wind speed on Earth (not from a tornado) was 231 mph (372 km/h) on Mount Washington, New Hampshire, in 1934.

Sources and attribution

• Road to First Flight (National Park Service)

External links may lead to third-party websites.

Continue your streak

Open one more holiday before you go to build daily momentum.

• Yesterday: Be an Angel DayQuick context from the day before.
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FAQ

When is Ride the Wind Day?

It is observed on August 23 each year.

What is Ride the Wind Day?

Ride the Wind Day, observed annually on August 23rd, is an unofficial holiday that encourages individuals to acknowledge, appreciate, and interact with the natural force of wind. It's a day to embrace outdoor activities like flying kites, sailing, or simply feeling the breeze, celebrating the wind's power and its presence in our world.

How do people celebrate Ride the Wind Day?

Fly a kite and pay attention to how you adjust to shifting wind, and read up on how the Wright brothers used kites and careful wind data, including their choice of Kitty Hawk, before ever building a powered airplane.

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