ive been wanting to set up something semi-permanent in the backyard for a while now. got maybe 60x40 feet of usable space, theres a fence on two sides and some garden beds i definitely cannot crash into. my wife is already skeptical about this whole thing so i need it to look at least somewhat reasonable

been looking at the SQ Elbow gates and a couple of the cheaper flag gate options on aliexpress but i genuinely dont know if 60x40 is enough to make something worth flying or if im just gonna end up with a glorified obstacle course where you're basically doing figure 8s the whole time. i fly a 3" toothpick mostly, occasionally my 5" if the wind is under control

anyone actually built something in a small backyard and does it get boring fast or is it still useful for skill building

60x40 is workable, especially on a 3" toothpick. i've seen people do legitimately useful practice tracks in less than that. the trick with small spaces is going vertical ? if you can get some gates at different heights and maybe a dive gate or two it opens up a lot more than just running flat laps. you wont be doing 80mph straights obviously but for gates practice and consistency work it's totally fine

the aliexpress flag gates are honestly decent for the price, they fold down flat which is nice for storage. the SQ Elbow stuff is nicer quality but if your wife is already giving you the look about this project maybe dont spend $300 on gates right away

yeah it gets boring eventually but not as fast as you'd think. i had something similar sized for about a year and the thing that kept it interesting was constantly changing the layout. even just moving two or three gates around completely changes how the track flows and where the challanging parts are. if you build a fixed permanent thing you'll be bored in a month, keep it modular