Need some advice on kites

[Danimal8199]

I know this will be a hot topic but I need some opinions from everyone,.

I don't care if you sell kites, rep them, or just ride them.

I'm looking for a lot of feedback here.

besides a C kite, what are some good kites to do unhooked tricks with?

Simple enough question, right? Lets hear what you guys have to say!

[inferno]

whats wrong with a ckite???

[Danimal8199]

Nothing, I've never riden a C kite and I'm pretty satisfied with the depower and safety of bow style kites...

[Tom Stock]

Flexi ION, new 2008 waroo are two nice ones I've ridden and liked how they felt unhooked.

I learned to ride unhooked on my 06 waroos (probably one of the worst kites for freestyle).. I wouldn't consider it a "good" kite for unhooking but the large depower range made it easy to get hooked back in without loosing too much ground.

I think it's more about the rider than the kite when riding unhooked, but I know Scott will argue with me on that. :D

[BigR]

Switchblade 3, you can't go wrong with that unhooked....... maybe you could get Steve-o to let you demo one

[Danimal8199]

Does anyone here think riding with a 2:1 vs 1:1 bar setup has any effect?

[BigR]

I thought Switch 3's were only 1:1 bar setup?

or do you mean " how does the xbow 3 go unhooked? "

?

[Danimal8199]

Just in general how does the 2:1 vs 1:1 effect unhooked tricks?

[Tom Stock]

No sure it does at all... other than how the feedback from the kite feels.

Josh may have an answer to that one... he rides Cab.

[inferno]

i like my ckites, and the fifth line makes them safer then bows :)

[Danimal8199]

Danny,

What about a safety system like the rev? do you think a 5th line is safer than that?

Something that offers alot of depower and the ability to flag the kite when needed?

[Skyway Scott]

In terms of unhooking, my take is this. (could be wrong, but it's how it feels to me)
If the Hybrid is a real rocket launching jumper, like the Hyper Type, it's a challenge to unhook on it. Basically something like the Hyper Type always wants to quickly zoom to the edge of the window and quickly. This makes it an upwind machine and a great jumper, but when unhooked on it, makes things more difficult. Imagine edging, popping and then getting a turbo boost while you are in the air (sounds good, until you realize you don't want to come down at Mach 4 :) )

The Flexi Ion2 is the exact opposite. It jumps well, don't get me wrong, but it is "happy" where it's at, and doesn't desire to shoot anywhere real fast. The Ion2 is an awesome unhooked kite. When you edge and pop, you basically know what to expect at the moment of popping off the water. I haven't ever felt surprised unhooking on a Flexi. They are very predictable.
I actually just ordered the 12.5m Ion 2 a few days ago.

The waroo 08 is the Ion2 on steroids in my opinion (somewhere b/n a Hyper and the Flexi). It's a little faster, a little more explosive on jumps, but still manageable for unhooked. At it's top end though, it becomes more difficult to unhook on it (at my weight) compared to the Flexi Ion2. It's pretty good at all stuff, where as (of the kites I have ridden) the Flexi is the king of the unhooked kites, imo. It is beyond smooth and exceptionally predictable.

I haven't tried the new Cabs yet. I am sure they are good.

My take on the unhooked stuff is that in general if a kite wants to explode off the water and boost to the moon, it probably won't be all that easy to manage unhooked (especially in gusty winds). If it is much more predictable and stable, it is most likely a better unhooking candidate. I would try to demo kites, including the Ion2 and Ion3 and Cabs. If you find a kite you like, get it.

Oh, I will probably fly the 12.5 Ion2 on the fifth line for the safety of it. It's one reason I got it.
So, that's the 3 unhooked trick's guy take on unhooking on hybrids. :)

[eclipsedave]

I dont ride unhooked but you guys should definatly try the Eclipse thruster http://www.eclipsekiteboarding.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=63&Itemid=88 also the nano is a great wake style wave kite unhooked http://www.eclipsekiteboarding.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=64&Itemid=89 If you guys want me to come over there for a UNHOOKED demo let me know

[toby wilson]

Hauss was doing F16's on my 16M Thruster a couple of weeks ago...pretty amazing that a small guy like him was doing unhooked tricks with a fast kite like that. I don't unhook very often at all, only in SUPER light winds so don't take my post as 'advice' but once my 12M '08 Thruster gets here in the next couple of days, I think that may begin to change. I am not saying it is a good or bad unhooked kite, Dimitri makes unhooking on them look pretty easy but Dimitri is Dimitri. I do have to say that I was pretty much in awe at the sight of Hauss doing those F16's on my 16M '07 Thruster tho.

[inferno]

Danny,

What about a safety system like the rev? do you think a 5th line is safer than that?

Something that offers alot of depower and the ability to flag the kite when needed?

ive seen it in action once, looked pretty good to me.... i just didnt like the rev..... but the safety system seems like one of the best out there...

[toby wilson]

LOL!!! Great minds think alike Dave!!!

[Tom Stock]

I dont ride unhooked but you guys should definatly try the Eclipse thruster http://www.eclipsekiteboarding.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=63&Itemid=88 also the nano is a great wake style wave kite unhooked http://www.eclipsekiteboarding.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=64&Itemid=89 If you guys want me to come over there for a UNHOOKED demo let me know

Dave, actually the nono really isn't very good for unhooked riding. It's pretty bad actually from what I have seen... especially once it hits the water (and I have seen it many many times). Just trust me on that one lol.

The thruster is a lot better imo.

[Skyway Scott]

........... especially once it hits the water (and I have seen it many many times).
Yeah, but have you ever seen it go back up? Man, we shoulda got that sh.it on video.
Tom, leaves names out to protect the innocent. :)
No, no... ah no.

[toby wilson]

I think that rider just needed to pump the kite up a little more. The Nano especially needs to be inflated very full for the relaunch to work properly. I actually pump up my Thrusters very full too, makes the performance on them much better...when Dave is up here for the race, he will demonstrate for you guys if you want.

If it were an issue, wouldn't you have seen people kicking and screaming about it before February or March? Spending the kind of money you spend on a kite for it not to relaunch properly would be a real issue and recalls would need to be made. The Nano is a great kite, give em a go when Dave does his next demo, probably after the race. The rider you guys are talking about said the kite was incredible and real nice for unhooked tricks until the relaunch. Like I said, he just didn't have the kites pumped up full enough...

[Skyway Scott]

He had the kite pumped up hard as a rock, I made sure to triple check that before his second and third outing.
After watching him get pissed the first time, I had to look at his stuff. It seemed "normal" to me.
I have seen this rider struggle now on several occasions get so mad he was yelling. The first time I saw him get mad was a few months ago at the SW. The last time was last week at EB.

Do you think the rider just doesn't know how to water relaunch kites?

You are right about one thing, I would definitely like to see Dave relaunch it during a demo.
It's a total mystery to me right now how that thing appears to stay pegged to the water.
I would like to demo the kite. I just want to be in shallow (walk back) water, if necessary. :)

[eclipsedave]

I talked to this rider yesterday he said the kite was leading edge down in this case all you have to do is pull the front lines and the kite will come straight up off the water. I was over in naples sat and had 2 6 nanos and one 9 nano out all day and nobody had trouble relaunching the kites the kites just ruled the waves and 40mph gusts. I had a 120lb kid on the 6 and a twintip and at the same time i had a guy who was 215 riding a surfboard. when my brother blows by you guys on the 6 nano and surfboard strappless in the race you will see how powerful the 6 is

[Tom Stock]

I am not doubting that the nano kite rides well.

Problem with this kite seems to be that if you swim towards it or let the lines go slack for a moment while relaunching, it'll fly off the water upside down. If you don't then baby it it'll turn into a pretzel, invert, and flip through the lines and land face down forcing you to swim in to sort it all out.

http://www.floridakiteboarder.com/pictures/nono.jpg

I think something in the bridles are not correct in the design.

[Chad085]

a note on the rev's safety system.... If you have too many twists in the front lines (3 to 5 is about all it takes, maybe even less) it will NOT flag out on the safety bungee line, and the front lines are almost impossible to untwist with that 2 part grey rope slingshot uses. Unless of course, you do the same trick going the opposite way:) . This can be a sketchy situation!!! Personally i love the cab switchblades. I have a SB2 16m, SB3 12m and soon a SB3 8m. very user friendly, super stable and predictable. I have flown a few different kites, defintetly not enough to be at all critical of any brand, but i found what works for me and stuck with it. As far as unhooking goes i think 1:1 is easier. There's less bar pressure and you don't have to depower the kite as much prior to unhooking, or at least that's my experience.

[Woodson]

Alright, alright... focus on Dan's topic... this looks like a productive thread and I'm now in the market as well for a 9 to advance my riding in higher winds... ;)

As a guy who's owned three different Cabrinha's, crossbows, and switchblade2 and loved them, got to say my Flexifoil 12m is a booster... love the kite and very comfortable riding it... Props to Flexi and Cabrinha for safe kites... most of you know how cautious I am from launch to land...

Also had the pleasure of demoing the Nemesis thanks to Best, Brandon and Stacey... very good kite as well Dan.

As for unhooked... have to say Im not there yet so I'll look to you guys for some input...

And by the way, Hauss could kiteloop on anything... love to watch he ride at LP.

[Danimal8199]

Woodson, I was hoping someone would comment on the Atom. I rode your kite before it was yours and I actually liked it alot, can anyone confirm how well the atom is unhooked?

[amber]

just FYI, we all know i suck but i've never had much trouble relaunching the nano (which of course i have to do a lot cuz i suck) ;)

Danny. Everyone has opinions on what works best for them and yes, hearing about opinions is helpful. BUT i think you should just make it a habit to try other people's kites out when you're at the beach and see if YOU like how it performs. We're lucky enough to have examples of so many different kites around here, might as well take advantage of it, right? :)

[Tom Stock]

It must not have been a 2008...

Anyway, this is a thread asking about kites good for unhooking so lets hear from more unhooking riders... there are a few more on here...

[inferno]

hey danny, you should give my 5 liners a try next time you are out... you just might change your mind.....
maybe fri at eb or sat at sb

[Danimal8199]

I may have to take you up on that Danny. I'll probably be at those spots as well.

[Skyway Scott]

Woodson, I was hoping someone would comment on the Atom. I rode your kite before it was yours and I actually liked it alot, can anyone confirm how well the atom is unhooked?

The Atom absolutely rocks, in all respects, including unhooking. Imo the Flexis are one of (if not the) ultimate unhook kite. Unhooking on one is simply heaven. Exceptionally smooth lift off of the water and a predictable and smooth flight. Some other kites are much more aggressive and possibly "exciting", but the Flexis are just "dependable and predictable".
BTW, I do think lighter guys notice things more than heavy guys. So I do think I notice stuff Tom may not just because I am only 155. It may not matter much for a 200 pounder. I can get thrown around a lot easier than bigger guys.

Anyway, when Billy shows up with his kites, all you have to do is take note of how other guys (good riders) are hopping on them and not wanting to give them back. It's funny at times.
I was about to get the 9m Atom when I got the Waroo.

Keep in mind that the relaunch on the Flexi isn't in the same ballpark as the Rev or the Cabs. Those kites are sort of "silly easy". The Flexi takes a little understanding to relaunch. It's still relatively easy compared to some others.

I have an Ion2 12.5 in the mail. You can demo it Saturday at Sunset, Danny.
I personally think getting advice from people with some time on the water is useful, but nothing beats a demo.
Maybe Dave can come over for another demo, too.

[Danimal8199]

If the wind gods grace us I will be out there. Sunset = sunset beach or sunset park??

Sunset park sounds like a little too far north for you Scott so I'm assuming the beach.

No east beach for you though? I would love to get a good flat water session in but I will take what I can get!

[Skyway Scott]

I was gonna go to Sunset (up North), but (.... see other thread) am now using psychology on Danny to get him here at EB :)

If you say you are coming to EB as well, I then have peer pressure (maybe) as a leveraging tool against his feeble (not really) mind... mmwwhaa haaa haaa!! The pieces are all coming together as planned.. muwah hah hah. :)

J/K, I don't care either way. But... is there really a car show at EB this weekend?
Is there going to be parking at Sunset? These are factors. I just want to ride and have a reasonable launch for Donna.

If there is a classic car show at EB and someone gets dragged into a few of them... man... that would be one EXPENSIVE kitemare. LOL.

[Danimal8199]

Hey no kidding, I don't want to land on someones 1942 showroom finished restored hotrod!

Sunset Park will be alot less crowded than east beach and its a little deeper that east beach. For example at low tide at EB you can't really ride unless you go outside the sand bar, at sunset park you can easily ride in at least a foot and a half at low tide.

I am not sure about the parking, I was up there last weekend granted with the condition not many were out anywhere, but SP is in the back of a neighbor hood and the only signs up are for howard park.

The times i have been there I have not had trouble parking.

[pebbles]

The GK Trix is an awesome kite for unhooking. I can easily ride around unhooked and send the kite the other way for a one-handed carve with no issues. Also, in waves the kite has unreal "drift". SO stable.

Last year I was doing a downwinder from Cape Lookout, NC and was powered on the 15m Trix. I could acually park the kite and ride downwind with the kite flying backwards! I ended up being too much for the 15 so I switched to the 9m and was fine.

Oh yeah, whenever I eat it unhooked the kite is ready to relaunch at the edge of the window by the time I get my head out of the water.

Later
pebbles

[inferno]

Also, in waves the kite has unreal "drift". SO stable.


ill second that.. i havent ridden one, but seen other ride waves with them and they really do drift extremely well....