Rider Info:
Name Mino
Age: 44
Weight: 150
Location: Vanuatu
Level of kiting. beginner (sorry)
Style of riding: prob freerider/freestyle when I get there.
Most riding done in chop
Size of product you are commenting on: Havoc 2008 12m
Feedback:
Love this kite, but then again am very new to the sport so nothing to compare it too. Have had 4 days of lesson on a 12m North Rebel in Vanuatu last month and the rest his history. Had to get myself a kite.
The first thing that amazed me about this kite so far is that with almost no wind, leave on the trees were barely moving, I was able to self launch it today. don't know what wind speed that is but I'd say less than 10mph.
I tried the self launch at the edge of the wind window first by folding one wing tip of the kite on itself and weighing it with sand but the kite always wanted to spin on itself bringing the leading edge perpendicular to the wind instead of staying parallel in my attempt to launch it, and I wasn't standing upwind from it either.
Next I tried to launch the kite again at the edge of the wind window with the leading edge facing down on the sand and pulling the kite around until the breeze would catch it a bit like a water relaunch. The kite had a hard time trying to get airborne and would just slide on the sand back downwind into the wind window.
I was about to call it a day as I though surely there is not enough wind but would give it one more good try.
I left the kite downwind as that's where it always wandered too and started to play with pulling on the lines again.
Fair enough, after a few tries, I realized that by pulling on one of the middle two lines from one wing tip with one hand and the other hand pulling on one of the back line from the other wing tip, the kite started to stand up on it's end and by alternatively pulling the front lines and the back line it gave the kite some type twisting pump action and would lift the kite off of the sand. The kite would want to spin around and fall back down so I would let go of the lines and grab the bar to give it a few more pump and fly the kite.
I had to move it around to keep it up there but it flew well enough for me to experiment with doing long downwind slides on my feet.
The kite fell of the sky several time and using this alternative pulls on the line worked every time. I was standing slightly to one side of the kite each time, but not has much as when launching a kite in good wind.
Also if the kite happened to flip on the ground and sit downwind on it's trailing edge, (in good wind, I understand I would be in China right about now) I just had to pump the bar for it to go back up, nice nad easy.
I guess in very low wind condition, (no wind gust) the kite will launch almost downwind. (Maybe that is true with most kite???)
Any way, can't wait for the wind to pick up again around here. Ha ha, I hear you:
ifferent story when your in the soup and with no foot hold".
Sorry if this is just common kite flying know how to most of you out there. Hope I am not giving bad advise to a lot of beginners out there like me.
What did you like most about the product?
So far, great self launching capabilities in low wind
What do you think could most be improved on this product?
Don't know if I like the Union Inflation System. More parts to break or leek. I think the tubes connecting the leading edge to the struts are more fragile thant valves.
Inflating is a breeze but takes longer to deflate. Air stays in some of the struts and have to push on them. Would be great to have dump valve on struts too only for quick complete deflation usage.
(maybe more weight and more parts to break?)
Favorite feature?
velcro straps to put away the bridle lines when folding the kite