As I said I'm no wave rider, but I do know kites. Having owned, demoed and rode a lot of kites I can tell you that that the Wave is a bit of an enigma. I own and use the Razor and I totally get what you say about pulling you off the face; however the Wave doesn't do this - depower it and ride at it and it will follow you. It has been described as half Lithium and half Razor and in many ways it is offering the performance of theRazor but the ease of use of the Lithium.peterheirman wrote:@s29feb
In the video you are testing a wave kite with a twintip on micro waves (<75 cm) ???
No very convincing.
That I can even do with old school high jump kites (Best Nemesis HP 2008)
For a test you need to have and wave board, 3m waves and about 30 knots side on shore - then test the drifting ability of the kite and turning ability when riding down the slope of the wave (fast downwind and hope the kite turns).
Jumping ability:
In most cases kites that jump well are not the best for wave riding as they pull to hard during turns which is especially hard riding in switch stance trying to stay on the wave in a gusty wind. Normally these jumping kites pull you off the wave due to their power and speed.
The way I ride I was never going to test its potential in Waves but I'm sure Bear Karry did when helping develop it. Me - when I read the description the first thing I asked was does it jump, and it does. As I suspected it is much more than a wave kite and is a very versatile, easy to use kite that has a surprising amount of performance.
Jumping ability as in height is usually the domain of high aspect fast flying kites - like the Nemesis HP that I have flown, and your delta/open C type kites usually you get more glide; however the Wave is a good mix and even though you don't get core wrenching whip you still get decent height.
So as I said an enigma and a very clever bit of design and engineering - something Airush seem to be excelling at in both their kites and Boards. Other companies have similar kites in their line up that are just as versatile and have been proven in waves and in freestyle; however some lack either upwind, boost, forward drive.... the Wave to me was a bit of a perfect all-round package and it has certainly made me think whether I'll be on Razors next year.
If you get a chance to try one in the conditions you describe then I'd love to hear your feedback because as I'm sure you know kites have came a long way since the Nemesis that if I remember correctly did jump great but if you failed to pump it hard enough to give you an aneurism was a total bastard to relaunch?
Regarding the waves - the GoPro wide angle seems to distort the view and in that part of the bay they are wind driven on-shore and if I see a decent wave I don't see something I can carve a few turns on I just see a big ramp. I was out on the Wave on other days with no camera and Pigs Bay as it is called can get some very close set overhead stuff (taller than me for sure at 5'11") and the Wave was simply a joy to use