Average Joe Kite Review- Light wind kites
Posted: Thu Jan 23, 2014 6:47 pm
Hey everyone. Just finished the Video and written review. Enjoy... We hope anyway
Battle of the Light Wind Kites
Well, we finally finished up testing the kites and have gathered some observations together for you. Not only did we test them in light wind (11 mph w/2 mph downwind current), but higher wind (15-20 mph) as well. After all, we all know that sometimes a light wind session turns into something a little more and I was curious to see how they’d perform. Now, one of the great takeaways from this is that there really weren’t any dogs in this test. All of them performed well and didn’t really leave us disappointed. The video testimonials do a little better at describing the individual thoughts of each tester, whereas most of the observations below are my own. As the heaviest rider, I was certainly impressed by how well they worked in so little wind. For the light wind riding, I used a Spleene Door 159, for the stronger wind I used a Cabrinha Prodigy 144. For our light wind testing, we rotated through kites at the same time, coming in, trading off, and going right back out.
So, in alphabetical order, here we go:
Cabrinha Contra 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Nice and stable, constant pull, easy to jump
-Easy to drive out of the window when overpowered
-Felt confident the entire time, even though everyone else had shifted down to 12’s
-Jumps were nice and floaty without overpowering before takeoff
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Good pull, feels a little slow to turn, very similar to the Turbine
-Very stable, no back-stalling
-Light bar pressure, but not so much that you feel like you need to look at the kite much
-The Cabrinha bar is the most comfortable of them all
Core XR3 19m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Nicely powered, sometimes a little overpowered in gusts, a little difficult to edge out of the window
-Light bar pressure, very responsive
-Fun to jump
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Again, nice pull w/ plenty of power and turns well. I was actually pulling kite loop/back rolls in this light wind!
-Seems like a little more low end grunt than the previous version (XR2)
-How does this big kite turn so fast with this little bar?!
-The Core’s quick release is requires a twist, versus the “industry standard” of push away. As a safety issue, I’d prefer to see them all the same.
Ocean Rodeo Flite 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Flew well, easy to surge to the edge of the window when overpowered
-Above the bar depower works well, very easy to operate
-Nice re-launch, on par with the Turbine (or maybe better)
-Very fun to jump in strong wind
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Fast and pulls well
-Fun to fly
-Makes you forget that you’re flying a big kite
-Somehow, the Ocean Rodeo Flite bag doesn’t have a place to store the pump on the outside of the bag. The bag is roomy enough to stuff it in there, but I don’t want to cram that in there with the kite.
-The Flite has a reinforced grab handle sewn part way down the wing tip for self-rescue. Most others seem to be an afterthought.
Slingshot Turbine 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Pulls hard, but still easy to edge it and push it out of the window when overpowered
-Below the bar depower is still the same and not very user friendly when you NEED it
-If you can hold your edge long enough to get the kite high in the window, you will be rewarded with some pretty amazing hangtime in strong winds, but it isn’t easy
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-As always, this kite just pulls from the get go. No need to work it for a while…turn it and it’s a static pull
-One of the best light wind re-launches, so easy a caveman can do it.
-Medium bar pressure; you really don’t ever have to look at the kite to know where it is
-Super stable
-Continued remarks from everyone are that Slingshot needs to make the bar’s grip out of something less like a cheese grater!
So, there it is. A mash-up of some of the best light wind kites that we’ve found, reviewed by average guys like you, not superstars that are pulling mega loops on trainer kites. Now, get out there and ride!
Battle of the Light Wind Kites
Well, we finally finished up testing the kites and have gathered some observations together for you. Not only did we test them in light wind (11 mph w/2 mph downwind current), but higher wind (15-20 mph) as well. After all, we all know that sometimes a light wind session turns into something a little more and I was curious to see how they’d perform. Now, one of the great takeaways from this is that there really weren’t any dogs in this test. All of them performed well and didn’t really leave us disappointed. The video testimonials do a little better at describing the individual thoughts of each tester, whereas most of the observations below are my own. As the heaviest rider, I was certainly impressed by how well they worked in so little wind. For the light wind riding, I used a Spleene Door 159, for the stronger wind I used a Cabrinha Prodigy 144. For our light wind testing, we rotated through kites at the same time, coming in, trading off, and going right back out.
So, in alphabetical order, here we go:
Cabrinha Contra 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Nice and stable, constant pull, easy to jump
-Easy to drive out of the window when overpowered
-Felt confident the entire time, even though everyone else had shifted down to 12’s
-Jumps were nice and floaty without overpowering before takeoff
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Good pull, feels a little slow to turn, very similar to the Turbine
-Very stable, no back-stalling
-Light bar pressure, but not so much that you feel like you need to look at the kite much
-The Cabrinha bar is the most comfortable of them all
Core XR3 19m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Nicely powered, sometimes a little overpowered in gusts, a little difficult to edge out of the window
-Light bar pressure, very responsive
-Fun to jump
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Again, nice pull w/ plenty of power and turns well. I was actually pulling kite loop/back rolls in this light wind!
-Seems like a little more low end grunt than the previous version (XR2)
-How does this big kite turn so fast with this little bar?!
-The Core’s quick release is requires a twist, versus the “industry standard” of push away. As a safety issue, I’d prefer to see them all the same.
Ocean Rodeo Flite 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Flew well, easy to surge to the edge of the window when overpowered
-Above the bar depower works well, very easy to operate
-Nice re-launch, on par with the Turbine (or maybe better)
-Very fun to jump in strong wind
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-Fast and pulls well
-Fun to fly
-Makes you forget that you’re flying a big kite
-Somehow, the Ocean Rodeo Flite bag doesn’t have a place to store the pump on the outside of the bag. The bag is roomy enough to stuff it in there, but I don’t want to cram that in there with the kite.
-The Flite has a reinforced grab handle sewn part way down the wing tip for self-rescue. Most others seem to be an afterthought.
Slingshot Turbine 17m
January 15, 2014; 15-20 mph
-Pulls hard, but still easy to edge it and push it out of the window when overpowered
-Below the bar depower is still the same and not very user friendly when you NEED it
-If you can hold your edge long enough to get the kite high in the window, you will be rewarded with some pretty amazing hangtime in strong winds, but it isn’t easy
January 20, 2014; 11 mph w/2 mph downwind current
-As always, this kite just pulls from the get go. No need to work it for a while…turn it and it’s a static pull
-One of the best light wind re-launches, so easy a caveman can do it.
-Medium bar pressure; you really don’t ever have to look at the kite to know where it is
-Super stable
-Continued remarks from everyone are that Slingshot needs to make the bar’s grip out of something less like a cheese grater!
So, there it is. A mash-up of some of the best light wind kites that we’ve found, reviewed by average guys like you, not superstars that are pulling mega loops on trainer kites. Now, get out there and ride!
