You didn't read my 'review' then, huh?sarc wrote:Matthieu how does the Aurora15 jump? Height, glide? Any concern on stability/invert/bowties if mess up the jump or the landing in gusty air?
What's hi and low wind range for 200lb (90kg) on a surfboard?
I'm intrigued.
It's impossible to speak to the stability or other flight behaviour of Auroras in any objective fashion. They all require tuning out of the box, and everyone has done their own thing to make it work as best they can. Pansh has also been known to make design changes midstream without documenting them.
Initially, people complained about overflight/luffing problems and we figured out they needed more rear line tension, so everybody has some pigtails on their front leaders. This also changes the effective wind range of the kite, reducing the top end a bit. To add to the confusion, since it's Bring Your Own Bar, it's tough to make sense of people's successes and failures because everybody is on different size bars with different line lengths and different trimming options.
That being said, if I'm able to get the thing to fly competently, I expect I'll be able to get my 160lbs out on my 5'2"x22" fish SB in 8-9 kts.--perhaps a bit less. It's an apparent wind monster which doesn't readily slough-off power. I'd want to switch to an inflatable at earliest convenience, but might be able to hold it down with a smaller twintip to around 15kts before it'd untenably scary. I don't expect the 15m would work well at all in gusty conditions--thinking about being attached to it in the kind of gusty conditions we get around here kinda makes me want to cry. I've had a few instances with the thing which would have resulted in kitemares had I not the sense to punch-out. It's a fickle beast, rapidly transitioning between three states:
1. Frustration: "...aaand turn. Please turn. TURRRNNN!!!"
2. Elation: "OMFG, it's working! IT'S WORKING!!!"
3. Fear: "Whoa. Whoa. Stahp with the pulling! Ahhh!"
Sorry I can't speak to the jumpability of it yet, any time I've had it out, the conditions have been marginal or there have been tuning problems. To sum it up: I'd be worried about everything all the time with an Aurora 15m, it just doesn't inspire confidence.
I've heard great things about the 12m though, so they've got that going for them, which is nice.
I ask again: How much do you value your time? Your life?
If you do go ahead with this endeavour, I'd suggest the following: A huge-ass bar with ridiculously long throw and trimming options (below-bar might be the best thing here--maybe something like a 5-line version of the Ocean Rodeo Freeride bar). You need the long bar to get the damn thing to turn, the long throw to have a hope at any sort of depower, and the limitless trim to give you some wind range and avoid having to do tuning in 6" increments. I'm using a Naish Shift and it's less than ideal.