Ocean Rodeo stick shift bar

[Swag]

I tried the bar in Hatteras as well and was impressed with the simplicity of the design. Powering up was easy and it was also easier to accurately depower this bar incrementally as opposed to traditional rope/cleat rigs. The only drawback I could detect was if the necessity to emergency depower arises, I question how quickly it could be accomplished with this setup (I did not try this so it may be a non-issue). The grippy feel of the bar is nice, this one will not slip! I liked the bar, it gets a thumbs up from me.

[leibfce]

Spent the week in Hatteras on the OR Stick Shift. I've been waiting since October to get my hands on it. Very comfortable in the grip. I love the floating bar ends. In fact, the entire bar floats. The stopper ball on the poly tube is a game changer. That was my only complaint about the previous control bar. The cleanliness of the center lines is a huge bonus. I didn't realize how much so until I got back on an above-the-bar depower bar. I was riding fully depowered and had two instances where the depower rope wrapped around the center lines below my bar and wouldn't allow me to sheet in. I had to reach up and unwrap the depower rope. The bar is very easy to depower, but took a little effort to power up. It does takes a little longer to go from full depower to full power than a conventional bar. The lines are also improved over previous OR bars. Overall: 4.7/5 Star

[ORSales]

There's been some initial chatter regarding rapid de-power... to achieve rapid depower with the bar you can either hold your hand against the knob to let it unspool or "karate chop" the knob with the butt of your hand. The chopping motion also helps spin the knob as it pushes out and achieves a very rapid depower!

Quickly powering up is also easy to achieve, simultaneously bear off the wind and sheet the bar out as you crank the knob. A good example of this can be seen around the 0:15 mark of the video I posted on page back (the POV video submitted by Graham).

John

[jeromeL]

There's been some initial chatter regarding rapid de-power... to achieve rapid depower with the bar you can either hold your hand against the knob to let it unspool or "karate chop" the knob with the butt of your hand. The chopping motion also helps spin the knob as it pushes out and achieves a very rapid depower!

Quickly powering up is also easy to achieve, simultaneously bear off the wind and sheet the bar out as you crank the knob. A good example of this can be seen around the 0:15 mark of the video I posted on page back (the POV video submitted by Graham).

John

Let's see the karate chop in video

[Obe_1]

Testing the Ocean Rodeo bar in Hatteras.
Rode this bar several times in 7-8 m and 10-12 m weather. Mostly sound side with one excursion to the ocean side.
Pros:
It's a clean system, easy to layout and wrap up. Depower is easy and and can be done in precise increments when needed.
Its light and really does float.
Centerlines seem to be substantial, to me it seemed to be a stiffer connection to the kite.
PU covered centerline fit between my fingers nicely when riding with one hand.
Stopper bar is nice and holds position

Neutral:
Bar grip material seemed a little harder than usual but may wear better. I hear they are moving to a softer grip
Bar profile is a u shaped not round. I adjusted to this quickly.
Bar had some curve in it. This helped keep my hands near the center, and did provide better leverage, but after using straight bars it's an adjustment.
Powered up under way you need to ease off the bar a bit to help out turning the knob for more power. I do that regardless with my current bar.
Durability remains to be seen but out of the gate it looks like they did their homework.

Cons:
When going from full depower to full power it takes longer than an above bar cleat.
Pricing??? If it's competitive then this is a no brainer as an upgrade or replacement.

[wolfjay]

Had an awesome day checking out the new bar. Below are my comments and questions ?

1) Operability :

- Easy to learn and intuitive (anybody can figure it out)

- Twist to power, bump to unpower (love it, works good ).

- Watch the spring compression to see power/de-power range on the bar (very easy read)

- Excellent self - launch and self land capability with a lack of pulleys and yokes I find it very easy to operate during testing (Very important for self drift launchers in deep water and off of boats).

- Great grip bar (feels good to ride), Rode and felt good with the bar.

- Sand and debris washed out of the bar very easily with no performance issues.


2) Maintainability :

- Can't see the wear components (how do I complete a visual inspection ?)

- How will this unit wear ? What is the maintenance procedure ?

- Do you store the bar with compressed springs or de-compressed springs ? Will the springs lose tension over time ? (Springs located at the bar ends on steering lines).


3) Operating temperature range

- Can I ride in winter with temperature as low as - 15 degrees C ?

- Will ice,snow or slush freeze affect performance ( would love to try this in my world in the ice/snow / freezing ).

In summary the bar needs a year to be proven in all extreme conditions.

[bill31]

I had a chance to ride some Ocean Rodeo gear this week. When I first went out on a light wind day, I rode a 17m Flight with the new stick shift bar. At first I was a little confused on how to use the bar. Ned from Ocean Rodeo gave me a run down and it was easy to use after that. I liked that you can de-power completely super quick if you need it. I also liked how light the bar was and the grip felt good in the hands.

[Paul31]

I used this bar yesterday afternoon for about an hour on the sound side outer banks. The knob on the side controls the power/depower with a ratchet type system. You spin the knob to power and push outward on it to depower. It worked like it should and you can get a visual on where you're at with it by looking at springs that compress/depress on the steering lines above the ends of the bar. It's definitely an advancement in bar technology and could become widely used if the price point allows.

[Blz31]

The biggest positive for the stick shift bar is the ease of use. Being relatively new to kiting it was easier for me to bump the knob while riding to power down. I also like how clean the bar looks. My only concern is the longevity of the bar. The knob system seems a little more involved. With a strap system you can easily replace the line should something happen to it. I just don't know how easy the stick shift would be to fix should it break or require maintenance. I do like the advancement in technology and would like to spend more time using the stick shift bar.

[ORSales]

Bar grip material seemed a little harder than usual but may wear better. I hear they are moving to a softer grip

Indeed. The bars that were sent to the OBX, some had older EVA than others. We've switched to a softer EVA for the production.

- Can't see the wear components (how do I complete a visual inspection ?)

- How will this unit wear ? What is the maintenance procedure ?

- Do you store the bar with compressed springs or de-compressed springs ? Will the springs lose tension over time ? (Springs located at the bar ends on steering lines).

- Can I ride in winter with temperature as low as - 15 degrees C ?

Maintenance videos will be posted shortly but the only moving part on the bar is the pawl bracket and associated spool winder. This part pops out as one unit complete with the rear trim line which can then be replaced as a unit in less than 10 minutes on your 1st attempt.

We tend to store the bar with compressed springs (which is also how they ship to customers). The springs are easily removed and / or replaced if need be but the compressed setting prevents line snags when wrapping and keeps the rear lines in order when on the bar.

There is very little (if any?) parts on the bar that would be affected by cold. In fact, quite the opposite. We have found that in the cold, the bar is far more enjoyable to use than traditional metal bars as it is significantly warmer in your hand...

JZ