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Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

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omg
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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby omg » Tue May 15, 2018 9:59 am

jkrug wrote:
Mon May 14, 2018 9:10 pm
omg wrote:
Sun Apr 29, 2018 5:45 am
I agree, it's weird how few comments there are on 12m from people who own it. 9 seems to be a good one.
there's a bunch of us here that have the UL 12m. maybe we're not commenting because we're out foiling with it so much. but seriously, it's a great foiling kite and hangs up there in the lightest winds i'd go out in. is it a miracle kite better than any other of this type? probably not, but it works well for me (and I fly Airush Waves as well) and i'm just personally not fond of foil kites.
jkrug,
how would you compare Ultra 12m to Wave 12m, please? I have had the Wave 12m, and while the 9m Wave was really good, the 12m I felt was a bit dull (perhaps every 12m kite is). Does the Ultra 12m turn quicker than the 12m Wave and does the Ultra generate power when turning or only when flying straight?`

thanks!

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby jkrug » Tue May 15, 2018 12:08 pm

omg wrote:
Tue May 15, 2018 9:59 am

jkrug,
how would you compare Ultra 12m to Wave 12m, please? I have had the Wave 12m, and while the 9m Wave was really good, the 12m I felt was a bit dull (perhaps every 12m kite is). Does the Ultra 12m turn quicker than the 12m Wave and does the Ultra generate power when turning or only when flying straight?`

thanks!
i only have the 10M and 8M Wave kites, so I cannot compare. The 12M UL turns like most 12m's...not particularly fast. But I learned to be more aggressive with it, and it does fine. I don't really like the UL 12M for wave riding on a surfboard, but will do it if the 10M Wave just isn't enough, though the difference in low end in these kites is marginal. The 10M Wave is substantially faster turning than the 12M UL. The UL is a lot like the Waves in terms of generating power...on the up-swoop. The UL 12M is so much better at just hanging up there in the lightest of wind whereas the Waves will drop, hence the UL is a far superior light wind foiling kite, but in stronger winds, i use my Waves to foil and they do fine . I'm out on the UL 12M foiling in same winds as 13M foil kites...and i'm a bit heavier than most at 205 lbs.

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby alfredo68 » Tue May 15, 2018 12:53 pm

jkrug,
how would you compare Ultra 12m to Wave 12m, please? I have had the Wave 12m, and while the 9m Wave was really good, the 12m I felt was a bit dull (perhaps every 12m kite is). Does the Ultra 12m turn quicker than the 12m Wave and does the Ultra generate power when turning or only when flying straight?`

thanks!
[/quote]

Omg
Hppen the same to me, bought 12 and 9 Ar wave and while the 9 it s best ever had ,the 12 felt slow,big , heavy so i m still useing my blade trigger 12 that feel fast and light
Maybe 12 m wave kites in general its a category that should be avoid?
I wonder how is the ultra 12 compare to the 12 wave

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby ciscokitesurfer » Tue May 15, 2018 4:57 pm

the only way to find out is buy a used one. I am waiting for a second hand 12 meter but I can't find one. Very good indication that people are keeping them

cheers

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby RadDrDuke » Sat May 19, 2018 2:42 am

I agree, have flown several different 2017/2018 wave kites (drifter, neo, wave) and they all feel huge/horrible. I think 12m is just too big for a wave kite which is intentionally designed to be somewhat inefficient (one of the reasons they "drift") and have large flat wingtips.

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby omg » Sat May 19, 2018 6:24 am

interestingly I have read that Mono 12m is quick turning and it's pretty similar to Neo 12m but only 1 strut instead of Neo's three. Can the two struts really make the difference in 12m sizes? I have the 10m Neo and it's not too quick, but still very doable and nice kite.

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby MikeBirt » Wed May 23, 2018 10:06 am

I've had Airush Wave in 12 and 9 nearly every year since the first ones, and use the 9 Ultra exclusively for foiling.
I struggle to keep a 12 Ultra in the van as it always gets sold from under me - they have sold really well in this size.
They go out for demo and never come back. A 1st world problem I guess.. lol

I have been around these kites for a while now, and have friends who also use them in the different sizes. Those who foil and like power do have a lot of praise for the 12, and while I am starting to use more power when riding, I still find that the 9m Ultra goes almost the same time on the foil as the 12, but has much more speed and better handling - for freeride kiting I do prefer the 9 over the 12, but I guess I have adapted to using the 9 almost exclusively - throwing it for power and building up the apparent wind.

As to the Wave vs Ultra in 12, the ultra is a bit quicker to accelerate, a bit more responsive under low power and a much more stable kite when the lines go slack, but it still has a 12m footprint to move around. It's not a night and day difference..
I also think one of the problems we have with 12 is that we are using them in a lot less wind, and the physics of the bigger mass and footprint aside, we have less wind or certainly, apparent wind, when throwing them around to make them handle like we wish, so not sure if it's possible to engineer much more out of a 12 due to the fact it's tapping into a lot less energy.

I know that one of the aspects Airush have been working on in general prototyping is speed and agility in 12 and over - people are asking more and more of the handling in the lowest power conditions the industry has seen so far. There has been a lot of advance in this area of kiting and I have more fun on the water this year in really light winds. For sure the Ultra is responsible for a big part of that.

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby alfredo68 » Wed May 23, 2018 12:25 pm

MikeBirt wrote:
Wed May 23, 2018 10:06 am
I've had Airush Wave in 12 and 9 nearly every year since the first ones, and use the 9 Ultra exclusively for foiling.
I struggle to keep a 12 Ultra in the van as it always gets sold from under me - they have sold really well in this size.
They go out for demo and never come back. A 1st world problem I guess.. lol

I have been around these kites for a while now, and have friends who also use them in the different sizes. Those who foil and like power do have a lot of praise for the 12, and while I am starting to use more power when riding, I still find that the 9m Ultra goes almost the same time on the foil as the 12, but has much more speed and better handling - for freeride kiting I do prefer the 9 over the 12, but I guess I have adapted to using the 9 almost exclusively - throwing it for power and building up the apparent wind.

As to the Wave vs Ultra in 12, the ultra is a bit quicker to accelerate, a bit more responsive under low power and a much more stable kite when the lines go slack, but it still has a 12m footprint to move around. It's not a night and day difference..
I also think one of the problems we have with 12 is that we are using them in a lot less wind, and the physics of the bigger mass and footprint aside, we have less wind or certainly, apparent wind, when throwing them around to make them handle like we wish, so not sure if it's possible to engineer much more out of a 12 due to the fact it's tapping into a lot less energy.

I know that one of the aspects Airush have been working on in general prototyping is speed and agility in 12 and over - people are asking more and more of the handling in the lowest power conditions the industry has seen so far. There has been a lot of advance in this area of kiting and I have more fun on the water this year in really light winds. For sure the Ultra is responsible for a big part of that.
:thumb: :thumb:
What do you think about your airush wave 12 ?

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby MikeBirt » Wed May 23, 2018 12:58 pm

alfredo68 wrote:
Wed May 23, 2018 12:25 pm
What do you think about your airush wave 12 ?
It's nice, and holds good power too, but in really light winds wave riding, generally I find frustrating - I would rather foil.
If there is enough wind for the 9, which is not that much, then you can ride wave properly.

I tend to throw the kite around a lot, bottom to top - allows me to power through bottom turns - it's almost impossible in light winds with a 12 and when there is enough wind for a 12 to do that, the 9 works (and works better)..

If I were forced to ride in waves because I did not have a foil, then I would use the Ultra 12.

I guess that is your answer?
Unless, I guess, you are heavy, and would use a 12 wave when I would be using a 9 wave?

I'm 83kg..

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Re: Airush Ultra: one strut kite that meets expectations of a ram air lover

Postby alfredo68 » Wed May 23, 2018 10:32 pm

MikeBirt wrote:
Wed May 23, 2018 12:58 pm
alfredo68 wrote:
Wed May 23, 2018 12:25 pm
What do you think about your airush wave 12 ?
It's nice, and holds good power too, but in really light winds wave riding, generally I find frustrating - I would rather foil.
If there is enough wind for the 9, which is not that much, then you can ride wave properly.

I tend to throw the kite around a lot, bottom to top - allows me to power through bottom turns - it's almost impossible in light winds with a 12 and when there is enough wind for a 12 to do that, the 9 works (and works better)..

If I were forced to ride in waves because I did not have a foil, then I would use the Ultra 12.

I guess that is your answer?
Unless, I guess, you are heavy, and would use a 12 wave when I would be using a 9 wave?

I'm 83kg..
Yes exactly, i would use my Wave 12 from 11 to 15 knots only but i prefer my old 12 B trigger for that ( or thinking of a Ultra 12 now) above 15 knots the wave 9 its a must.


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