Some quick semi relavant background. I bought a quiver of Nemesis 10, 14, 18M two months ago and super happy with the kites. So I guess this is a biased review. Never flew the 10 as the 14 had great range and I could hold some wind. The 14 is a magic kite in my opinion. The 18 is great in the right wind. It worked very well in the 14 – 22 mph range. This was not the super light wind kite for me. Summer is here and we get months of light wind.

For this reason I switched up the scale to 12, 16, 21M Nemesis (today). Best let me return the used kites and pay the difference on the larger set. But that is another story. Thanks Best!

I rigged the 16M as the wind was right for this. Everybody was flying in the 14-16M range. I flew the kite just long enough to satisfy myself of its performance (an hour). It flew more like the 14, in speed and turning (more pull obviously), then the 18. This made me happy!

Satisfied with this I had to fly the 21. Hah, Lloyd got mine in the air before you. Now the conditions were not ideal. It was about 10 (lulls)-15/16 (average)-20 (gusts) mph (maybe a little more as it picked up, wind sensors shut off late in the day) This is not the range that I bought this kite for. I am hoping for performance in the 8-16mph range.

I weigh 180 lbs and ride a Wavetray 147. Been kiting for about four years and have experience with big kites. This review is not meant to compare this kite to any other big kites.

Construction: Already been discussed. Great quality.

Size / Shape: It is a big kite. Substantially bigger then the 18 (3 meters that is obvious). It did not seem super long and appeared a little more stout. Nose down the center strut was about 7’. It does not appear as high aspect as the 18 and smaller. I am not sure of this, ask Best. That is how I perceived it. The leading edge was relatively small for a big big kite. All of the Nemesis have a fairly small LE. The struts were fairly narrow also.

Performance: Launched with a kite buddy in tow, just in case. Kite low walking to the beach had some real pull. Kite tuned on the bar same as other Nemesis. On the water turned the kite and go. Some serious pull. Now as I sated this is pretty strong wind for this kite, in my opinion. I have been told over and over that I like to fly kites larger then most and also that I ride fast. I was not going to ride fast today. I understand the pull of a large kite in strong wind. Hard to kill speed. So I flew slow.

At moderate speed the kite pulled like a mother . Seine the kite once and had speed and power. Pointed well, just by grunt, and pointed well with some speed and edge. Power on power. The kite turned well. As fast as can be expected for a 20M+ kite. I am not going to say that it turns like a 12 as it is big, but it turned well. I was using a 60cm bar. It turned a tight radius for its size. Bar pressure to turn it was appropriate. Not like my old Rhino 22.5 that would rip the tendon in the elbows. It had to be flown with a bridle. Even just cruising toe side at slow speed the kite pulled. At this wind speed it would stand you up on the board almost stationary.

Jumps: My timing was pretty good as I have been flying the 18 for a while. I was surprised that I had no problem getting the vertical lift as opposed to the low horizontals. Hang time . Did I say hang time? During a couple of well-timed jumps I took short naps while in the air. I was pleasantly surprised at the height of the jumps and did I say hang time? I had no problems getting the kite back across the top even though I think I fly the kite back to far across the top sometimes. Just need to remember this is a large kite and wants a good constant bar pull to bring it back during the jumps. Word of caution. Don’t land hot with this kite in this wind. It is hard to kill the speed/power in a speedy landing.

The kite did seem to have a little more motion in it then the smaller 18. If I was loaded in a gust and stomped on the tail of the board the kite naturally moves forward in the window. If I dumped bar pressure it would cava Tate a little. It did not surge power wise though. No jelly fishing. No pumping heart. No rocking on the tips. It was stable and predictable.

Waves: I was really surprised that it handled well when riding a wave. It seemed to sit further back in the window then the 18. A little lower aspect? It was kinda slow to get back to the top after being low on the wave. Stable. Good pull.

This was a short session, about an hour. A smaller board would have been better also. The true test is in less wind. I want it for the bottom, not the top, but am satisfied that I will have usable overlap with the 16. It was fine and fun at this wind, but that was about it. Actually the 16 was the better choice for this wind. Much more wind would not have been any fun. I was already flying it tentatively.

Fun stuff: Now this is where the fun starts. The kite has so much pull that it just continues to accelerate. At one point I was well over 100 mph! That is like 5 times wind speed! Unbelievable! I happened to blow out at this speed and loose my board. The impact was brutal. Body dragging back to my board was not an option as it was well over a mile away. Get this, I stuck my feet out in front of me like in waterskiing. Seined the kite and started planning bare feet. Unbelievable! With a little effort I was able to very foot pressure and leg length like snow skiing. Back to the board in short order. I was still in a daze at this incredible feat when I noticed a 120 foot barge in a slow drift towards the reef. Now this spot is the most treacherous inlet in the state. Obviously they had engine failure. I kited over and coaxed the deck guy to throw me a rope. He was hesitant at first. Hooked onto the back of my new Dakine Nitrous harness and off we went. Was able to accelerate to a constant speed of about 5 knots and pull them to safety! Unbelievable! Man, with that kind of kite power and the cost of gas these days I am considering rigging my 21M to my truck for the trip to and from work. Do you know where I can get a big enough harness?

I will update the review when I have a chance to fly the kite in less wind. I am confident the kite will be great in 10-12mph wind. I am happy so far. I am sure to have months of it this summer. Maybe the wind will lighten up today so I can fly the 21 again. How often do you pray for less wind?

Ryan

I am calling a bullshit on the boat story

I hope you are calling bullshit on the boat story. I hope you also call bullshit on the barefoot planing and the 120 mph. You're joking right? I thought it was blatantly obvious that i was.

quality review, with added humour, best i've read in ages.

I support all of the above, although I havent tried my 21 yet..it'
s on its way..it should be here tomorrow...and I am super stoked to try it out

alex

LMAO! I like your reviews ryan.

I reckon he could have tried a bit harder to find more things to pull and rescue, I got bored after I finished reading it
Nice review, can't wait till we get our 21's

I have flown the kite half dozen times over the last two weeks. I am not comapring this kite to any other 20+M kites. In the Review section is my more extenisive first ride impression. 180 lbs. 147 wavetray. Wind is MPH

11(lulls) - 15/16(average) - 21+(gusts)
That was my first ride with this kite. That is the upper fun range for me with this kite. Had to fly tentativly and slow board speed. Huge carry and hangtime. I did not buy the kite to fly in these conditions, but nice to know that if i am in the water and the wind increases, no problem. Would rather fly my 16M. No need to carry such a big kite.

9 - 12/14 - 17
Super fun range. The kite has a narrow leading edge. I am pleased with how fast this kite flys. It moves to the front of the window quickly when you want it to. Step on the tail of the board and can push this kite around. Flys quickly over the top to get vertical in the jumps. Obviuosly not high like a small kite in the right wind. Hangtime is great. It turns very well for a 20+M kite. Bar pressure feels rather light in my opinion. Doesn't hurt my elbows as older large kites used to. Good constant power. Produces good pull in this range, but it is controllable pull. Park n Go. Points well. Can march up wind. Kite has a little movement when loaded and quickly unloaded, but does not seem to effect the power. No jelly fishing, pumping heart or rocking on the tips.

8 - 11/12 - 14

Need to work the kite a little in the holes. Lower jumps, but with the right timing can still hang. No problem going upwind. Get a little speed and it feeds off the apparent wind. Still fun enough at this wind range. I will be sure to try a longer line set in this range to see its affect.

6 - 9/10 - 12

I walked. Enough wind and no problems keeping the kite in the air, but not kiting with this board (147 wavetray). I am sure with a large directional you could cruise in this wind. In the begging i used to use a 8' straplessurfboard with an aR15.5 during super lightwind summer days. I am sure there will be a few days of desperation this summer when 10 mphs of wind and a big board will be the call. Not exciting stuff though.

Overall i am impressed with the kites performance. After flying the kite several times it doesn't feel so big anymore and yes i have owned +20 M kites. Actually it flys like a smaller kite. Maybe next year will consider one of the 24+M kites, but don't imagine i will get 10 mphs out of it. With a 21 you can still hold reasonablly strong wind. So if you wantto grab a few fun mph below your 16M then consider this kite. This is my summer saviour...