Best 12m Nemesis
165lbs Rider / 132cm Board
Average Wind Conditions: 15mph-25mph
I've been flying this kite for a couple of months now, long enough to really get to know it. I truly believe this is as good a kite as any others currently on the market, and anyone who has doubts because of the price will be very surprised if they ever have a chance to demo one.
What you notice first is that it has none of the negative properties normally associated with high AR. There are no stability problems, in fact its the most stable kite I've flown. It has no tendency to race back in forth in the window, nor does it have the slightest hint of jellyfish. It flies well even with lots of back line pressure, and keeps flying great even with the tips flared a bit.
Unique design properties include inflatable tip battens with their own blatters (includes non-return valve), and its thin LE and struts. Also it is one of the few kites high aspect kites out on the market with a 5 strut design. Despite fewer struts and the thinner LE, the kite seems to fly stiff as a board in the sky, and shows few signs of flexing and has no rocking or jellyfish properties.
Upwind is superb. You feel very little pull from kite, especially downwind pull. Instead pull gets generated when you build up speed, and apparent wind. Its very hard to get pulled downwind by this kite as it naturally wants to ride at the edge of the window.
Turning speed is average, the kite is very responsive to bar inputs so it enters turns quickly. It does not pivot turn, if you want that you should look at the mid AR equivalent (Yarga.)
The kite handles gusts so well that I actually find I notice water conditions (flat or choppy) more than how gusty the wind is. Gusts tend to accelerate you forward instead of pulling you off your edge and downwind. Usually the only time you notice gusts is while jumping.
Speaking of jumping, this kite likes to fly! The Nemesis has taken all of my jumps to new heights and has improved hang time significantly. The kite has a good deal of rear line pressure which lets you feel where the kite is in the air during a jump, works great!
The kite flies best when ridden fast, which makes it not so great in heavy chop. However I ride it in lots of chop quite often and find it is still very forgiving since it doesn't demand hard edging to stay upwind, thus you can concentrate on navigating all of the chop without worrying about keeping a hard edge.
Flat water riding is amazing as you can zoom along at unbelievable speeds while still racing upwind and having lots of control.
It even relaunches well, which really surprised me given its high AR design. I found the key to easy relaunch was making sure it was pumped up hard, this keeps the LE from bending during relaunch which can obviously make things more difficult.
So in summary...
Pros:
Incredibly Stable
Great in Gusty Wind
Upwind
Speed
Great Relaunch for High AR
Price!
Cons:
Speed not so great in heavy chop
Bag not the greatest (works well though)
No pivot turning like Yarga