I have had a few hours on the new 08 Rebel and I thought I would provide the details.
A couple of years ago I flew nearly every kite on the market and reviewed them all in this forum. I can not provide a thorough comparison and contrast as I did at that time.
I weight about 80kg (or for those of you on the old system about 175lb –and for the really old system, about 13 stone)
I ride a 2006 132 underground twintip.
I am reviewing the 12 meter kite, and in fact, all kites mentioned in this post are for 12 meters.
The Rebel 07
I have flown the rebel 07 and was unimpressed. I felt that it provided too much bar pressure and not enough de-power, and a somewhat indirect control of the kite.
The Rebel 08
-Review-
The big deal for me was how improved the Rebel is from last year. The kite handles very well with very direct control. Rebel is fast from side to side, providing lots of power. De-power is excellent. Bar pressure is adequate for feedback, but not noticeable as a hindrance to the enjoyment of the kite. The kite Jumps excellently. I feel comfortable enough with this kite and it’s response to try tricks I would never have tried before. I rode and jumped this kite in 7knots (8mph) with my standard board with no difficulty at all!
-The long version-
Bar Pressure
There is just the right amount of bar pressure. Not so little that you can’t tell where the kite is, but not so much that you feel like you are lifting weights.
De-power
The Rebel depowers when you ask it too, just sheet it out and it looses power. (no pulleies required). It is not the immediate shocking de-power of a pulley kite, but a gradual even release of power to the point of none at all. So if you let go of the bar, what you get is no power.
Sheeting control
Here is a big big deal that North should be pasting all over the web. This kite allows as much control of power in as small a space as a pulley kite, but without the pulleys. It is very responsive, but in a manageable controlled way. Compared to the exponential release of power one gets with a pulley kite, (whether those pulleys are on the bar our on the kite or both) the Rebel provides a more linear power control.
Some kites have tried to achieve this with pulleies on the kite only. But –One- of these kites in particular experiences a distinct side effect. As the wind changes, and the kite’s angle of attack changes, and the kite’s movement changes the “sweet spotâ€Â