Postby flipper231 » Mon Aug 18, 2008 3:31 am
@ BAller
He dude, Ok I gave the kite its first flight in 7 to 17-20 mph... Please keep in mind that I am an extreme beginner...
Th 15 turns fast and pulls like a truck. I did manage to Edinberg the thing twice with no consequences. I am 86 kg, I guess I would complete my quiver with a 12 or 10 and a 7 or 8. When you leash the kite, it stays on the tip at the edge of the wind window. If you bring the nose in, the kite will flip with the LE facing you and it is not pulling at all. i would bring it in, pulling on both front lines, may be one was enough I dunno. Relaunching once you leashed the the kite is a breeze. Even in 7 mph, the thing gets airborne (I was in 4-line mode), never had to lauch it in the window, always flew it at the edge of the Wind window. I guess it Edinberged because I was not quick enough to regain tension in the back lines when the gust would drop.
So far so good, the kite pulls quite a bit with the LE down so the best way to relaunch seems to be grabbing that top back line and give it a SMALL pull, the kite will immediately turn on the tip and ''swim'' to the edge of the wind window where you just pull it up. To get the 15 tu turn, quickly, back line tension is necessary (no need to pull like a bull, just don't let the bar run to the top). The Rebel depowers more, I would be tempted to stick to the 12 as my main kite for the 12+ winds. All that pulls seems very easy to manage once on the board. The kite is so darn stable, the canopy does not wobble much in the gusts. Can't wait to see what it will become in 2009 but I still fear that the safter could be a challenge if stuck with a kite caught in a death spin. Anyways, the safety is the one thing that I will need to get used to the most and play with the most. At some point I tought I would use the kite with my 5th element... A teacher around here told me not to do that and to get comfy with it...
Oh to answer your question, it is not heavy...lol
cheers