Review North Dice 7m

[tony montana]

4 kiters, demo dice, all all rounder freeriders. 7 kites on order. All have ridden rebels, edges a Wainmans, catalysts and C4s oh and vegases.

Rebel an all rounder, nope. Lets see you unhook this puppy properly.

Does it boost in the right winds, yep.

Is it a kite just for the waves, nope.

Ride one then comment hey.

Bit of arrogance here hey,TONY

[Westozzy]

Sorry Tony didn't mean to come across like that, have done a very detailed review already so wanted to be brief.

I have spent about 9 hours on the 9 and 12 collectively in different conditions and I suppose I was just trying to point out that making generalisations about a kite from flying a 7m once is probably a little limited. I would never fly a 7m and make a generalisation about any kite, you really have to get into the main sizes and spend a fair bit of time to really understand what they are all about.

I've ridden or owned most of the north lineup amd I think a lot of people, retailers included (and me) thought 'here we go again' another specific north kite...dont they have enough, confusing the market even more'.

and I only got the kites down to demo over a few days for a mate of mine whose a SB rider.

We all got on them, cause why not?

And we got of it thinking 'f***', they have something special here.

My call is it will do away with both the Evo and Neo. it really is a true freeride all rounder and very good in all department.

Again I wish ozone had pursued developing the old C4's which we all loved then trying to mix a cat with a C4. North have done really well here.

[tony montana]

Sorry Tony didn't mean to come across like that, have done a very detailed review already so wanted to be brief.

I have spent about 9 hours on the 9 and 12 collectively in different conditions and I suppose I was just trying to point out that making generalisations about a kite from flying a 7m once is probably a little limited. I would never fly a 7m and make a generalisation about any kite, you really have to get into the main sizes and spend a fair bit of time to really understand what they are all about.

I've ridden or owned most of the north lineup amd I think a lot of people, retailers included (and me) thought 'here we go again' another specific north kite...dont they have enough, confusing the market even more'.

and I only got the kites down to demo over a few days for a mate of mine whose a SB rider.

We all got on them, cause why not?

And we got of it thinking 'f***', they have something special here.

My call is it will do away with both the Evo and Neo. it really is a true freeride all rounder and very good in all department.

Again I wish ozone had pursued developing the old C4's which we all loved then trying to mix a cat with a C4. North have done really well here.

Fair enough,water under the bridge,i too have owned almost every kite in the North range of kites,but from 2011 went 3 strut,i think rebel was good for waves till 3 strut took over i ride in a very gusty bay and rebel depowered like nothing else,and turned well fully depqwred,thats why so much interest in Dice,your review was excellent and very detailed,thanks for that i I will demo,TONY

[Westozzy]

Let us know how you go Tony.

[Johnny Rotten]

Ok I don't get it.

I ride waves and flatwater wakestyle...and have a mix of rebels and vegas
Biggest problem I have with the rebel is when I unhook it's hard to control my speed....it drifts too fast.. same idea once I'm In the air fast drift..... no slack can't do anything without doing what feels like a massive chin up.

Vegas great unhooked you can ride it in the waves, but drift is pretty slow, and requires a lot of kiteloops to keep lines from slacking excessively and doesn't steer well when slacked turning radius is pretty big so you gotta pay attention or stuff it in the waves.....rebel is much easier for this.

Dice is claiming great drift and great unhooked......figured these 2 were exclusive.
How is this anything other than some mediocre compromise kite?

[Westozzy]

I might be able to help here as I rode the new Vegas and the dice back to back.

You can't beat the Vegas for developing slack lines. It was straight away evident. So for serious hard core freestyle that's ya pick.

But the dice still is very very good, but it takes more to get the lines really slack.

In the surf the dice is as good as it gets. Whether its down the line where drift is paramount or fly and follow. I have since ridden the REO back to back and it is hard to find which one drifts better. But the dice is far more powerful and the feedback and stability is better.

So if you are a really good freestyler but want a bit more comfort, and to maybe tone back a little to allow for the less slack lines but want a bullshit wave kite that does boost really well (just like the Vegas but far more float) then the dice is ya machine. Forget the rebel, the dice will kill it in the waves if ya fair dinkum about wave riding. High aspect kites never work in the surf if you really want to amp up the anti.

But if you want to really push the envelope with freestyle then its the Vegas as per normal.

[recoprianto]

So if you are a really good freestyler but want a bit more comfort, and to maybe tone back a little to allow for the less slack lines but want a bullshit wave kite that does boost really well (just like the Vegas but far more float) then the dice is ya machine.

Can you clarify this statement? The bullshit wave kite part... I fly Vegas currently, but want a kite that feels like the Vegas but drifts. I am willing to give up some slack for drift. How are the loops on the dice compared to vegas?

Thanks

[markchatwin]

I think bullshit wave kite is Aussie for kickass wave kite!

[Westozzy]

So if you are a really good freestyler but want a bit more comfort, and to maybe tone back a little to allow for the less slack lines but want a bullshit wave kite that does boost really well (just like the Vegas but far more float) then the dice is ya machine.

Can you clarify this statement? The bullshit wave kite part... I fly Vegas currently, but want a kite that feels like the Vegas but drifts. I am willing to give up some slack for drift. How are the loops on the dice compared to vegas?

Thanks

Oops I forget it is an international forum. Mark is right. A bullshit wave kite means an excellent kick ass wave kite. Yeh no comparison there. What north did I think is firstly they used the ideas gained from the Neo design to improve the 2012 Vegas which was the worst year for this kite..I know I had one! The Vegas has also been a good wave kite for those who wanted to fly and follow, with a little bot of drift but nothing remarkable. But the Vegas has power, boosts two things lacking in the Neo.

So they took the Neo platform (hence the excellent drift) and brought in some Vegas DNA in a three strut format. So yes if you are willing to sacrifice some slack for drift then you have the right kite.

But if you are a serious hard core freestyler then it has to be the Vegas.

Most the crew I know and kite with are either full blown SB riders or TT mutant freeriders. There is a spattering of hardcore freestylers but that is a very specific discipline and one that I have total respect for. Get it right or get hurt and generally the latter while you learn and when pushing the boundary.

But for freeride (a bit of everything) the dice to me will eat up a huge segment of this market and will appeal to many many riders. We have been looking for a wave kite that boosts for a loooong time. And it does and it starts boosting in its medium wind range not near its top, which is always a stupid claim because any kite will boost near its top. When I say boost I mean immediate and controlled power feedback that allows you to easily dial in your edge and kite movement for pop and lift then glide potential through the air, with controlled soft landings even without a downloop, although this is always recommended if going really big. Every kite jumps, but it is HOW It jumps that is key.

Plus it unhooks so well. Loop wise, not as pivotal not as quick. Way more powered. But in the setting closer to the wing tip these loops get closer to the Vegas, also drift better here, but you lose a bit of boost ability. But I was looping it down the line no probs, and you can kill the power so well you just need to control the loop then use the power. The REO is easier to loop down the line I must admit. But yeh dice kills it getting back upwind and gives you much more static grunt as well as fly and follow potential.

What is apparent though is how smooth the power delivery is. It comes on in a linear fashion, no stupid power spikes, no stupid on/off crap I hate in kites. And stability in the air is something to behold.

Its a good kite hey.

[fdvj]

Are there batons in the canopy and how many pulleys?