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Ocean Rodeo News:

Storm Warning!
Kiting in gusty, highly variable wind conditions is sketchy at the best of times but we all know there's a certain breed of highly advanced riders who thrive on the rush of storm conditions.

If you're one of these riders, we built the Storm for you.

Designed to be ultra stable and predictable in highly variable wind conditions the Storm incorporates over 11 years of design know-how. Extra struts and Venturi wind vents ensure stability through the gusts and the kite's balance point lets it drift back in the lulls, reducing luff over. Turning is tuned to be smooth and forgiving while our unique FST wingtips ensure a massive sheeting range and ease of re-launch.

If you're brave enough to face the gnarliest conditions, be smart enough to ride with the best available gear! The Storm, predictable performance in unpredictable conditions.

Available in 3 bright colours, in stores and online now! Click to explore!
The Storm features Venturi Technology, Forward Swept Wing Tips & our Direct De-Power System

The description on the site is quite vague. What kind of wind speeds is it usefull in? 4or 5 line bridled? Jumping/hangtime characteristics? I'm sure others will have more questions? Any video?

..hope / expect to have video up soon but here's some answers.

The kite is a 4 line bridled kite that is safety'd off the 2x front lines with our Direct Depower system. This system is similar to a couple other 2 line re-ride systems out there that lets the kite completely roll over on its back when ejected.

It is a 5 strut, ultra stable and rigid kite designed to eat up gusts and hang back in the lulls, carrying you through the highly variable winds of most frontal / storm systems.

It's a relatively low aspect ratio kite with a ton of grunt and pop which will get you up quickly and does produce a surprising amount of lift for its size, however - like all small kites - it will require that you work the kite to feather a landing if you go big.

In terms of wind speeds - this is highly dependent on your ability and your body weight. For a light rider / lady rider this kite could be an amazing choice in 20-30 knots of wind. For most of us, 170-200 lb riders will feel quite comfortable on this kite in 35+.

Ocean Rodeo never recommends riding in over 40 knots but if that's your rush, this kite is for you.

The photo gallery on the Storm's page shows a number of pics of the kite in action from this past weekend, December 15th here in Victoria BC. If you go here and look up December 15th, 2012 and select Kelp Reef you can see that the winds that day averaged 40 knots, gusting over 50 and the kite performed beautifully, we had 4 of them out, 2 final model prototypes and 2 production kites from this delivery.

Great. Thanks for the speedy reply

We had a couple of Ocean Rodeo Storms out in Reykjavik Iceland over the weekend. Winds from 25 - 44 knots. This is an amazing kite for variable and gusty frontal wind conditions. Sufficient power even in the lulls on a 130 x 35 Mako and hardly had to depower in the strongest winds. I weigh about 83 kg. What we liked a lot too was that this kite is not a "crazy bee" in spite of the small size.

Iv'e not tried the storm but if OR say it soaks up gusts then I would believe it. I have had the 9.5m Prodigy on demo for a few weeks and had about 7 sessions in winds from 12 knots to winds gusting up to 40 knots. That kite has amazed me and I have been kitesurfing since 2001 using many different kites along the way. I'm an instructor so always looking for stable kites with good wind range and easy re-launch, on top of this I am a speed rider so looking for quick kites that will soak up our gusty winter UK wind. The prodigy is marketed as an all round beginner kite but I feel it's more than that so the Storm must be magical in the strong gusty winds. In a short space of time using OR I am loving them and looking forward to trying some other sizes. I wouldn't recommend everyone stretches a 9.5m over it's limits but it would go to 32 knots easy, 40 was pushing it. The 5m Storm would be wicked for anyone who likes it lively.

Is OR considering a Storm 6 or 7?
I have been riding in Costa Rica for the past 10 days (30+ kts and gusty). I have been on the OR Rise 6 m everyday.

Regards,
Ian