Postby TomW » Sun Feb 18, 2018 10:11 pm
After 4 sessions on the 550 here and getting used to the conditions, I took the 590 today with fully powered 9m Mono on 20m lines. Had depower strap all the way in too.
I've also become accustomed to my new board, and stance.
I have to say now it's a really good wing. It at low speed it stalls very gently and predictably. It flys up for the start very easy and predictably too. At speed it was easier to avoid breaches today, perhaps I had my stance sorted better and it was slightly less choppy than first session, but in absolute terms it was mega choppy today, so it handles chop and rough water well.
Roll stability is significantly higher than 550, but I was having fun playing with slalom turns and focusing on the roll.
I'm not that great at gybes yet, but I'm successful on 70-80% of them. Turning it really keeps speed and glide thru the turn without kite power, so if I fub the kite timing, it keeps flying. The roll stability makes the turns wider, but with a bit more aggressive techniques it turns pretty fast, I did some nice speedy toe to healside carves, and some turns onto wave/swell faces that were really smooth and Fast.
I almost did some flying foot changes, it has great lift and the balance point seems" wider ", and I'm starting to ride with feet close together to get the feeling for balance point.
At speed it's great, gets more stable. Seems to have same cruising speed as 550.
If you're learning get the 590. If you want more zippy turns and looser feel the 550.
I loaned it to a local kite instructor who has foiled 4 times and he was flying back forth really well. He came back after an hour with a huge smile, saying he loved it.
I've left it on, so I'll try a few more sessions on it before switching back to 550.