Worse kitebaording gear you've ever ...?!!

[Balloonboy]

Not sure- but it must have been the v.high aspect Airush 16m kite I tried to learn on- maybe like '03?
It would either sail over my head and crash or power up and launch me in the stratosphere. The fact the that I had no clue did not help. It and the 181 Switch board (essentially a single water ski) combo put me off the sport for like 2 years. Prob a great kite- but not to learn on, so I take the hit on that one.

A few years later, 5 minutes on first 14m Cab bow convinced me that all bows did, and would forever suk.

[ian c]

"no company makes or ever has made a decent bar"

I fully agree. Most bars that are around are complete crap - a few companies actually added some grip eg cab and slingshot this year.

I still think there is a long way to go - there is always something wrong with every bar designed...

[bowkiter]

One more: Kitepants! I actually never wore those either. It would be cool if a company made blank bars so those of us who have been at this a while could customize since there are alot of options.

[switch313]

i usually do manke my own bars from scratch.....starting with a small-ass carbon thin diamiter bar and adding as little as possible to it. usually kit from 04/5 like naish sheeting straps and old skool chicken loops

[mattyoaks]

PKPC, post a quick pic of your bar(s) here if you can pls?

sorry to be off topic in this post

[rone]

5 years ago i bought a china kite : a nightmare !

[Satan]

Funny thread. I wish I was lucky enough to have had a '07 Waroo, Vapor2, or Bandit as my worst kite. It makes you realize some people have never really ridden crap gear.

For me the F-One STW was my worst piece of kite gear ever. It was a horrible kite for the times and the kites weren't that good back then. The day I switched to Naish ARX my kiting improved more in that one day then it has in the years since. On top of the crap list is the Flexifoil bar that came with the storm II. The chicken loop rope cut through the bar like butter. The StormII kites were not much better but don't make the list of absolute crap gear. The Best '06 Chicken loop. The thing wouldn't stay closed, nor would it open under load. To end the list is the '08 Best Yarga. The kite simply doesn't work unless it's completely depowered.

Naish has got more then their fair share of boards on the list. And of course there's always the UDS system. Now that I think of it my worst board ever was the '06 Cabrinha Custom28. For some reason I needed one or two kite sizes bigger to get upwind on that thing.

[surfingwithkites]

Does seem to be some agreement about airush halo, best waroo, slingshot link as crap kites and naish boards too

[Windrider]

Does seem to be some agreement about airush halo, best waroo, slingshot link as crap kites and naish boards too

Interesting way to count there, SWK.....

Regarding Best Waroo....

3 out of 39 responses mention it as a "worst", which is countered by 3 posts that actually proclaim the Waroo as a very good kite, if not one of their best kites. Seems like a "net 0" statistic at best, and a "3 out of 39" statistic at worst. Hardly a trend....

I thought the 2006 Best Waroos were 3 excellent kites..... (I'm counting my opinion as one of the positive proclamations for Waroos....)

Not sure that I've had any "worst" gear so far. Been lucky, I guess...

[woodfu]

5 years ago i bought a china kite : a nightmare !

I bought one of those in 07 just after i started kiting. Flew it twice i think.. once it dragged me accross a rocky shell covered sandbar a then promptly tore itself to pieces. Lucky that was the end of it. Thinking about it now i am lucky that i never actually managed to ride with it, the bar was a death trap.

06 sonic, not a terrible kite but the bar pressure was a horrible joke to play on a begginer. While we're on the subject every and all of bests bridled kites should be taken from their owners and burnt.. their bar feel and turning chartastics are an abomination.

Aside from the kahoona. its actually got some bar feeling/response and nearly linear depower.