strapless freestyle kite

[halloi]

hello everyone!

I have been researching like mad these past couple of months in pursuit of finding the perfect kite for strapless freestyle riding and have somewhat narrowed it down to a few kites, now I need the opinion and experience of you strapless freestyle riders out there, so help me out!
It seems that the pros are riding Bandit, Dice and Religion but what about the everyday joes that are trying progress and take it to the next level?

heres the list:

2016 F-One Bandit

2016 Liquid Force Envy

2016 Blade Trigger

201X RRD Religion MKV

2016 North Dice

2016 Best Roca


what I want from the new kite: Great Depower, Medium Bar Pressure, Good Lift for Tricks, quick turning speed, and maybe as a cherry on top somewhat Drift capable

Conditions: 15 to 25 miles, Gusty, Choppy

Board: either the F-One Mitu Pro 5'8" or Slingshot Celeritas 5'8" or Naish Custom LE 5'7"


Current Setup: 13,5m Kahoona, ZAP 54" Skimboard


lets hear your thoughts guys!

[TommyDuotone]

Maybe add the Naish Pivot and the Core kites to your list. Everyone seems to love these for a crossover kite.

[halloi]

lol I was hoping to narrow it down further and not add to the list
as far as naish I have to be honest even if it sounds stupid - I find the design... well, lets just say it... anyways, its not for me...
the core seems to have too much going on with the bridles. again, my personal opinion.

I appreciate your input though!

[spoetnik]

Sorry for adding more doubt to your list. But why the Envy, and not the Liquid Force WoW?

[halloi]

lol you guys just keep adding more
from the reviews that ive read and watched the WOW seems to be a more dedicated wave kite and not so much freestyle.

real wow review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUvAdBeZ-Lc


appreciate your input! lets hear some more guys!

[longwhitecloud]

i ride a torch, and you can direct unstrapped landings with the angle of the kite - take off super fast - iain aldridge style - which i like speeeeeeed, but i do notice that keahi and airton use every bit of their depower on high depower kites coming in to land so they go down faster without the board falling off their feet - they often have their arms fully stretched out - not something u can do with a torch so easily so i struggle with things like strapless non grab front rolls

just ride whatever kite airton rides...! he the guru

[IanNJ]

I have flown most of these kites and owned personally the first two. The Bandit will Hindenburg on you a lot if you try strapless airs. The Envy will also.

You should really change your selections to surf specific kites. Look at the Ozone Reo or Core Section.

[halloi]

@longwhitecloud

So according to you priority should be great and fast depower, now from what Ive seen Airton seems to ride Dice is that correct? but the Dice is not known for exceptional depower so Im confused.

out of the kites that Ive listed which one would you say suits freestyle strapless the best?

@IanNJ

Surf specific kites are great for wave riding but I have zero waves at my location which is why im looking for kites for freestyle strapless air maneuvers. Ive heard the hindenburg thing before about the bandit and the envy, theyre for sure the power whores in my selection but is that not something the rider can somewhat control?


appreciate your input guys!

[IanNJ]

I'm gonna send you a PM. There is a lot to think about... But basically he issue as I see it is kite position. The kite will sit in a different position when doing strapless maneuvers vs. wake or boosting.

With wake style your kite is always powered at 45degrees give or take. As you pop the kite pulls you. With big air, you send the kite and as you come down you redirect it.

With strapless stuff in flat water the kite will be at 12 and not redirected till your about on the water. If you plop in the water the lines get heavy slack while the kite is at 12...of the kite does not have good drift then it will come down leading edge first.

Soooo. Why does mitu crush it? Because he usually is riding 10m or smaller kites in strong wknd where this is less of an issue. And he's super good... Bigger kites 10+ in lighter winds will do this more.

[Slappysan]

I ride a quiver of Triggers and I like them for pretty much everything. I'm progressing at strapless freestyle but I'm not great at it yet.

You can check out this video of Sivan Oz killing it and he's riding a Trigger not a Skinny Boy (Blade's wave kite):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLFtgcNGTJ8