Best Kite for Big Air Boosting / for 70kg

[1234567Simon]

It has been some Time: thanks for all recommendations:

I decided to give it a try with Rebels. (So only Talking about Rebels)

Two Questions:
1.
is there a relevant difference between 2019 and 2020?
I am sure 2021 is a huge difference but 2021 is completely out of my Price range.
So only looking at 2019 and 2020. (for example 9m from 2019 and 7m from 2020. ..... Bad idea?

2. sizes?
Background: on my Wave -kites right now: the difference between the sizes is very small:
12 & 9 is very similiar.
9 & 7 is almost the same
7 & 5 is a good step.

Plan was to geht 7, 9, 12 all Rebels.
But maybe 6, 9, 13 is also a good Option??? Or Bad Idea?


(For Windsurfing I had a long Time: 4,2. 5,0. 6,0
That was always big sh*t.
4,2. 4,7. 5,3. 6,0. was soooooo much better).

Thanks a lot for any thoughts on my two questions.
Best regards

[leeuwen]

Just commenting on size:
What’s the max wind speed you will realistically go out on?

Just mentioning because I personally exchanged my 7m for an 8m (XR so similar kite).
I would barely use the 7m since it just starts to gets happy at 30+ and never used it’s real top end.
The 8m I exchanged it for I can use from 25 up to 40 and that should be doable for most experienced riders (I pingpong between 70 and 75 kg).
If it goes above 40kn I rather stay home because the risk/reward goes to far to risk for me.

Do note that small kites in 40 knots are still way more
dangerous then a similarly powered bigger kite in 20 knots.
(When things go wrong you get pulled downwind at approximately wind speed, that’s obviously a lot worse at 40 knots then 20 knots. Also things happen a lot quicker with small kites so you have less time to react)
I might just be getting old but sadly 35+ days on weekends or holiday period this year are now a guarantee for
for a couple of hospitalizations in my country.

[1234567Simon]

Good Point! Thanks for the comment.

I plan to use the 7 Rebel exactly when the „semi-proffesional“ kiters go boosting 20 Meter plus with their 9m.
I am not that good, that I need the max amount of kite.

So I guess I will be using the 7 Rebel starting at 25kn (even if all the others go for 9m in this Wind....)
(25+ knots is exactly when it is not much fun for me with a directional and my Wave kites for example in Wijk aan Zee)

Thanks!

[a99]

I using 7m rebel (2015 year) from about 22 knots, its nice very trustfull kite, but for big air jump is not enough wind, even 30 knots for 7m kite rebel if to use for jumps is not so much wind. I must usualy use my 10m rebel for jumps till wind about 26 knots easy and much much nicer jumps, longer hangtime. Rebel are very heavy kites as goes with 5 struts and they need for good jump good amount of wind, also they are quite slow turning, therefore you can’t get additional power just from suddent turn and created additional power. But this their weight keeps you very well balanced when you hanging and landing.

[WndRdr]

It has been some Time: thanks for all recommendations:

I decided to give it a try with Rebels. (So only Talking about Rebels)

Two Questions:
1.
is there a relevant difference between 2019 and 2020?
I am sure 2021 is a huge difference but 2021 is completely out of my Price range.
So only looking at 2019 and 2020. (for example 9m from 2019 and 7m from 2020. ..... Bad idea?

2. sizes?
Background: on my Wave -kites right now: the difference between the sizes is very small:
12 & 9 is very similiar.
9 & 7 is almost the same
7 & 5 is a good step.

Plan was to geht 7, 9, 12 all Rebels.
But maybe 6, 9, 13 is also a good Option??? Or Bad Idea?


(For Windsurfing I had a long Time: 4,2. 5,0. 6,0
That was always big sh*t.
4,2. 4,7. 5,3. 6,0. was soooooo much better).

Thanks a lot for any thoughts on my two questions.
Best regards

Question 1.
With your weight go the newest model that fits to your budget. I am around your weight and have ridden Rebels from different years. Especially on bigger sizes like 12-9 the improvement in turning speed will make the jumping easier in top end of the kite for our weight or lighter. For me it has been easier to keep the edge in much more wind with the same size of a kite when riding newer Rebels. No matter the development between 2019 and 2020 is not dramatic but it still there is a difference and 2020 is better in that sense.

2. The sizes. Where I mostly ride the winds are very gusty. For example average wind of 30 knots may be anything between 20-40. Due to that I just needed to cover widest range with three kites. I used 12-9-6. 12-9 match great. 9-6 are good for me as I need the extra knots in top end of 6 compared to 7 due to gusts. 9-7 would have the optimal range a bit more overlapping and you would be boosting big right away when you need to scale down.

With 6 in around 30-33 knots I can boost around 9-10m from flat or small wave, so it starts to jump ok from there. It is then what you think is big air. If the wind is steadier 9 would jump better in that wind with a good technique to handle more power.

So the 6 or 7 depends how the winds are in your spot, how high wind you want to ride comfortably and how much you have learned to handle power. Based on your description to change to a smaller size earlier, 9-6 gives you bigger range and when changing to 6 from 9 you would not feel that too powered and you may feel more comfortable. 9-7 and changing to 7 gives the option to star boosting bigger earlier on a smaller kite.

Good thing to remember that you are now choosing the kites to develop more and can change the size the next hear or after two years. When you feel comfortable you will be then learning to trust the gear and can then start pushing those more.

[SMJ]

Here's a good article:
https://kitesurfingmag.com/2020-big-air-kites-tested/

For your parameters (lighter weight rider and a high-Y bar), the 2 best options are probably the Rebel and the Core XR. I've never flown a Rebel (dying to since the Indians in the mountains sing songs about this legendary boosting machine), but I own a Core XR5 15m and it does boost well in its upper wind range. You'd be happy with either kite, I believe.

However, I think you're shorting yourself by limiting to high-Y kites. The North Orbit, SS Raptor, and Cabrinha AV8 are all excellent low-V boosting kites. A couple guys at our local beach are absolutely killing it on the new North Orbit and SS Raptor and swear by those kites. North Orbit didn't do so bad in KOTA last year (1st, 2nd, and 4th place!!!)

I own (2) Cabrinha AV8's (14m and then after riding it immediately bought another 11m) and can say it has better low-end, boosts higher, and has more hang-time than my Core XR5. The AV8 14m has more low-end grunt and boosts higher than my XR5 15m in the same winds; I flew them back-to-back one day. The rub on the AV8 is it has a LOT of bar pressure, but when I go out for a boosting session, it's not like I'm riding all day anyway. When I first got under an AV8 I just knew that was THE big air kite for me; it just worked for me. I would caution that the AV8 is probably better suited for bigger riders, however. The XR5 has nice light bar-pressure; that's a kite you can fly comfortably all day and is well-suited for lightweights.

Try before you buy if possible. The big air kites all have their own unique characteristics, so you need to figure out what works for you.

[Kerplow]

Hi there,
About sizing. Why do you need 12m for boosting? You never gonna boost with 12m. Even when you will be overpowered with your 12m, you probably will jump higher with 10m. Im 67kgs and had a 12-10-8-6 quiver, now planning to have 13-11-10-8-6. The biggest ones will be for unhook/chill rides as when wind will pickup, I will pump the rest. If you truly just into big air i would reconsider 12m as your biggest kite.
Another thing to mention (as im choosing a brand for that purpose too a) - will you try kiteloop/megaloop. If yes - Orbit is the one.
As someone mentioned - XR's are the easiest to boost.
And again, as someone mentioned, the newest Rebels are faster than previous years. 2019 Rebel feels like traktor

[WndRdr]

12 would better to learn big air tricks where a bit slower turning kite and a bit better hang time helps when 10 would not be fully lit.

13 or 12 depends the winds you have and how low winds you need/want to ride. 13 will get a 70kg going in just a bit less wind but there is much more difference in top end in favor of 12. It is easier for 70kg to boost with full powered 12 than 13. For sure with training and experience the difference will get smaller but the difference in turning and flying speed will favor 12.

[Kerplow]

12 would better to learn big air tricks where a bit slower turning kite and a bit better hang time helps when 10 would not be fully lit.

13 or 12 depends the winds you have and how low winds you need/want to ride. 13 will get a 70kg going in just a bit less wind but there is much more difference in top end in favor of 12. It is easier for 70kg to boost with full powered 12 than 13. For sure with training and experience the difference will get smaller but the difference in turning and flying speed will favor 12.

Ok, different people, different opinions. Everything below heliloop in my opinion is just a usual jump, not really big air.
And pls, read what I wrote - 13-11 for unhooks and just chill riding. For me, 10m is much more fun in the right conditions then 12m for going up. But, again it's different for each of us.

[Blackened]

Two Questions:
1.
is there a relevant difference between 2019 and 2020?
I am sure 2021 is a huge difference but 2021 is completely out of my Price range.
So only looking at 2019 and 2020. (for example 9m from 2019 and 7m from 2020. ..... Bad idea?

Yes. Fundamentally the design is the same, but they used different materials in different areas reducing weight. For me:
1. Increased lowend
2. Reduced highend
3. Improved hangtime (quite noticeable)
4. Improved drift (barely noticeable)

If you're a newish rider, I doubt you'd notice a difference and probably can save yourself some money. But yes, the 2020s are better.

2. sizes?
Background: on my Wave -kites right now: the difference between the sizes is very small:
12 & 9 is very similar.
9 & 7 is almost the same
7 & 5 is a good step.

Plan was to get 7, 9, 12 all Rebels.
But maybe 6, 9, 13 is also a good Option??? Or Bad Idea?

The Rebel has a lot of low end versus other kites and the sizes offer a lot of power difference. Without knowing your wind conditions, I suggest you stick with the same setup of 12, 9, 7. It's the go to quiver range for the vast majority of people (3m, 2m). Larger or smaller ranges are usually for specific riding styles in specific wind conditions.

4m jumps between sizes is almost always a bad idea.