Postby tautologies » Wed Dec 01, 2021 12:52 am
I've had the 12 out 3 sessions. I'm getting used to a big kite again.
To me this kite feels a bit like a mix between pivot and draft. Definitely a pivot, but seems to have a dash of draft. It looks a bit more open than what I am used to from the smaller versions. Again this is my perception and I might be completely wrong.
General impression, the kite likes to be ridden actively in light wind. It stays in the air for a long time and is easy to relaunch. It is easy to self-launch, and self-land. It has some bar pressure on the regular setting, but nothing bad. I have not moved anything around. I have ridden it on 22 and 24 meter lines. The kite feels fast and agile for a 12, but I am not sure if it is fast enough for the way I generally ride waves. That said, I have never had a 12 that really works in waves where I ride and how I ride. I do think a powered parked session in side to side off would works well.
I have had it out in anything from super ultra light to fairly powered, but never lit. I have ridden foil, surfboard, and TT. I like the kite best with a TT. The foil was not mine so it is hard to say to what extent I will like this kite on a foil, because I certainly did not like the foil setup my friend has.
The surfboard experience: I have had it in side-shore and onshore on conditions...tbh the onshore condition was not ideal but that was not the fault of the kite, no one could ride those waves it was messy. It was fun to launch off them as ramps tho, I did get in a few hits. In sideshore the kite behaved exemplary. I did not get pulled off the wave and the kite worked just about as well as any 12 have. In lighter wind, it looped and kept steady pull. In more wind is parked and drifted without any jellyfishing. It does have quite a bit of pull once I started looping in more wind, but I could bleed it. I do ride a small surfboard tho.
With a TT the kite was super fun. I have not been on TT much the past years and this kite kind of got me amped. Hang-time was really really nice, and I always knew where the kite was for regular and loopy landings. I could even change my mind while landing. I did not try anything unhooked or much trickery just simple rotations. More of that will come because...so much fun. I think the kite works in lighter wind, but it really turns on at a certain point. I find it hard to say exactly when that is, but once I got powered I really enjoyed going fast and sending the kite. Good old school fun and exactly why I got this kite. Going off ramps or flat was fun and easy. I do think the kite could work unhooked, but I did not try because I'm old and fat and have shit shoulders. I did notice it's been a long time since I did any jumping because I am sooo sore now. It was super fun jumping with the surfboard and with the TT.
I will definitely get more sessions in on this kite and I am very much looking forward to it. I do want to try it on 28m lines for even more jumping.
OLD SCHOOL IS BACK BABY!!!