First time poster here, sharing big hopes and dreams!
I vote for a robust, big air specific 5-strut jumping model in aluula. First and foremost, performance: my 14.5 aluula flite turns/loops faster than much smaller Dacron kites (eg, feels similar to xr6 10-11 to me; it’s no contest against 12m xr6, rebel, etc).
The other aspect is versatility, range, safety and progression. I like a kite to fly happily if the wind drops. Simply come in and change to a bigger board, no landing or rigging needed. Feel the bigger xr6s just get too sad in little wind. I think this marketing point could be pushed much harder for aluula. They are stiff and light and will fly with input at like 4kt or something. Something along the lines of “given the same rider input, you can always be the last kite on the water if the wind dies. Ride confidently in changing conditions for longer, for increased fun and safety.” How many new kiteboarding spots/kiteboarders will come online by nailing fun OPed and marginal riding with one kite? How many more tricks will we learn with increased water time and margin?
Would like to see a beefed up canopy so it’s stiffer and doesn’t bag out in time with all the moon-ward boosting. The extra reinforcement weight may even benefit the kites, esp small sizes which could get too reactive.
Speaking of sizes, what do y’all think? Maybe a 14m-15m big jumper and then to go down to 11, 9, 8? Oh, and why not custom sizes for even more money (so then if you want a 20, you can get a 20. )
In short, come on OR, make me sell my xr6s. Imagine there are enough big air kiters in the market looking for “the best” to make it worth your while. Win us over. Maybe waiting till the xr7 comes out is the play, but then again you’ll miss the chance of winning those brand loyalists. Even bigger play is to force other brands to license because the materials are simply that superior.
Btw, the teaser in the stick shift 3 vid and Reese’s bladder changing video was an aluula reincarnation of the “rise” model from years past.