Adding a Big Air kite to my quiver

[Kitedicted]

From the kites mentioned I have tried pivot, core xr and north orbit.

Core XR is a stable, slowish kite with a very wide wind range, eats gusts, good low end, sheet and go. Wide sweet spot timeing wise for boosting, lofty hang time. Probably easiest jumping kite I've tried. A bit dead or soulless feel.

Naish Pivot somewhere between an allround kite and boost kite. Easy to control power with sheeting the bar, a bit less sheet and go requires some input. Less bar pressure vs xr, more reactive, faster. Way better drift, doesn't fall out of the sky. Can make kiteloops gutless or a bit wider and stronger. Super stable, can fly in lower winds too. Way more lively and fun vs core xr but not as easy boosting. Good hangtime.

North orbit, great high range, suprisingly fast, but not quite as reactive as pivot. Sits way forward in the wind window, so you need to heli loop and move it earlier/more and I think you need more skill to actually take advantage of the benefits. Easy to front stall if you don't fly it right (only tried 2020) Not at all idiot proof like the core XR. Still a really cool kite.

[bkkite]

If you are used to riding ultras, you could probably move to a three strut and feel like it’s a big improvement. 5 struts definitely have their advantages like everyone mentioned ( wind range and gust eating), but 3 struts avan be more versatile.

If the 1 strut kites are covering your other types of riding, then maybe a boosting 5 strut is exactly what you want

[TheJoe]

I would really consider the XR's if you just want to go big. The Orbit is what I went with for going big but it is not really a big air machine. They made it for going big and looping. At 12m your not going to be aiming for that. They do fly just fine with a low V bar that is what I used when I had my XR's. With the new XR7's out you might be able to pick up a 6 cheap if you can get one before they are all gone.

If your set on your list then I would say the edge is going to be your best bed there.

[FLandOBX]

My advice would be:

1. Work on your technique (load and pop) riding with your Ozone Zephyr and your Cabrinha Spectrum; you'll improve your big air performance much more dramatically with improved technique than with a new kite;

2. Like alexeyga said, lose the OR Mako and the big door boards for big air; the Spectrum will help you with your technique, but you'll want a smaller board with great pop for big air;

3. Get comfortable riding overpowered;

4. If you absolutely have to buy a new kite, go with a 5-strut, high aspect kite like the Edge or the Rebel;

5. Have fun.

[alexeyga]

Thank you. I'm 6'5" so a 144 feels very short to me and I can hold a lot of power on my Mako as well, however I agree with you that it is not just the kite and the board I need to get better, however I was looking for a kite that would make that process easier. The ultra can hold some much power before it bends and I can see the kite working hard to lift me as the tips cave in like crazy when I get my 220lb plus full cold water gear in the air

In your opinion I should stick to the Ultra and keep getting better at it?

I'm 6'3" and my weight has been oscillating around 200lbs -10/+20 over the last 2 decades... Got into kiting back when 135 was considered a big board for my weight, rode a 127 as a "nicely-lit" board for the first few season (in retrospect - it was a sweet ride). All that to say - 144 feels short? Come on!

At 220, I wouldn't take anything longer than 138-140 for going big and if you're feeling your knees - go for something with a soft flex - it helps. Monk, Ronson (hmmm, i see that it comes in 141x42 for 2021), Lieuwe (however this spells...), etc. Again, it's not like there's a lack of options.

If you insist on getting a big-air specific kite, I'd scratch XR-s, they are really nice, but do benefit from flying on Core's original bar. Having that much invested in Airush - I'd naturally consider the Lift, but make sure to test out the Orbit - this thing is mental when nicely powered.

Cheers.

[SMJ]

Hi glfmkg,

I agree with most of what's been already been said. The only thing I would add is that once you add a big air kite to your quiver, you may decide to convert your entire quiver to big air kites; this is a common occurrence to riders your level.

That being said, you may want to branch out from the Low-V bar. I used to be a hard core Cabrinha rider, but went High-Y when it came to big air kites and haven't looked back since.

The 2 kites that are arguably the most user-friendly and go the biggest are the Duotone Rebel and the Core XR. Unfortunately, they're both High-Y. They're both great kites with good long-term support...so much so that you may want to choose based on which control bar you like more.

Good luck!

[Kamikuza]

That being said, you may want to branch out from the Low-V bar. I used to be a hard core Cabrinha rider, but went High-Y when it came to big air kites and haven't looked back since.

Why's that?

[Cheoz0r86]

If I were you I would either go for the pivot or the edge for a 12m kite, me personally leaning a bit more over the pivot as there is no 12m for the edge the closest is 13m (correct me if I'm wrong) and also it will be faster plus you still have a low v, 5 struts tend to be slower on the bigger sizes so go for 3 struts one.

If the circumstances were different and you are planning to buy a 9m and smaller then go for the rebel, xr, xs, hyper or edge. All those have a good low end perfect for heavy riders.

[Cheoz0r86]

CF Hyper more power then Orbit , low V , more low end then XR .

100% agree on this, I have owned 2017 rebels and my current quiver is 2020 hypers, but also have tried the 12m and 10m xr, the 12m reach, 9m orbit and the alula flite. The hyper delivering the strongest pull from the bunch and better hangtime, I had my doubts when I first bought crazyfly kite, but after all you get top notch equipment for the price, the only thing I didn't like was the bar so that's why I used the ss sentry

[dracop]

If you get a Duotone Rebel simply buy the Duotone Click Bar. The high Y can be changed to a standard low split while you are on the beach and it only takes 60 seconds. The V Distributor is very easy to take on and off to switch the bar between Duotone and non-Duotone kites.

The Rebel is super friendly and will help you progress alot in Big Air, both in terms of jump height and getting in tricks due to the hang time.

Core is a different story - if you go XR, get the Core bar - but its ideal just for Core.