Aluula Kites - for those of you who already have some hands-on experience

[flying doctor]

What's under your feet ( hyrdofoil & board ) will also have a big effect on how much pull you need/want from your kite.

Thanks for nice advice ; my hydrofoiling configuration for LEI set-up will be :
- foil kotos Freeride 2, about 800 cm2
- pocket 107 with straps
- I do not care about VMG and upwind angle
- I like "decent speed"' , not looking for records and not looking for upwind angle when I want to ride fast
- I like to jumps (hence my taste for the Gin in 7 knots) and associate some "intermediate tricks" like backloops , front loops , and soon double backlogs
- I like looping the kite during jumps or transitions in both turning directions (hence liking the agility of LEI vs foil kites when wind is enough for their relaunch)

I will also use it with a thin-small Twintype 118cm but it is not my priority parameter.

My observations using the Flite A 12m with a 800cm2 freeride foil (80kg) on a 90cm pocket board (5 session up to now): low end seems to be around 8-9 knots for me. It reminds me of using an 11m foil kite like the Chrono but much faster in loops so much more fun. Definitely good for jumping and looping.
And with 60kg and your skills you'll have a better low end ofcourse. It's really great on twintip as well. Massive hang time. It truly combines the advantages of a foil kite (flying in next to nothing wind) with LEI (fast). Also really good in flying backwards from the water if you manage to sink it.
I've had 2 sessions on the Roam A 10m as well; it loops a lot quicker and is in many ways the perfect foil kite. But if you're looking for jumps the Flite is probably better. Also: the roam has a really good upper end (also manageable around 18 knots with the 10m)) where the 12m flite has a narrower range in my opinion. Around 13-14 knots it has a lot of pull, you can switch from foil to a twintip. Or switch to a regular dacron kite for foiling ofcourse.
It's really recommended to try and test the different line up. They all have something special. Very pricey but truly innovative.

[Regis-de-giens]

I want one . Thanks a lot.
I am afraid of being frustrated by lack of lift, so probably flite is better for me. 12m or 14m depending of second hand market proposals . Moreover i like the "challenge" to move a kite which is not designed for... so i like looping my 10m flite already.

I would love to test and compare 12m and 14.5m flite before deciding but no demo kite here...

If someone is interested to swap with my loved gin 15m foilkite for a 2 weeks test, i agree . Just the cost of transport , way and back .

[Regis-de-giens]

I could get a second hand roam 12m at "acceptabe price"
Your opinion , for sweet spot of 7-13 knots on hydrofoil and 11-17 knot on twintype compared to flite 12m ? (no second hand at acceptable price for the flite today)

[flying doctor]

I could get a second hand roam 12m at "acceptabe price"
Your opinion , for sweet spot of 7-13 knots on hydrofoil and 11-17 knot on twintype compared to flite 12m ? (no second hand at acceptable price for the flite today)

I think you would be very happy with a 12m Roam for foiling if you can get it at a good price.
flite jumps higher with longer hangtime. But Roam has better depower for foil and faster looping.
With your 60kg I think the Roam is an excellent choice.

[iriejohn]

... i'm about 280lbs ...

280lbs is ~127 kg.

Someone of this weight saying anything about the performance of kites is meaningless for typical kiters.

As for riding mountain bikes, 127kg typically exceeds weight limits on MTBs.

[seppalord]

Hello everyone,
I'm looking for some advice for a new quiver which I will share with my wife.
My current setup 10m+6m Soul, using on foil and TT.
Since my better half is re-entering the ring, after baby break, she has no intention to go along with my Soul's.
Hence I want to switch to tube, so that I won't have two quivers.

My main goal is foiling and a littel boosting when wind on the stronger side (85kg and 1000cm wave foil).
My wife only TT (55 kg !) primarily mowing the lawn and with some more experience jumping as well.

After reading this thread I'm looking towards the Roam-A in 10m and 7m.
I think the Roam should match my foiling quiet well and should also do a great job for my wife due to its friendly nature. On TT the reviews are not as promising, but I think when the wind is strong enough I can have enough fun and my wife would benefit from the better high end this kite provides.
My concern, whether the 10m Roam has enough low-end for me to use on the foil as a Soul replacement and how the low-end would be for my wife on TT with the 10m.
And whether the gap from 10 to 7 would be too big for my leightwight misses.

Maybe 12-9 would be the better quiver, but my wife has an allergy towards kites >10m and I would certainly need another 7m for my wife any time soon for higher winds.

Any additional advice on how to set up a quiver for this use case is much appreciated

[nothing2seehere]

What's under your feet ( hyrdofoil & board ) will also have a big effect on how much pull you need/want from your kite.

Thanks for nice advice ; my hydrofoiling configuration for LEI set-up will be :
- foil kotos Freeride 2, about 800 cm2
- pocket 107 with straps
- I do not care about VMG and upwind angle
- I like "decent speed"' , not looking for records and not looking for upwind angle when I want to ride fast
- I like to jumps (hence my taste for the Gin in 7 knots) and associate some "intermediate tricks" like backloops , front loops , and soon double backlogs
- I like looping the kite during jumps or transitions in both turning directions (hence liking the agility of LEI vs foil kites when wind is enough for their relaunch)

I will also use it with a thin-small Twintype 118cm but it is not my priority parameter.

My observations using the Flite A 12m with a 800cm2 freeride foil (80kg) on a 90cm pocket board (5 session up to now): low end seems to be around 8-9 knots for me. It reminds me of using an 11m foil kite like the Chrono but much faster in loops so much more fun. Definitely good for jumping and looping.
And with 60kg and your skills you'll have a better low end ofcourse. It's really great on twintip as well. Massive hang time. It truly combines the advantages of a foil kite (flying in next to nothing wind) with LEI (fast). Also really good in flying backwards from the water if you manage to sink it.
I've had 2 sessions on the Roam A 10m as well; it loops a lot quicker and is in many ways the perfect foil kite. But if you're looking for jumps the Flite is probably better. Also: the roam has a really good upper end (also manageable around 18 knots with the 10m)) where the 12m flite has a narrower range in my opinion. Around 13-14 knots it has a lot of pull, you can switch from foil to a twintip. Or switch to a regular dacron kite for foiling ofcourse.
It's really recommended to try and test the different line up. They all have something special. Very pricey but truly innovative.

That's useful feedback on the 12m thanks. The low end power seems to correspond to the low end I remember from my dacron 12m Flite - though I couldn't relaunch that in 8-9 knots and had to keep it moving in that wind speed.

[Kitehume]

The roams are design for foiling, so you can’t go wrong.
Me personally at 65kgs can foil from 8knots on the 10m.
Not a boost kite though. It will boost but drops you pretty hard. Not much float. Good looping kite, and drifting kite. Great for playing in waves.
Have used upto 30knots on TT. Has great depower and good behavior in high winds.

[Kitehume]

Also the low end on TT for me on the roam 10m Aluula is around 14knts. While using a light wind board 146x46.
And at least 18knts on my normal TT.

[Pana]

Sepalord; Forget the 12m for your wife, mine weighs 62 kg and prefers the 10 to the 12 as soon as possible. However uses the 12 ARoam more than any other 12 we had previously.
I weigh 90kg and use the 10m on larger tt (153x43) starting at 16 kt. I do not foil but see multiple out there on 10m A Roams at 8kn. Not grunty but never felt it lacked power, even at my weight, on a tt.

Perhaps the 7-10 quiver may be quite a gap (we have 1 m increments in our kites and my wife never goes beyond a 2m difference with me). Considering your wife weight a 10-8-6 combo appears to be better as she will use a 6 (and you an 8 more than a 7 ?) You could do full Allula for the 10 but go with HL series for the smaller kites (weight benefits vs cost arguably not as good for small kites). We have A kites for 10/12/14 but std dacron for 9/8/7/6. Considering a 9m HL to bridge between the 2 constructions.