Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

Flysurfer Peak 4

For all foil kite riders
User avatar
Peter_Frank
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 12735
Joined: Wed Oct 16, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Denmark
Has thanked: 1007 times
Been thanked: 1187 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Peter_Frank » Thu Apr 01, 2021 2:09 pm

If you are average weight or above, definitely a 5 m2 for 15 knots.
If lighter, a 4.

8) Peter

elguapo
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 945
Joined: Fri Jan 25, 2019 6:01 pm
Favorite Beaches: pattaya
Gear: ..
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 169 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby elguapo » Thu Apr 01, 2021 3:09 pm

GTC wrote:
Thu Apr 01, 2021 1:35 pm
Hi all,
I am considering adding a Peak to my quiver for those 15 kt days.
I have a Naish Pivot 10, which I can't barely use it on hydrofoil because it pulls like a truck. I also have a Wainman 7.5 but in those low winds it feels a little heavy and slow.
Should I consider a 4, 5 or 6m Peak? I weight 72 kg.

Thanks in advance
i purchased a 5m 1st..and then an 8..and then a 3.

if i were purchasing again..
i'd buy the 4 and 5 together to start the quiver(and maybe a 6 too)

both the 4 and 5 will will work well at 15 kts at that weight i believe (assuming you are also on a surf foil and using longer lines)
...4 if wanted more upper.. 5 if wanted more lower end from 15 knots

User avatar
Peter_Frank
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 12735
Joined: Wed Oct 16, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Denmark
Has thanked: 1007 times
Been thanked: 1187 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Peter_Frank » Thu Apr 01, 2021 3:39 pm

Agree, now we know your weight, a 4 or 5 could both work in 15 knots, if you are using a wing 1000 to 1200 cm2 like most use today.

8) Peter

GTC
Frequent Poster
Posts: 281
Joined: Thu Mar 29, 2007 12:57 pm
Gear: Naish
Has thanked: 7 times
Been thanked: 14 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby GTC » Thu Apr 01, 2021 3:51 pm

Thanks for your help guys!
I will go for the 5m. I am on a 1100 cm2 surf foil and above 20 knots I prefer boosting and surfing.
Regards!

User avatar
Flyboy
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2715
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 157 times
Been thanked: 288 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Flyboy » Thu Apr 01, 2021 5:52 pm

GTC wrote:
Thu Apr 01, 2021 1:35 pm
Hi all,
I am considering adding a Peak to my quiver for those 15 kt days.
I have a Naish Pivot 10, which I can't barely use it on hydrofoil because it pulls like a truck. I also have a Wainman 7.5 but in those low winds it feels a little heavy and slow.
Should I consider a 4, 5 or 6m Peak? I weight 72 kg.

Thanks in advance
15 knots? definitely not the 6m. Choice between the 5m or 4m (assuming a "surf wing") . The 5m will work down to about 12 knots & will be fully powered at around 15 knots. The 4m will work down to about 14 knots & will be fully powered at around 17 knots.

User avatar
oldkiter
Frequent Poster
Posts: 287
Joined: Sun Jun 12, 2005 1:46 am
Has thanked: 40 times
Been thanked: 11 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby oldkiter » Thu Apr 01, 2021 5:58 pm

Flyboy wrote:
Thu Apr 01, 2021 1:54 am
oldkiter wrote:
Thu Apr 01, 2021 12:41 am
Finally decided to learn kite foiling. Have tried maybe 5 -6 times over past 2-3 years with 2 diff setups in low wind ( with 3 and 5 strut kites) with little to show for it except porpoising.

Now have Moses Onda 633 gear and SS 5'6" foil board. Also ordered an 8m Peak 4 because of this thread. Have Solo 9, 12, and 15.5m. Wind will generally be from 8/9 mph to 16/18 mph.

I weight 155 lbs (70KG) plus gear BUT very old. I have kited for 17/18 years, and windsurfed for prior apx 25 years. I will dedicate the necessary sessions.

I will start learning in mid teens using 12 or 9 Solo (minor wave action), and learn the Peak 8m on land or shallow water.

I am getting from this thread that the Peak 8 should have an apx range of 8-16 mph. Is that about right?

Also that you mostly have to send it into the water otherwise it should fly, and it should fly down to 4-6 mph for self-rescue. Is that about right?

Planning to use either of 2 current bars with 15m or 22m lines. Is either one better than the other?

Thanks for any responses and/or comments!!
You're doing the right thing learning to foil! It will come to you with some patience & the right conditions. My recommendation is to start by using the 9m Solo in 12 - 15 mph. Enough wind that you don't have to worry about keeping it flying when you fall awkwardly (which you will).

The 8m Peak would more or less duplicate the wind range of the 12m Solo - which is to say around 8 mph - 12/13 mph. I am 80 kg & use the 6m Peak in 10 knots up to 14 knots. More than that & I use the 4m Peak. Below 10 knots becomes tricky with a tube kite because in lulls & while gybing your kite may have a tendency to Hindenburg. On the other hand the 8m Peak should hang in the air better in sub-10 knot conditions. So ... the 8m Peak may serve OK for those sub 10 knot days, but will have a relatively small range before it starts to feel big. But you shouldn't be learning to foil in anything under 12/13 mph anyway ... so the 9m Solo would be the place to start & then figure it out from there.
Thanks for comments.
I should have stated my wind situations. Have long drive (80 miles RT) to get 12-18 mph. But live few minutes from beach with consistent 8-12 mph.
Seems like the Peak 8m will be awesome after learning to foil!!

Also thank you irwe. I have a bar with 27m lines that I could dedicate to the Peak 8m when ready to use it!

User avatar
Flyboy
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2715
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 157 times
Been thanked: 288 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Flyboy » Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:16 pm

oldkiter wrote:
Thu Apr 01, 2021 5:58 pm

Thanks for comments.
I should have stated my wind situations. Have long drive (80 miles RT) to get 12-18 mph. But live few minutes from beach with consistent 8-12 mph.
Seems like the Peak 8m will be awesome after learning to foil!!

Also thank you irwe. I have a bar with 27m lines that I could dedicate to the Peak 8m when ready to use it!
My advice stands: don't try & learn in 8 - 12 mph winds! It may be an exercise in frustration. I spent a year trying (occasionally) to foil when the wind was too light to kitesurf. A waste of time as I ended up dropping the kite & spent all the time struggling to maneuver the board/foil while keeping the kite in the air. When I seriously set my mind to it, I started trying to foil in 15 mph winds & immediately (well more or less immediately) was up on the foil for the first (short) runs. I did not find that I dropped the kite much, even when I was learning, as long as the wind was strong enough. Once you are reasonably competent at foiling you could start trying to go out in 8 - 12 mph, in which case the 8m Peak would be your best bet.
These users thanked the author Flyboy for the post:
oldkiter (Thu Apr 01, 2021 8:51 pm)
Rating: 3.03%

User avatar
junebug
Frequent Poster
Posts: 439
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2014 4:14 pm
Kiting since: 2006
Weight: 195 lbs
Style: Freeride Twintip, Strapless Foil
Gear: Rebels (6m, 8m, 11m, 13m)
Nobile NHP
Boxers (3.5m, 4m, 5m, 7m, 10m, 12m) (flat water)
Peak4s (3m, 4m, 5m, 6m) (waves)
Lift 150 v1 Surf front / 38 back (flat water)
Lift 170 v1 Surf front / 26 back (waves)
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 42 times
Been thanked: 63 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby junebug » Thu Apr 08, 2021 2:59 am

I tried out the Peak 4 5m today in 11-14kn. My first time on a foil kite. My initial thoughts:

I get it. The drift is amazing. We had ankle high waves today, so I didn't really get the full experience, but riding in unbroken swell I could stay on the same wave all the way down the line until it petered out. With my LEI, I would either have to hop from one wave to the one behind it after a bottom turn or two to keep line tension or have to continually loop the kite and get pulled downwind too fast. With the Peak 4, I just flicked my wrist and the kite was right there pulling me into the next turn. I can't wait to try it out in proper waves. I had been thinking that maybe my foil (Lift 150) was just too fast for waves, but I'm thinking now that my LEI (Boxer) was just too heavy.

It flies a little different from an LEI, but not much. I practiced on the beach for about 2 minutes before getting in the water. It's like a small LEI in that it does not like to be choked, unless you want to pinwheel it. The timing on maneuvers, however, is totally different. I tried a few 360s, heel side / toeside 180s, and tacks, and they didn't go very well. That's not a big deal to me--I bought these kites for wave riding, not messing around in the flats.

Coming from 15 years on LEIs, the spaghetti is daunting. Everything looked right before launch (took me about 10 minutes to look at everything over and over and over because it all just looked like an undifferentiated pile), and the kite seemed to fly fine, but I'm still not confident I didn't have something screwed up. I kept waiting for a line to break, but, fortunately, it didn't happen (today).

It fluttered a little more than I expected, particularly at the high end of the range. I like flying small kites, and at 14kn, I was thinking I might want to try sizing down.

Self launching was a piece of cake. 15 degrees off downwind, pull the leeward line, and up you go. Self landing straight downwind was a little frightening. LEIs backstall a lot slower. With the Peak 4, it's either on or off. It went okay, but I'm going to need more practice with it before I feel confident with it.

I kept the bar attached and wound it up to the kite, but still, it felt like everything went to hell as I was putting the kite back in the bag. I hope keeping the bar attached will make sorting everything easier the next trip, but I'm nervous I'm going to open the bag to a rat's nest.

I didn't crash. Phew. My opinion of the kite is very high right now, but I'm sure when I crash, reality will sink in (as it were). I just hope we get some waves soon so I can really test it out.

Edited to add: I was a little disappointed in upwind performance. Definitely doesn’t point as high as my LEIs.
Last edited by junebug on Thu Apr 08, 2021 7:23 am, edited 1 time in total.
These users thanked the author junebug for the post:
oldkiter (Thu Apr 08, 2021 6:37 pm)
Rating: 3.03%

User avatar
Flyboy
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2715
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 157 times
Been thanked: 288 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Flyboy » Thu Apr 08, 2021 4:53 am

junebug wrote:
Thu Apr 08, 2021 2:59 am
I tried out the Peak 4 5m today in 11-14kn. My first time on a foil kite. My initial thoughts:

I get it. The drift is amazing. We had ankle high waves today, so I didn't really get the full experience, but riding in unbroken swell I could stay on the same wave all the way down the line until it petered out. With my LEI, I would either have to hop from one wave to the one behind it after a bottom turn or two to keep line tension or have to continually loop the kite and get pulled downwind too fast. With the Peak 4, I just flicked my wrist and the kite was right there pulling me into the next turn. I can't wait to try it out in proper waves. I had been thinking that maybe my foil (Lift 150) was just too fast for waves, but I'm thinking now that my LEI (Boxer) was just too heavy.

It flies a little different from an LEI, but not much. I practiced on the beach for about 2 minutes before getting in the water. It's like a small LEI in that it does not like to be choked, unless you want to pinwheel it. The timing on maneuvers, however, is totally different. I tried a few 360s, heel side / toeside 180s, and tacks, and they didn't go very well. That's not a big deal to me--I bought these kites for wave riding, not messing around in the flats.

Coming from 15 years on LEIs, the spaghetti is daunting. Everything looked right before launch (took me about 10 minutes to look at everything over and over and over because it all just looked like an undifferentiated pile), and the kite seemed to fly fine, but I'm still not confident I didn't have something screwed up. I kept waiting for a line to break, but, fortunately, it didn't happen (today).

It fluttered a little more than I expected, particularly at the high end of the range. I like flying small kites, and at 14kn, I was thinking I might want to try sizing down.

Self launching was a piece of cake. 15 degrees off downwind, pull the leeward line, and up you go. Self landing straight downwind was a little frightening. LEIs backstall a lot slower. With the Peak 4, it's either on or off. It went okay, but I'm going to need more practice with it before I feel confident with it.

I kept the bar attached and wound it up to the kite, but still, it felt like everything went to hell as I was putting the kite back in the bag. I hope keeping the bar attached will make sorting everything easier the next trip, but I'm nervous I'm going to open the bag to a rat's nest.

I didn't crash. Phew. My opinion of the kite is very high right now, but I'm sure when I crash, reality will sink in (as it were). I just hope we get some waves soon so I can really test it out.
Had the same feelings the first time I flew a Peak. I was reassured that the freakout about the bridles would diminish ... & it did. You'll learn how to handle the setup & take down like you did with a LEI.

I had my first home session with a Peak today. Air around 9 or 10 C, water at 4 C. Wind was around 11 - 13 knots cross shore. Put up the 6m. Obviously a bit concerned about crashing the kite & having to swim in in frigid water. However, after a while getting dialled again I no longer worried about dropping the kite (although I stayed a bit closer in than I do when the water's warm). The 6m definitely isn't as lively as the 4m, but it still drifts very nicely which makes it really easy to control through gybes & running downwind, even if you're pretty lightly powered. The thing that struck me again about the Peaks: they don't go upwind as aggressively as even a regular wave tube kite, & they don't generate board speed on any point of sail as aggressively as even a regular wave tube kite.
These users thanked the author Flyboy for the post:
oldkiter (Thu Apr 08, 2021 6:39 pm)
Rating: 3.03%

Jefe
Rare Poster
Posts: 14
Joined: Wed Jan 17, 2018 2:16 am
Kiting since: 2017
Local Beach: New to East Bay/ SF
Learned in San Diego
Gear: Old (2014) Lift 110 standard and custom surf wings
Elf Joker 11/18m
r1v2 9m
Various tube kites
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 2 times

Re: Flysurfer Peak 4

Postby Jefe » Thu Apr 08, 2021 5:34 am

Had my first session on a Peak 4m today and loved it! I'd tried it on the beach once before to get a feel for it in lighter wind and have been waiting for the chance to get out on it. Today the wind was 20-23 kts with gusts in the upper 20s on SF Bay. Launched the tiny kite while most of the twintip crowd was launching their 9m LEis. Was able to sheet in to stall the kite down into the powerzone like I do with my racekites, then pop the bar pressure off and was up and foiling with one more sine of the kite. Its so easy and fast to get it where you need it. Upwind was not as good of an angle as my double skin foils, but still able to get the foil leaned over and point higher than the surfboard crew. The lift in the kite overhead as expected was minimal, but enough to support a quick footswitch or gybe (even though I'm not great at these yet).

Downwind is where it really got fun. I was on a LF impulse wing which was slow enough to surf the little shin-knee high wind chop. Just like all the reviews, I was able to just let the kite drift. I tried going directly at the kite on a small wave pumping to see if I could get any slack, and it just flapped along drifting happily downwind, then was instantly ready to pull again as soon as I sheeted in. I know some people complain about the flapping, but coming from sailing, I actually find it helpful to know I'm trimmed just right.

I did wind up putting it in the water after I botched a gybe and had to do some gymnastics to avoid landing on the foil. In this case, it went in leading edge down and I was able to relaunch pretty easily by just over sheeting and reverse launching (have all my bars set up for a bit of back stall all the way in). One of the wing tips had inverted a bit in the crash, but a quick side to side bar shake worked it out fine. I'll certainly wait till I've got more experience with it to venture further out into the bay though. Now I'm just wondering how far down in the wind range I can take it- Can I get it to overlap with my 9mR1V2 in the mid- upper teens ( would probably need a hydrofoil wing switch to make that work)? We will see- I might be done bringing pumps to the beach and sell my 7m and 5m SSTs!

Can see that its not a kite for everyone, but I'm really happy with it for a nice change of pace from light wind and the race kites- it is what I hoped the SSTs would be when I heard about their drift.
These users thanked the author Jefe for the post:
oldkiter (Thu Apr 08, 2021 6:39 pm)
Rating: 3.03%


Return to “Foil Kites”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 138 guests