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Highest performance (race) current model kite that doesn't require special handling?

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derek440
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Posts: 172
Joined: Wed Apr 03, 2019 2:47 am
Local Beach: Perth
Favorite Beaches: Coogee
Style: Frothing the foils
Gear: Surf kites, strapless surfboards, foil gear, foil kites
Brand Affiliation: Gin/Flymaax dealer for Australia
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Re: Highest performance (race) current model kite that doesn't require special handling?

Postby derek440 » Wed Aug 05, 2020 8:28 am

I have been looking at all the same kite and I have flown a few and I own R1 ver2 kites, but then someone offered me a 19m Halo really cheap and its amazing! I like it so much I just bough a 15m, but I also tried the Sonic3 twice and was trying to make my mind up. Both the Sonic 3 and the Halo are just below race pace, actually very similar in speed to my R1 ver2 kites but a tiny bit off the new R1 and VMG. I have also owned Hyperlinks and Flown Sould but I find them to be nowhere near as good as race kites, but the Halo and Sonic3 sit somewhere in the middle but nearer to the race kites. The Sonic3 was actually made by taming the VMG and the Halo seems to have been also made by taming the Diablo. In terms of speed two of our local racers rode the sonic direclty against new R1s and found it was almost the same upwind and not far behind downwind. I regularly line up against R1s with the Halo and I find it is similar, really close upwind and a bit slower and not quite as low angle downwind but still crazy fast. On my new 15 I got my fastest ever downwind speed and I can go upwind at full race angle at same speed per GPS as I get on my R1v2s. I have never ridden a Chrono but I'm guess they are similar. The deciding factor for me in the end was also the cost, the Halos I got were way cheaper than Sonic3s and almost as good.

Dislikes for me with Sonic were I found it hard to reverse launch - but always got it in the end. And I don't like the easy-to-stall Flysurfer feeling where you have to always sheet out to get it flying. Dislikes of the Halo is that the bridle isn't adjustable i.e. you have to use knots to adjust the short mixer and you have to stretch the bridle to tune it but it actually works. Also the Halo material (and Diablo) lose their new feeling pretty quickly and then they aren't as great to water relaunch after about a year and a few swims with them. The Sonic3 material feels amazingly good and super high quality.
These users thanked the author derek440 for the post:
Mossy 757 (Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:26 pm)
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derek440
Medium Poster
Posts: 172
Joined: Wed Apr 03, 2019 2:47 am
Local Beach: Perth
Favorite Beaches: Coogee
Style: Frothing the foils
Gear: Surf kites, strapless surfboards, foil gear, foil kites
Brand Affiliation: Gin/Flymaax dealer for Australia
Has thanked: 12 times
Been thanked: 88 times

Re: Highest performance (race) current model kite that doesn't require special handling?

Postby derek440 » Wed Aug 05, 2020 8:30 am

Forgot to mention I also have bought a Diablo ver 4 brand new at clearance prices, they seem pretty awesome but it will be way more of a handful, but I figure I'll be using it for high wind seabreeze summer racing so hopefully the ultra-high aspect shape won't result in too many swims when I drop tacks/crash gybes etc. So the new quiver is DiabloV4 11m, Halo 15/19. And I've got some R1v2s for backup kites :)

Mossy 757
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Posts: 1860
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Local Beach: First Landing State Park, Virginia Beach Oceanfront
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Re: Highest performance (race) current model kite that doesn't require special handling?

Postby Mossy 757 » Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:28 pm

derek440 wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 8:28 am
I don't like the easy-to-stall Flysurfer feeling where you have to always sheet out to get it flying.
Man this is such a good way to describe this, had never really thought of putting it in those words but that's definitely a feeling I get when I compare an R1V2 to a Sonic2. The R1V2 just feels like it's a bit more powered up with subtle bar pressure whereas the Sonic really insists on you telling it to power up with big control movements.

mgs
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Style: Skimboarding, flat water & small waves
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Re: Highest performance (race) current model kite that doesn't require special handling?

Postby mgs » Mon Aug 10, 2020 10:31 am

derek440 wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 8:28 am
I have also owned Hyperlinks and Flown Sould but I find them to be nowhere near as good as race kites,
Having been flying Chrono V1’s since 2014 then comparing them to a Hyperlink for example the difference in performance becomes immediately apparent.
It’s not a criticism but highlights the differences between a high aspect ratio (AR) kites to a mid and or lower AR kite.
I also purchased HL’s as an alternative kite to fly from time to time, but prefer the light and up wind capabilities of the Chrono (V1)
High and mid AR kites all have their place of course and very much a personal choice.


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