Gust Tolerant Kite

[OzBungy]

We have been getting some extremely strong and gusty winds lately. Each kiter would come to the beach, ride for 10-20 minutes, then come back to the beach and moan about how snakey it all was. I took my turn as well.

In the past I rode Crossbows and they tended to handle the gusts very smoothly. They would come forward on the front lines, sit nicely forward then drift back in the lulls. We had a relatively inexperienced kiter on a late model Ozone Edge and it looked like it handled the gusts quite well, often compensating for the riders poor kite handling skills.

I am now riding late model surf kites and they tend to come forward quite impulsively, shimmy and shake about, luff to an extent, then drop back into the window. It wasn't terribly dangerous, but it was very uncomfortable. Most of the surf kite riders complained of the same feeling. The surf kites feel a lot more stable with a little back line tension, but then they tend to get overpowered in the gusts and underpowered in the lulls.

So, the question is, can anybody recommend a particular kite that will ride out extremely ugly gusts in a relatively smooth and stable fashion?

[Do-it]

late model surf kite????? aren't surf kites new?

[L0KI]

Late model means recent.

Wainman Rabbits handle gusts really well within relatively short throw compared to many kites, I trust them when wind is shite.
And they drift well as the surf specific kites do now.
But the last time I mentioned a Rabbit kite somebody was whining about bar pressure on the Wainmans, which I don't really feel.

[knotwindy]

Might think about the Ozone Enduro as well. Not quite a Reo but really fun in the waves and evens out the gusts pretty well, too. IMO, of course. And the obligatory demo if you can....

[edt]

the rebel is so good in gusty conditions, it's a 5 line system with a tensioned fifth line so it's extremely quick to respond to bar pressure and it has a habit of always behaving well both with the bar out and the bar in. I think the characteristics that separate the the winners from the losers in gusty conditions is how the kite behaves as either the wind increases decreases or the bar goes in and out. Ideally everything is perfectly linear, that is with the bar halfway the kite is half power, 3/4 way 3/4 power and so on. It's like in a car when the car turns the same no matter if you are going fast or slow. To do this you want a kite with medium aspect and a short bridle. You also want the kite designers to sacrifice a faster turning kite for a more stable one. disclaimer i dont own a rebel but I have borrowed them a lot.

[matth]

Switchblades and Evos are great in gust, Rebels also but I prefer the softness of the pullies and bridals on SB and EVO. Rebels can be a little unnerving if you are not used to a loaded 5th line....

[plummet]

first of all define gusts. What wind speeds are we talking and what swing or min/max gust to lull.

[bigtone667]

So, the question is, can anybody recommend a particular kite that will ride out extremely ugly gusts in a relatively smooth and stable fashion?

So I assume you want to be able to dump the surge (or de-power very quickly)?

[OzBungy]

What I want is people with solid experience in riding in gusty conditions to share their thoughts on their kites. I don't think it should be necessary to describe gusty conditions more than I have in the first post. I would have thought experienced kiters would know what extremely gusty conditions are like.

Suffice it to say, some kites move back and forth very elegantly in extreme conditions. Others buck and surge and wobble around but still handle it. I would prefer to have the former.

I suspect I know the attributes of a good gust handling kite. I would like some confirmation from users in terms of models and brands and sizes so I don't have to randomly test kites and wait for those horrible conditions that only happen 3-4 times a year. It's far easier to weed through a bunch of posts than to organise demos of numerous kites.

[naishdude]

if you can , give a Switchkites Element V4 or V5 a try...they do handle gusts pretty smooth, the V5 has a shorter frontbridle than the V4...both nice flying kites V4 on Switch website in outletstore now...I have 13M 9m 7m 5m 7 and 5m I fly on 20m lines.
cheers
Dude