Wil there be innovation in 2018??

[dr511]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkXJGU-Hzmo

Seems like the big brands are pretty lazy..

[Cab Driver]

Hi dr511,

F!REBALL doesn't seem very lazy to me. Ditching the windsurfing hook and loop with security pin that can foul hook, tickles you stomach, etc. and introduce a purpose built 360 degree free moving simple connection that's separate from the quick release... That seems pretty innovative to me, but then again I do work for the company. The Apollo high aspect performance kite, the tool-less Sprint inflation system, etc. There are many more invisible changes that consumers don't see that Cabrinha put in the products for 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkXJGU-Hzmo

Seems like the big brands are pretty lazy..

[Faxie]

Fireball is not innovative... systems like that have been around the sailing scene for years. Are you planning some recalls already for the stuck swivels that twist the leash around the QR? Or will you wait again untill people are starting to get hurt, like with the snapping lines recently? And resetting sucks btw. What happened to the 'once again setting the new reference' you advertised with few years ago? And now you've gone back to the old system. The ball gets damaged easily too, so I wonder how long that free moving will last.

Just admit the Halo didn't sell too well, so you came up with this turd.

And looking at the local beaches, most people don't seem that convinced...

[plummet]

Hehehe. That was amusing!

[NorCalNomad]

There are many more invisible changes that consumers don't see that Cabrinha put in the products for 2017.

So when are they going to stop having product recalls? Because that wasn't on the 2017 invisible changes

And having a inflation valve that doesn't require an adapter is nothing new. Cab makes decent stuff, but always seems like it's trying too hard...and they have to work on 9/10 kooks riding switchblades.

[PinkNorthPride]

Plenty of innovation about, well maybe not so much innovation but refinement, those Core/Carved snowboard click bindings are cool, jurys out on those click bar systems but you can't say they were not innovative and probably the bugs will get ironed out in 2018 and if you don't think kites are still getting better then the difference between the XR4 which was already a pretty damned cool kite and the new XR5 is proof enough that stuff is still getting better.

[dylan*]

I think the biggest innovation in terms of kites that we've seem lately has to do with weight reduction. We're starting to see a lot more kites dropping a significant amount of weight while retaining most (or all) of the strength, and it makes a big difference in the surf and for lightwind foiling. We're seeing more bridles in the last year or two that were able to design bridles without pulleys and kites are getting more responsive every year while maintaining the same depower. Look at all the foil kites that have popped up for racing, it was only a few years ago that people were riding LEIs with their course boards.

Sure, some brands are coming up with gimmicky crap but there's still innovation going on.

[alkiter]

Hi dr511,

F!REBALL doesn't seem very lazy to me. Ditching the windsurfing hook and loop with security pin that can foul hook, tickles you stomach, etc. and introduce a purpose built 360 degree free moving simple connection that's separate from the quick release... That seems pretty innovative to me, but then again I do work for the company. The Apollo high aspect performance kite, the tool-less Sprint inflation system, etc. There are many more invisible changes that consumers don't see that Cabrinha put in the products for 2017.

And I hope we don't see any of that crap in 2018...
Of about 100 riders at our local area, the less than half dozen who use fireballs and Apollos are team riders that get them free, and a couple of kooks and newbs who get suckered into buying them after taking lessons from local Cab dealer.

And I mean that in a constructive way, so that you can focus on improvements that will add value. For example, lighter, stronger material, built-in safety flotation in harness, shark repellents

[Starsky]

I wonder how long before the first commercialized over plasticized version of the BRM integrated leash idea hits the market, and who will label it as innovation on their part!

Kite companies have a hard time with real innovation, they are much more adept at piracy. Regarding the three major areas of true development the sport has seen in recent times: strutless kites, foil kites and hydrofoils, all we have seen from the big kite brands is appropriation, not innovation.

Ideas like the fireball or clicker bindings would perhaps spin a little better against a backdrop of stagnant development elsewhere in the sport, but when you step back and see it in the context of the truly revolutionary things that have happened, its just a bit weak. Who gives shit about a fireball when the innovators have moved well beyond that.

The sport has truly reinvented itself in a rather profound way and the big brands are slowing the pace more than anything. Twin tip riding..... not going to change a whole lot moving forward. Surf kiting.... hell, the big brands are just now getting their head around the idea of a slider.... four years late.

When a change so profound comes along that so completely redefines conditions and locations, you would think industry leaders would pour some intellectual capital into efforts to be industry leaders. Instead we get cleaner bars, slightly lighter kites and all the same crap as last year, and once again they leave the true innovating to the little guys.

We might get innovation in 2018, but it ain't likely to come from any of the big brands.

The race is on for truly wave oriented freeride foils.. Be they canard or big fat wings or whatever. Too bad none of the traditional brands have even shown up to the starting line.

[jakemoore]

Regarding the three major areas of true development the sport has seen in recent times: strutless kites, foil kites and hydrofoils, all we have seen from the big kite brands is appropriation, not innovation.

Lots of folks have been riding upwind and in lighter wind on performance foil kites for a decade and a half. Foil kite leaders are pushing refinements (and they are great) and big brands are still following. The real foil kite innovation is riders' acceptance.

https://flysurfer.com/fs-brand-story/