I've been reading through this site for a few days to help with the purchase of my first kiteboard, and I then I thought I'd look up my kite, only to find it's not listed. So, I thought I'd remedy that.
I picked up this kite in Poole last summer on a whim, having left my old kite back in London; whilst I forget the name of the shop, I fear they undercharged me massively, since I walked away having paid only £19.95. Had I known at the time, I would have said something, but I was upgrading from a completely battered old Lynx Mercury 130 cx, which I'd restitched a few times thanks to never-ended crashes by friends, causing the main strut to poke through the material. A bit of old denim sewn onto the top extends the life by a good 6 months, in case you're interested.
So, I unpacked it with some trepidation, and tried to work out what the pictures meant, and how to lash the lines to the kite. Eventually, my girlfriend, being a sailor, took pity on me, glanced at the instructions, and knotted them up fine. I get it now, but I guess I can't follow instructions too well. Not a big deal, though. It takes me about 2 minutes from getting to a good spot to flying time.
It's got 2 strings, and no struts. As mentioned elsewhere, it packs up into a teeny little bag, which you can attach to your belt. My friends with Flexifoils are always jealous when we pack up. but I digress.
We headed down to the beach and launched it for the first time, and it immediately ran into the powerzone. I was amazed at the pull on it, having only flown little stunt kites previously. It was great. I was being gently pulled along the beach in the middle of the powerzone in quite low winds. We spent about an hour just mucking around.
It's very responsive - quick and nimble in the air, much more so than other foil kites I've flown. With a little practice, it will turn on a sixpence. I've yet to manage to self launch it, though.
I've got a friend who lives near Burrough Hill, in Leicestershire, and we took it up there one weekend. The wind was very strong, and as soon as I'd launched it, I was dragged face- first for about 50 yards, before letting go of one string, and then spent the next 40 mins trying to untangle the lines. Oh well. So, if you're in any doubt about the pull on it, don't be.
Having spent more time flying other kites (mostly flexifoil, all 2 lines, though) the one thing I'd say is that the power comes on very fast. Out of the power zone, it's like a little puppy, but as soon as you cross that line, it bites and bites hard. There's no gentle easing in.
Summary
It's a fun kite, easy to pack up, and with enough pull to put a smile on face every time I use it. So far, it's dragged me, my girlfriend and a friend along the floor, and I've managed to get a little air off it (I weigh 80kg/12.5stone), so there's no problem with power if you need it.
I've just bought a Kheo Air Flyer, and I'm sure it will be adequate for powering that. It arrives tomorrow, so I'll send you an update after the easter weekend.
By : Chewy
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