Hi kite-foilers,

My now 52-year-old knees regularly complain after kiting on either my twin tip, skim or surfboard on Botany Bay's chop or in the waves. Am 6'5", 100kg and have been kiting weekends for 12 years.

Nobody asked me to write this review... I just want to share / give back to my fellow Seabreezers on some niche kit that they may not have considered. I wasn't sure which section to post this in... Kitesurfing Gear Review or Kitesurfing Foiling.

Thankfully this knee issue drove me to kite foiling a 1140cm2 surf-foil (now dated Liquid Force Impulse on a 90cm alloy mast) with ambitions to one day start prone foil-surf or downwind foiling. My light wind kite gear is gathering dust... Airush Sector board, 12m Flysurfer twin-skin foil kite, etc...

I have been pairing this latest favorite foil-board with an 8m 3-strut inflatable Liquid Force Envy kite from 2015. It has been great, except for its poor drift/heavy weight when heading downwind through jibes or moving from wind to chop/wave power.

For 4 years I have followed the now 291 page "Flysurfer Peak 4" thread on Kiteforum... in summary, the Peak single skin is light, drifts better than an inflatable, but relaunch is not guaranteed. Explaining self-rescues to either my wife or the Police is never a good idea... nowadays everybody strolling around Botany Bay is armed with a mobile phone and apparently swimming in Botany Bay warrants an emergency call and the Police meet you on the shoreline.

Other potential solutions I have considered include:
- small dual-skin foil kites;
- expensive inflatables made from Dacron alternatives (Alula ornon-branded Dyneema? or Spectra?);
- single or no strut inflatable kites; or
- hybrid single/double-skin foil kites.

The last alternative was chosen when Flysurfer launched their new Hybrid product at AWSI's trade show at Hood River, Oregon last October. I bought a 4m Marabou v2 from the WA based distributor, Derek, and have had 3 successful sessions. I chose the Gin kite over Flysurfer's because:
- it was a 2nd version of their 2019 v1;
- forum opinions from Flysurfer Peak riders weren't flocking to the new Flysurfer Hybrid;
- after watching some YouTube videos, the Marabou looked better to me, with less flapping and a higher aspect shape; and
- have always wanted to buy a Swiss-designed product (after enjoying my Swatch watch in the 80's!)

What I like about my latest kite-kit purchase:
- it was easy to buy new and cheaper than all but the Flysurfer Peak alternative (that I had to rule out due to its water-relaunch issues);
- drifts like crazy. This has to be the closest thing to foil-surfing without a hand-wing or motor;
- is fun to fly and relaunches with ease. It is fast, accelerates, loops without a yank, pirouettes, holds its shape and points well;
- gusts don't impact your ride. This leads me to guess that the wind range for this kite is large (like my Flysurfer Speed);
- Gin has been in paragliding for ages. I presume that their materials and construction are top-grade, durable and high-performance;
- self-launch and landing is easy on our local sandy beaches; and
- simple graphics in nice colours and a well thought out bag with a pocket for your attached bar.

Potential future reservations:
- what will I do when there are shells, dry-seaweed or flood-flotsam on the beach?
- will the maze of bridals stretch or need maintenance in the future?
- when V3 is released, how will I sell this kite on Seabreeze when there is no "Buy & Sell > Kitesurfing > Kites > Gin" section?

Learnings from my first 3 sessions over the last week:
- all the negative issues when foiling with my smallest 3-strut inflatable have been solved;
- foiling just got easier in large ocean swells filled with whitecaps;
- you will be more upright over your foil and pump through your legs more;
- it is best paired with a large surf-foil... not a small <900cm2 kitefoil;
- I won't be using this kite with a surfboard, Twin Tip or skimboard as it doesn't have enough power or yank for my 100kg weight;
- leave the bar attached to the kite and setup is faster than the inflatable alternative;
- I took off my 3m line-extensions, left my bar on its longer 56cm setting and figure that my front lines are substantially longer than my back lines (resulting in a couple of surprising unintentional kite pirouettes).

Cheers,
Nathan

Thanks Pat and my pleasure.

To date I have only taken my 4m out in 20+ knots. I reckon if the Seabreeze wind arrows are green, with no yellow or brown... it'll be the 4m for me at 100kg and big surf-foil.

My presumption is that the 6m would be like my 10m inflatable and get me going in no whitecap conditions. Derek is 115kg and shared some footage.

ginkitesaustralia.com.au is the online shop@ginkitesaustralia on insta or Derek Voller on facebook messenger or call/text 0466 384 689

let us know what you think if you get to do a demo