If the cuben is as good as they tell us, best could do little inflatable ones, which just connect to the main strut for inflation, no extra valves, no extra packup hassles etc... only thing is, is cuben as good(read stiff) as they tell us.

Will the battens make as much of a difference as would seam logical? I doubt it, we will soon see i guess...

Will they make the kite more likely to be damaged in a LE down crash, bet your sweet ass they will.

The best thing about the Battens, the crowbow style and the Hellfish/cuben material is that it did appear as tho Kitesurfing LEI kite development had reached a level where gains would be minimal from year to year... But the first company to get a mix of all these new things together in the right amounts is going to have a sweet kite, not saying any of the new kites coming out aren't good... but second half 2006 to 2007 is going to really be a time where new models will be something special - i believe...

Good times ahead for tech heads... I'll be buying cheap kites till they all get the new technology bedded down properly...

Incidently, in the past I had commended best for their exclusive deal with cuben, now I hate it... if Cabrinha, North had the material as well, we'd be getting the best from it and these new concepts alot sooner i believe...

yes all these interesting fandangalery
remember gaastra brought out the batten bout 2 years ago...
also slingy hav the battens but at the other end of the kite???
aparently they have a new kite out that uses these battens for normal size kites instead of just the laarge ones.
hmm, all these new things to increase performance but make kiting tricky.....
i remember windsurfing and the battens wearing and popping thru to the mast, that succed....
bring on simplicity i say.
still i am open to seeing these ideas...

burger you're a funny man!

I heard that North have also bought a license from Bruno, and will be producing a wide span kite?
I wonder about the necessity of the mini battens, and also the wear and tear issues?
Imagine a wave damaged kite, how much more complex and expensive will the repairs be?
I heard Naish bought a license too, along with several other companies, hmmmm?
Maybe the new style of kite is the holy grail in terms of performance, safety and easy realunch all in one package we have all been looking for?
Sounds like they would be awesome for schools?

Cya and

Goodwinds

Steve McCormack

Hey Wave, I rode my 12m X-Bow today and it seems to be exactly what the wavos have been looking for. Similar strategy to RRD kite that is successful in waves. You want power and depower on demand I believe.

I love my kite

quote:

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Originally posted by waveslave

Steve said;
"Sounds like they would be awesome for schools".

New school or Old school?
'slave


RayQ said;
"I believe in simplicity"

Yeah, I agree, keep it simple..........
But the big boys like to tech it up cause they gotta make a buck hey.
Regards

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G'day Waveslave
Forgive my ignorance, who is RayQ?

I meant begginer learning to kite school.

Its not all, and always, about bucks, but even you have to make some $$$$ to pay for your internet access, at least?

From what I have seen of both of the new wide span kites, they are fairly simple anyway.

Cya and

Goodwinds

Steve McCormack

Oh, its good to save paper

Maybe with battens and cross bridles and stuff?? Gets ugly fast though that way.
From what I can see Bruno has executed the idea very simply actually, and the kite actually does change AOA much more than C shaped kites, which tend to flair more than tilt.
Then there is the huge increase in projected area, which means your kite is actually physically smaller, less mass, less inertia, more responsive.
And then there is the safety.
And no swim relaunch.
No bar and line tangles.
This could be a big thing, as big as C shaped ever was I suspect.
Can't wait to fly one!
Not sure about the limited riding style, thats not what a lost of people who have ridden it are saying, but it does seem like it will be very good in waves.

Cya and

Goodwinds

Steve McCormack