For those that don't know me I'm a 65kg kite boarder from perth and have been riding a 12m sandgroper kite for about the past six weeks... and I'm Impressed! With a medium AR the kite is an all-rounder, and I've found I can ride it in most conditions perth offers (from about 15 knots up to roughly 23).

The feature I noticed about the kite is its leading edge (very large). The extra time spent inflating is well worth the effort though, cause the kite keeps great shape in the sky and barely ever luffs. Whenever I did manage to luff it though, it was actually really easy to relaunch; again probably due to the LE holding the kite's shape. Another point worth noting about the kite is the flush mounted struts, which further help keep the kite's shape resulting with ultra-responsive, smooth turning.

I found that I could fly this kite in much higher winds than my old type 4 rrd could handle, but when it came to the lighter winds, the 'planing limit' pretty much remained the same (15 knots). I believe this larger wind range is due to the way the kite behaves in higher winds, spilling air out the side to keep you in control. I reckon this is particularly helpful for river kiters (or at least the lucky bay crew), who are constantly negotiating gusts. Like many other recent kite designs this kite also moves toward the front of the window when gusts hit, again resulting in a smoother ride.

The materials are the highest quality (LE and struts are Dacron), and I
honestly cant tell the difference between the sandgroper and some of the current brand name kites. I reckon I'm pretty rough on my gear, and the kites still looking the same as when I got it which is pretty good for me. All the seems are visible, but that's cool cause it stops wear, meaning the kites going to last longer. That's what these guys are about- quality and durability without huge logos and international teamriders boosting up the price.

I would recommend this kite mostly to people in the learning and intermediate kiting stages (easy to keep under control, easy re-launch),but also maybe to those looking to go back to a lower aspect kite to aid in moves such as board-offs, etc. In fact, anyone who wants a quality kite but doesn't want to go without food for 2 months in order to pay for it. What's more, to the best of my knowledge, this is WA's first and only kite company so I reckon we should all get behind it! I know you can get them from SOS so next time you're in take a look.