Hi

I have questions all around the distance required to reach to depower bow kites. I am also keen to know which kites are widely accepted as the easiest to develop on?

Got a Naish Cult 10.5. I weigh around 75kg, and ride an old Cabrinha board (long/narrow) in Perth.

The Cult is OK for low wind days, but anything a little over the sweet spot becomes very difficult due to the reach required to depower. Has anyone else experienced this problem with this kite or other kites? I ultimately end up in the 'poo stance' to try to depower without letting go of the bar. It's really hard to hold an edge due to reaching forward to attempt to depower, and if I let go of the bar, I have a hell of a time trying to retrieve it. All this in 20 knts...

Obviously the season is now over, but in preparation for next season, I would love to know which kites are able to depower without having to reach over 1 metre out from the chicken loop.

Cheers

Thanks FlyingCab. Even with the depower trim all the way in, once I lett go of the bar it is almost imposible to reach it again. Really would prefer to be able to reach the bar after letting go of it.

i'm not all that familiar with 1:1 or 2:1 bar set up, but I wonder if that, or changing to the smart loop, would result in the chicken loop lines being shorter?

Any suggestions on the next kite/lines i should invest in would also be appreciated.

I have had one of those bars before. yes it has a huge throw.
if you want to keep the bar, you will need to get a sliding stopper to stop the bar going all the way up.
to manage it in the mean time just grab half way up the depower line and pull the bar towards you until you can reach it.

1jmo said..
Thanks FlyingCab. Even with the depower trim all the way in, once I lett go of the bar it is almost imposible to reach it again. Really would prefer to be able to reach the bar after letting go of it.

i'm not all that familiar with 1:1 or 2:1 bar set up, but I wonder if that, or changing to the smart loop, would result in the chicken loop lines being shorter?

Any suggestions on the next kite/lines i should invest in would also be appreciated.

Do you have a stopper ball on your de-power line? Slide that down if you do. Or you can shorten your chicken loop to bring the bar closer to you. The third option would to buy a nappy. Also straighten your back when riding and when u happen to let go of the bar simply lean forward to grab the bar. I just thought of a last option and that is to cut your de-power line down say 10cm and add 10cm pig tails to both your middle lines, this would give you less bar through but at least you can reach your bar. If you don't mind looking like a complete foot on the water just tie a " bar leash" to your bar and simply pull the leash in when you let it go! Problem solved.
Above i have listed many ways to help solve your issue.

regards Rob.

1jmo said..
Cheers for the suggestion Rob, will try to lower the harness and see if that helps.

Kitcho207, happy you can relate to my problem. I Will have a hunt around for a stopper. Surely though there is someway of reducing the length of the chicken line? what do other brands of kite do?

What kites do you fly now?

Many thanks

*EDIT* Not happy that you experienced the same problem, btw! Cause that would be

I was using that bar on an Ozone C4 and at the time I was doing my first kite loops. It was good for that and saved my kites a few times with the huge bar throw.
But it was a bit of a pain re grabbing the bar after you let go. It's just a case of grabbing the line under the bar and pulling it all towards you. it is not very hard because the kite is basically flagged out to the front lines, so has no power in it.

I think the best bet for you is a new bar.
Also get another kiter to have a quick ride of your kite and see how they tune it. They might put it on different knots.


now I have;

9m Slingshot RPM
12m Core GTS2
14m slingshot RPM

now I have;

9m Slingshot RPM
12m Core GTS2
14m slingshot RPM

I keep my quivers to the same model of kite.
I used to have 5 sessions in a row and never use the same kite and it gets frustrating adjusting your riding style to get the most out of each kite.
now with 1 model I can keep my style consistent and have progressed much faster.

Very interested to see your kite quivers, thanks for sharing. I didn't realise that 2m's here and 2m's there made quite such a big difference and hence the need to purchase so many kites. I suppose as a relative newbie, seeing the kite brands flogging the fact that their kites can fly in anything from 2 to 32 seems a little ambitious - Perhaps not for seasoned veterans. Guessing that window would expand as you progress and learn to hold an edge in stronger conditions..

Investigating 8 m - 7 m kites for next season.

Yep, around 3m is a good starting point up to 12m then could jump to a modern 17m as they are comfortable up to 20kn (depending on your weight)9,12,17 would be a great starting quiver. that coupled with 2 boards - normal board and a light wind board should see you out in almost all conditions above 10kn
the harder the tricks you are trying like looping and unhooking, the closer to the ideal size kite you want to be so people go to 2m.

i changed quivers to rpm's because my ozone kites had very different flying characteristics. plus edges are not fun to learn kiteloops and unhooking. they can spank you hard
ALSO
the C4 11m didnt start getting fun until around 25kn
then i tried the 9m rpm in 20kn and it was good. Usually ride it through winter up to high 30's and been through 42kn squalls with it without looking for the safety.
yep they can have a massive wind range. but that comes down to skill level. light wind kiting is a skill in itself, then good technique and posture is the key to holding down more power when the wind really picks up.
so was an easy decision to change. C4 was a bit more fun though in the right conditions.
the 14m starts to get over powered around 24kn but with my light wind board im easily kiting the same conditions as zephyrs.

Really appreciate the comments/feedback.

Need to have a long examination of my bar set up. Although it is 2008, and pre 'flip/flop' bar ends and the like, there may be knots that can be shortened somewhere. I presume if I shorten the back lines, then really the front lines should be shortened to the same extent, otherwise depower will be negatively impacted.

I assume by shortening all four knots, the depower toggles will be brought closer in to the chicken loop and so less throw?

It seems videos for this vintage of bar are few and far between.

Managed to get out on Satdy in around 18 knot winds, was glorious! Tried keeping the waist harness down low, almost at nappy level!... Noticed that it does come up quite high at times. Maybe the harness is a tad too big...? Even with the harness low however, the throw is longer than my arms with the depower toggle all the way in...(front lines shortened)

Really like the look of the North Rebel. Thinking an 8 Metre rebel might be the next kite on the shopping list for the high wind days.. that, a book on tying knots, and a stopper ball.