Plummet said..
So... did you get of the need for a fast turn kite for light wind eppo? or is the 2013 zep significantly faster than previous years?
ps i'm cooking a roast dinner tonight. Time for you to change out another kite or board.
No the fast turning of the 14m cat I will miss. But their is always a compromise. It just so happened my younger brother needed a bigger kite and he has just learned to plain and was looking, so was an easier decision.
Riding the cat I came to some conclusions.
One I am addicted to an efficient foil that develops apparent wind and the speed that it affords. Cats not designed for this. Above 25 knots I want something less efficient. Yes it does turn faster than previous years but more than that the new zephyr has enough edge in it without being a race kite, to satisfy my edge addiction.
Two the freestyle tricks I planned to move into are beyond my body now and I have a very bad wrenched now( which when I did it I really did think the worse, that popping sound and feel on your knee is never a good thing) to prove that.
Three it pissed me off everytime I was on the cat my brother was riding alongside me, 8kg heavier and on a smaller mako on his 11m edge!
But they are designed for different things.
Plus I'm moving forceably into the zen phase of kiting you have described in other posts plummet.
Now steady on with the roast dinner thing, I swapped out my 11 and 9m edge for a 10m (10m were not around when I got them), chucked an 8m cat at the top end for obvious reasons and I didn't buy the cat, my wife did unbeknown to me.
I always intended to choose between the two and hadnt made the decision by then. I wanted another zephyr session to make sure.
No the zephyr this year is really an exceptional kite and one I can't see many changes to next year. The cat though I would offer some suggestions although who knows which way they will go. Riders are loving the new cat. Me I think it has too much obvious grunt and has lost too much of that refined ozone feel.
But saying that I'm coming from a pure freeride perspective. For those wanting to venture into freestyle for the first time it is near on perfect!
Personally if they leave the cat where it is and I have said this before, I would strongly suggest a zephyr in smaller sizes to satisfy the ever growing freeride market. The edge can be to race orientated for some, the cat is to grunty now to obvious now for experienced free riders , the C4 has gone real C like, they need that slightly lower aspect freeride kite that gives some more latitude in the surf, even some unhooked..but again that's from where I stand. They would know which market needs what kite.
Oh yeh last point...also come to the conclusion don't farq about between 10 and 17 knots with 12 and 14m kites, just get a 17 unless you are under 70!
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