As I’ve mentioned I love my Ozone Light XC’s but they and my average joes weight do not equal a good time in 10-14knots of wind, so what options do I have;

1. Bigger kite… old big kites are slow lumbering beasts which are no fun so it would have to be a 14 or 16m modern kite such as the amazingly grunty Ocean Rodeo Rise.
2. Genuine skimboard… as my strapless skills are now pretty competent this seems like a great idea.  Only problem is the durability of a real skimboard which are built using the same epoxy covered foam core as surfboards.  Absolutely fine if your local is a lovely sandy beach but how would it cope with a pebbly one?  Would one impact break or hole the board?
3. Kite specific skimboard… whilst they share a similar shape to a genuine skimboard there construction is that of a twintip making them very robust.  But they will not have the float or be so much fun in the surf.

Aghhh, which option is the right one.

The more I fly this kite the more I absolutely love it… bar one thing. It has a fairly average low end, now I know that some fanbois are claiming how grunty and great the low end is but seriously!!! 85kgs and on a nice 135×40 board I require around 18knots to get up and riding. Less on a skim/surfboard obviously.

Blue sky’s, bright sun, warm waters and 27knot constant wind equals GREAT TIME!!!

Sorry for the long delay in completing the second part of my review on the 12m Ozone Light XC, I’ve had the kite now since they were first released in the UK receiving mine at the end of February (4 months ago now).

The 2009 Ozone bar and lines can only be described as nice, there is nothing wrong with them but everything is right with them.  4 straight, one piece 25m lines making the setup incredibly quick.  A pet hate of mine is when manufacturers provide a 21m lines with 4m extensions, whenever i’ve had these in the past the lines always seem to get knotted and my setup time is unnecessarily extended.  A lot of folks will say they like the idea of the extensions as it allows them to tailor the line length to suit the conditions… my response is that whilst theoretically nice 98% of flyers will never ever ever utilise this ability.

Once in the air the first thing I noticed was the light bar pressure, coming from C-kites I was used to really feeling the kite through the bar so this change has taken a while to get used to.  Once attained however I found myself flying upwind and generally being a lot more powered up than originally thought.  The 12m delivers power akin to other 12m bow/sle’s and is I similar to a 10m Bandit Dos but is just as quick in the turn.

A really nice feature of the kite is that when you need to pull in on the bar the canopy slightly flutters notifying you of the fact, for a beginner this will save many a kite just falling from the sky.

Stability of this kite can not be understated, its the most stable kite I have ever encountered except for a Peter Lynn Venom 2 I used to own.  This is the first non-C kite I have encountered with which you can sit the kite above your head, let go of the bar and it will just sit there for an age before slowly moving to one side of the window.  There is no quick fall from the sky, it just sits there   Fantastic.  This kite never misbehaves or at least has not for me.  Because of the incredible light weight and the balanced distribution of this across the wing should the wind drop to next to nothing the kite does not hindenberg as most (all?) others do, this kite floats down to earth.  Its only when its dropped over 1/2 way to the ground/sea that it starts to tip over onto its leading edge.

De-power is large enough through just the throw on the bar, the distance of the throw is comfortable and at no point are your hands stretched way out in front of you.  I’ve only needed to use the de-power strap when it was blowing 25knots gusting 27knots and I wanted to feel a little bit more comfortable.  What needs to be mentioned is the smooth nature of the de-power, it provides a silky smooth power tap which is in stark contrast to the behaviour of many kites on the market.

Jumping… well not much to say really other than when you pop you go up and float…. its not a huge float but very respectable nonetheless.  Certainly its favourable compared to the vast majority of riders and will more than meet their requirements.  I’ve lost count of the number of Fuel riders I see all attempting to be another Len10, only problem is they are not… and it would not matter whether they were flying Fuels or a beginner kite… they just will never get the HUGE JUMPS.

Wave riding is where I feel this kite excels; its quick turning and through the window, grunty when required and due to its light weight has a fantastic drift ability for when you are chasing the kite downwind on the wave.

Not much else to say about this kite other than try one, and if you can not try one then just buy one for you will not be disappointed.  Its the perfect kite for beginners and intermediates but is also essential for all wave riders.  For the price you will not find a better kite on the market, its on a par with those that retail at twice its price so go grab yourself a bargain and possibly one of the best kept secrets in the kite surfing world.

Daffyduck on a dirty weekend calls reception and asks for a condom.

The receptionist says, “shall I I put them on your bill?

Daffy replies…..
        “Don’t be thucking thtupid I’d thufficate”

Browsing through the Independent on Sunday last weekend (14th June 2009) I came across a brief news snippet describing how a lady who had missed the doomed Air France flight had died soon afterwards in a car crash.

The article itself goes on about the usage of the word ‘doomed’ for air accidents, what intrigued me most was the implication that when our time is up it really is up.  Whatever reprieve we get through chance is only temporary.

Perhaps the creator’s of those ‘Final Destination’ films were really on to something.

Over the last year I have witnessed several near-serious incidents both as an unwilling participant and also as a by-stander.  All of these incidents have taken place after a front line flag out system has been deployed, all of which have resulted in the kite still spinning and generating force dragging the attached person along.. with varying degrees of speed.

“So what… just release the secondary!!!” I hear you cry.  Alas on each occasion there were innocent members of the public down wind enjoying the day their way; walking the dog, out the with kids etc.  To release the kite completely would have put them in danger, acceptable only if you are about to enter in to a genuine life-death situation.

All cases, that I’ve come across, of front line safety systems putting the rider at risk result from the kite being at the upper limit of its wind range.  Whereas 5th line or these new mini-5th line systems always seem to be safe through a kites wind range.

As it so happen’s I’ve recently changed my kites from 5th line models to front line flag out, so far no issues but then again I know never to take them out when I should be on a smaller model.

Firstly this is not a post about how great the Flysurfer 19m SA is, I’m sure its a fantastic kite which will get any sized rider up and planning in the kind of breeze emitted by the rear end of a gnat….

BUT its also really really really bloody expensive and hence not a realistic option for 99% of kiters.  So this will be last mention of the SA!

What has sparked off this search?  I’ve discovered that whilst Ozone Light XCs are amazing kites with an impressive (understatement) high end my 12m does not have sufficient grunt for a person of my stature in less than 18 mph winds.  A recent outing with crew highlighted this, my new name is Billy (no mates) sat on the beach watching others on their 15/16m kites have fun in 14 to 17 mph winds.  Whilst the tan was a nice bonus it didn’t make up for the lack of a session.

Not being blessed with copious amounts of spare money (or a reach set of parents) my search was restricted to older kite models.  A short list was quickly made;

• Cabrinha Contra 17m (2007 bow)
• Slingshot Turbo Diesal 14m (either the 1st or 2nd edition)
• Big ass C kite like an F-One Rival 16m (2007)

Looking at the usual sites to try and source one of these was not successful, ebay was full of apparent good older kites but which were being priced ridiculously high.  The depressing thing was that some poor noob to the sport will undoudtedly pay these asking prices due to ignorance.

As I was about to accept defeat it was suggested that I look at Ocean Rodeo kites, specifically 14m or 16m Rise models.  Googling this resulted in lots of rave reviews being found but isn’t that always the case… sports magazines are particularly guilty of this.  And would you believe it that a 2007 16m Rise is now in the post for a trial.  I can not wait to try it out, if the reviews are right then this kite really will be the light wind answer (on a budget).  If not then its back to the drawing board.

For the kite geeks amongst us this 2007 Rise is apparently fitted with the 2008 bridle which supposedly reduces the bar pressure.

The Bag

First thing you encounter is the bag… or rather bag within a bag.  Firstly there is the waterproofed top drawstring opening outer bag which is fitted with backpack straps, the material used appears to be pretty tough and certainly up for the job.  Attached to the inside of this bag is a sleeve to hold the bar and lines together with a velcro strip to which is attached the repair kit.

The inner bag is a stuff sack for the kite itself which you then place within the outer bag.  Both the outer and inner bags are more than large enough to comfortably hold the 12m kite with loads of room left.  Not sure if it would hold the kite with the struts inflated but with only three struts the light xc is one of the fastest kites to pack down.

Repair pack contains a host of extras that would expect with an Ozone kite, more than enough to cover most small accidents asides from bladder explosions, major rips etc.

The Bar

This year there is only a single bar size which works with all 2009 Ozone Instinct models, a very welcome development which saves the consumer money and saves setup time when changing between kite sizes.

Another big change this year is that the bar system features a through the bar spinning safety system.  The bar has a metal insert through which the safety and load bearing line runs hopefully reducing the wear that these lines encounter.

For user comfort the bar has a nice soft comfortable grip and the width of the bar tapers in towards the bar ends.  The chicken loop is the Ozone megaton version which features a very easy to use release mechanism.

Bar end line tidier’s are well thought out, they are made of elastic material but reside within the actual bar ends rather than just being loose.  No more annoyance of them getting in the way when winding the lines up or finding out that they have been caught in the lines as you were winding them up.  Great idea, thumbs up to Ozone for this innovation.

The Lines

Ozone lines have, by some, been given bad press in the past.  Having owned North, Ozone, Flexifoil and Ocean Rodeo kites with their respective bar+lines I can only say that Ozone lines are good.  The only lines which *may* be better are from North but this impression may only be because the line material used by the two companies have a different weave/appearance.  The front lines used by Ozone are upgraded quality also with a huge weight rating 500kg whilst the steering lines retain 300kg rating.  This may not seem a lot but the norm used by the likes of North are 270kg… make your own conclusions on whether this is something for you to consider.

The Kite

When first unpacking the kite the most notable thing is the absence of weight, I can not stress enough how little this kite weighs.  The materials used in this kites construction are top notch, nothing seems to be skimped on, scuff pads and reinforcement where necessary.  There is no one-pump on this kite but with only three struts its not missed and could be a blessing as it will make replacing bladders so much simpler.

Note to Ozone, the only improvement to the construction would be moving the dump valve from the centre of the kite to one of the edges thereby making pack down easier.

The kites shape I would class as an SLE, a simple bridle without pulley’s is present but its so small compared to many bridles used by other manufacturers.  Very clean lines throughout the kites canopy, very thin struts and a thin leading edge tube.

Connecting the bar lines to the kite’s bridle connections is easy with colour coding, line numbering and kook proof connectors all being present.  With only 4 lines the time taken to lay them out and get ready to launch has gotten faster and faster.

next part is the ride