Hey guys I'm just getting introduced to the sport and getting my first kiy together. The guys at action sports balcatta have recommended that i get an 11m neo north.. was just wondering what some more experienced people think of it..
Im 83kg.
Any advice would be great.
Will be learining out at pinnaroo, and hopefully working my way up to city beach once i get the hang of it..
Cheers,
Dan.

..... Just not sure why 11m??? At your weight and a twin tip to start I would have gone a 10m kite..., I'm your weight and I did, 10m is plenty of kite and with more range in higher winds. Having said that I'm not overly familiar with north kites, and the guys down there know their stuff.

You'll progress to a 2 kite quiver maybe 3
Dice, neo around 10
Rebel 10 Evo 10
You may have to sit out the odd day up and down in winds
These guys have been in the game since the word go, so there well respected in their advice and recommendations, an 8 will be your next purchase then as the season filters off you'll be throthing and get a 17
Start working on some bullshidtz excuses now though as you'll need them down pat for explaining to the missus about those mysterious credit card debits

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marno said...
..... Just not sure why 11m??? At your weight and a twin tip to start I would have gone a 10m kite..., I'm your weight and I did, 10m is plenty of kite and with more range in higher winds. Having said that I'm not overly familiar with north kites, and the guys down there know their stuff.

Maybe the kite choice was a decision not size
The neo would be a better choice in it's upper range than say the dice and from what I've seen a better option in it's bottom end , if the bloke and shop had it's way his windrange would be covered with a 3 kite quiver , not everyone is blessed with a big wad of cash to get them into the sport , this IMHO is where it would get sticky on size recommendations

Hey Dan,

welcome to kiting! The Neo is a grunty kite, I dropped down a kite size when I started riding Neos. With a serious sea breeze you will probably be a bit overpowered on an 11. But it is hard to know what the season is going to do this year.

also, if you are just getting into kiting (and I would hate to take a sale from Action, I've bought all my gear there) have a think about a) doing your lessons before you buy any gear, you'll get a better feel of what you need after a few sessions and b) buy secondhand and then upgrade once you are confident in your kiting ability. you will be very sad if you trash your brand new baby while learning, and you may find after a few months that what you have is not quite what you wanted.

... Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the Neo more of a dedicated wave kite, hence its upwind capabilities will be somewhat compromised?? When learning, particularly st pinaroo to start with, the primary objective is to hold ground and stay upwind. Free ride kites are generally good for this, but surf kites that sit deeper in the window are much tougher to stay upwind on as a beginner... Br interested in other comments on this, and once again the guys at Action know their stuff and are good blokes so....

Not witnessed any upwind dramas with the neo,
As outline and shape goes it's surprising it's a wave kite, sheeted in they can be quite grunty as per say a wave kite goes, which IMO isn't a bad mix for a power hungry beginner,

I just bought a 2015 Neo 9mtr and I'm a 75kg beginner. I used it during lessons and really liked it. A lot of kite schools are using them so I'll take that as a vote of confidence in them for beginners.
Hope to get it delivered this weekend and have a crack in safety bay if the wind is up.

Cheers Joe

it is an amazing kite. I have 12, 9 and 7. If you are not going to be kite surfing waves there are other kites that will do the same at a better price. When you are learning
you will crash the kite many times. It is best to buy used

You will need a kite the relaunch very easy (NEO does it amazing)
That will take you upwind (NEO does it amazing)
About the size it depends of the winds speed at your beach.
When kiting you need at least 2 kites because the wind speeds are different everyday.
You don't want to make the mistake of flying the kite on strong winds because you have only one kite.
The wind would not kill you but the object you are going to crash into may do it.



cheers

Jose

Thanks very much for all your advice guys.. i would really like to get the 10m neo but they have none in stock. I'll go back in and see them today and see if they can order one in.
Cheers

I would say 10 meters too.. In fact I demoed a Neo 2016 9m and it was enough for my 82kgs... dont go 11 for sure.. will be big too soon.

Cheers.

10 or 11 same same IMO

Start with the 11 if they are cutting you a deal on it, it will be easy to fly and will get you out in most lightish days (which you want to be targeting for a start)

Once you get skills up and are amping to go out in 25+ buy an 8m

Two kites should be plenty, suggest you leave some change to play around with different boards. If it's not windy enough for the 11 - yawn. If it's too windy for the 8 (not that often), wait it out.

p.s. I think the Neo is targeted at waves - I flew a mates 9m, it was easy to fly, smooth, pivot style turns ok for jumps. You could also scout for a second hand Evo (easier relaunch loftier jumps) e.g. 10m

just be aware of the wind speeds... I have seen accidents on Melville because someone got out there when wind speed is too strong for a 12, other than that.. enjoy :)

Hi Peeps,

Just saw this post. Yes, we were out of Neo 10m kites at the time. We would ordinarily have suggested a 10m kite. The 10m Neo works really well as a single kite quiver as most winds are 15-25 however, as everyone who has been kiting more than a year will know, no one can get away with a one kite quiver. When shooting for the middle of the wind range it makes it awkward when buying your second kite. Do you do bigger? Do you go smaller? To get the right spread you'd then need a 13m for lighter winds, and a 7m for strong winds. That's a 3 kite quiver.

As explained to the customer, the season is highly likely to be past the peak in terms of wind strength. We should see a few more strong days if this trough ever moves away, but then Feb is notoriously lighter, and March and April are definitely in decline to end the season by end of April. The new season also starts light and ramps up from September until November when the customer will need an 8m.

In our opinion, beginners like a bit of extra grunt to help them get up and running and he should be covered for the tail end of this season and the start of the next season. This was all explained at time of sale. An 11m Neo has a range of 12 to 24 knots, we felt in the absence on a 10m, this was the best choice for a 2 kite quiver setup. He was told about sitting out the windy days until he has an 8m Neo to back it up for windy days.

Thanks to everyone for the props. The customer came in and bought the 11m kite, I am confident he will love the kite and that it will do everything he wants and much more.

DM

I've been using an 11m 2015 Neo for the last two seasons and love it. It is easily the most used kite out of my three. The best tip I can give you is play with the sheet settings - I found the kite is versatile and has a great wind range if you do this. I'm 86kgs and go out in 18kts - high 20's (probably not recommended if you a starting out).

Good choice of kite. Hope you enjoy it.