Can anyone give a full review on the 2011 Nomad 11m?
Have they sorted out the issues from last year ie: bottom end?

One of the local guys here just got one,(11m) mainly for unhooked riding,he likes it but it is still seriously lacking in low end.

A problem with low end is easy to sort out, just get the next size up or a bigger board, i don't think they are meant to be compared with the switchblade for grunt they are two completely different kites mabe being more c shaped you are going to need a 3 kite quiver to get that sweet spot feel every time you go out.

The problem comes down to kite design. If you want a lot of low end, its difficult to make it fast turning and the same the other way around. You'll find kites like the Furia (very fast turning) also lacked low end so its not specific to Cabrinha.

anything to report on the switchy '11??
whats changed from the '10??

'10's are out there going cheap... could be a good pickup if there is minimal difference, and you dont care what the 'trend police' and 'look what iv got club' think.

They must be grunty one of our local riders that is over 100kg is ridding a 10m and 7m with boots in conditions 15-35kts.

I have never had a problem with the low end on my 2010 Nomads, you just need to know how to kite to use them, they don't wipe your ass for you like a lot of the kites these days.

Yeah close waxy but I am riding an 11m and a 7m. I wouldn't say they are hellishly
grunty but similar to last year, I can ride the 11m from about 16 knots on my 135 Lunacy. I find them to have better feel through the bar, probably because of the single attachment on the outside lines rather than a pulley, but in no way are they heavy like some have claimed. The biggest reason I went smaller is because I hardly rode my 14m last year but could have gone down from my 10m on numerous occasions, and I still have my 18m torch3 if I am desperate :)

I'm guessing from the shape that the nomad is a little less 'c' like than say a hifi comp or torch or c4. How does it go unhooked compared to these others? I want something significantly more 'c' than my waroos but still get sucked in by all the talk of wind range depower and relaunch haha. so yeah I'm wondering if it unhooks better, gives good slack in the lines etc better than 08 09 waroos? not wanting to hijack benchy's thread but thought it better to ask here than start another nomad thread. In the end i don't mind sacrificing bottom end for a kite that's going to be good unhooked.

no probs smedg i am also interested

Unhooked wave riding is great, but if you want a kite for unhooking allround then get a switchblade or c kite

I see the switchy is marketed as wake style but I thought generally c kites were better for that and the nomad is somewhat more c shaped than the switchblade. I don't get the whole 'surf kite' label. It confuses me. I think i prefer c kite characteristics in the surf anyway eg fast turning.

Is the nomad meant to be a good surf kite because it floats back or turns fast or what?

Also, the switchblade hype says ultra light bar pressure.. When comparing the 09 and 10 with my waroos, the switchies have seemed to pull like trucks and have much heavier bar pressure.

Seems weird that paul1 and Cabrinha kinda suggest a switchy or c kite to suit my wants (ie better for unhooking and more c like than a waroo) but in my mind a switchy is nothing like a c kite.

Appreciate any help to understand.

Not too clear what type of unhooking you are after. Switchblade is great for unhooking wakestyle as it is a dull as a bag of dog sh1t when you unhook, you always know where it is gonna sit, however, it is not great for unhooking for wave riding as it is reasonably slow to turn and does not drift down wind very well at all. If you are purely looking to wave ride unhooked then the Nomad, RPM, Bandit and all the other delta and more c shaped kites will be much better for your needs. Some C kites are aimed more at uhooked freestyle/wakestyle like the Fuel,Torch and vegas but will still work reasonably well in the waves.

Just ordered some naish park's in should have them next week supposed to be a great unhooked kite will let you know what we think of them after a couple of rides,reviews so far look good.

cheers paul1 That's exactly the explanation i was after. Yeah, C is gunna suit me best i think. I want that moment of slack in the lines you get that you never get good from the likes of a switchy.

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Paul1 said...

Not too clear what type of unhooking you are after. Switchblade is great for unhooking wakestyle as it is a dull as a bag of dog sh1t when you unhook, you always know where it is gonna sit, however, it is not great for unhooking for wave riding as it is reasonably slow to turn and does not drift down wind very well at all. If you are purely looking to wave ride unhooked then the Nomad, RPM, Bandit and all the other delta and more c shaped kites will be much better for your needs. Some C kites are aimed more at uhooked freestyle/wakestyle like the Fuel,Torch and vegas but will still work reasonably well in the waves.

Where would the 2009 x-Bow fit into this line up? Just want to compare to what I am riding now.