Has anybody had a chance to have a go on this kite? Looks really interesting!

http://www.cabrinhakites.com/kite/apollo.html

Yes mate, I had a go on the 10m about 2 weeks ago,,,it was only a short 45min ride so,,,just my thoughts so far...

Brief: I ride Ozone Edge's, usually with 136 tt, 92 kegs and into freeride/boosting/loops and tweeked out transitions.

I rode it back to back with my 11m edge in 22-25knts flatwater,,,so I could spot the differences...

It seemed to fly pretty quick through the window and kiteloops were no problem,,,it also trucks upwind nicely, but not as good as the edge.
Boosting was very good and hangtime was ok, buuuutt,,,I always get pillow soft landings with the edge everytime,,,and felt the apollo just didn't do this as well (may be due to kite size). Bar pressure was ok, but not as light as the edge. This is important for me as I like to have long sessions without the tennis elbow giving
grief. The 2017 bar is neat and clean with the ATB cleat trim system, just found the ribbed grip a bit harsh on soft hands,,,again the soft neoprene grip on the Ozones is better for extended sessions IMO.

Overall I was pretty impressed....would I trade my edges for apollo's?

No, but definitely worth demoing

Cheers

If you have a kite with a really large projected area ( like the apollo...because its bloody flat out like a lizard with no legs) it will display characteristics such as powerful for its size (10m is like an 11 tripe) that trade off is thst it wont loop well ( kites with a small projected area like c kites loop better because whilst looping the wings have more air passing over the canopy) why anyone would believe a flat kite loops well can only be explained because they used ANOTHER FLAT KITE like the edge and then compared it to that.

This is important when considering a kite as distinct as the apollo.

For those who have not seen one in the flesh they really are FLAT like you know how a kite looks after draping a harneas over the center strut to stop it flying away on the sand flat flat. Like a chrono or r1 flat like a gymnists chest flat. Thats okay. The gymnast wouldnt be able to do what she could do if she had a big set of lungs on her.

The apollo behaves exactly how a kite shaped like the apollo should behave. It is a very fast and forgiving kite. The sort of forgivness you would only apreciate in a race or rideing over rolling waves. If you edge to far upwind your kite looses power and speed and inertia. Given the dynamics of the apollo you get a very nice long suttle warning of this fact. And due to this something like crossing deep rolling waves becomes easier.

It is this atribute that has made foil boards stand out from the rest in a race scenario.

Combining the two is sure to turn a few heads this season and it is because of that I believe the apollo was made the way she is. Itty bitty tittys and all.

I also threw a few unhooked tricks in and it behaved much as one would expect. It was not to bad. Certaintly not designed for it tho. And that transpires into its loopability.

So if your looking at a cheaper easier way to get into rideing foilboards on a smaller sized kite as opposed to a 18m chrono and the like then a 10m apollo on a more windy day might just be for you. Or you know... a bit of island hopping.

It has its purpose.

Its just not a mainstream one and shouldnt be compared to as such.