Hello,

Here's my problem.
This year I want to replace my 'old' kites. X2 16 and 12 and ARX 7.5. I weight about 67 kg and riding a jaime pro 128. I'll keep the board I'm very happy with it...


I'm kiting for 4 years now. Level is ok but not a pro: no new school kiting, just 'jump as high as I can' and a little bit of wave riding.
But this year i would like to try the 'new school style'.

I've been reading review and I'm hesitating between the torch2 and tribal.

I know the best answer is: just test them, but over here at the moment this is not an option: water temp is 3°C and air about 2°C.
I'm planning a trip to egypt at the end of march. So I'd like to have my gear before that trip.

With my old gear I started kiting around 8 knots, 'till 28 knots. I'm looking for the same wind range.

1. What kite to choose, and why
2. what sizes to choose. (torch 16+12+8) (tribal 15+11 or 15+9 ?)


Hope somebody can help ...

happy kiting to all !

Nayy

67kg in small and should get you going in your wind range with a 13 Tribal. That makes the gap to 9m easier and the quiver better matched.

A 9 tribal is your best chance of seeing 28kts, and the 15 will be easy for you in 8kts.

But if comparing 3 naishs why not 3 F-ones and go 8, 11, 15m Tribals
then we would be all envyous.

best winds
Tony L

Thanks for the suggestion, but 8m is too small.
Not enough wind to use that kite often over here. (especially with the good depower range)

So for a 2 kite quiver would you suggest:

15-11
15-9 (or is the gap too big over here?)
13-9

happy kiting to all !

nayy

From what ive seen from the impacts which look similar to the tribal , expect a 13 impact to get you going in the same winds you would normally be on a 15+ kite, hence they only go to a 13 m size
the 9 would definately hold onto 28 kts with ease, an 11 meter would be very very powered to unhook in at 28 kts, I use the 13/9 combo and it works fine at around 20kts swap over

last question:
Is the low-end of a tribal 13 comparable with the low end of my 'old'X2 16m², or will I lose a bit.
(must admit I never kited with more recent kites than my X2's)

thanks,

Yann

A mate of mine has a Tribal 13. It has massive depower compared to the Torch. He seems to get out most days. I think the Tribal would be the most versatile kite out of the 2.

You'll need a 15 tribal to get the same power as your X2 16M. The depower system of the 15 is capable of losing power in the kite, to use the 15 like a 13 tribal at full strenght, but you can all ways buy an 11 tribal as well and thats all the kites you will ever need,unless you like 30 knots plus which i believe doesn't happen very much at all,when it does its a pretty sketchy wind.
Say 13 to 30 knots on two kites and still be comfortable,not even i would of believed that a year ago.

13-30 on one kite 13m tribal is da bom hard work on 13 over 30kn tho

Lets bring this back into perspective here.
I ride both 06 Torches and F1 Impacts but have ridden Tribals in a few sizes.

First the wind range.
At 8 knots you are more likely to get going on a 16m Torch than the 15 Tribal. To cover the rest of the wind range though you will need two more Torches, where with the Tribals you will get away with 2 kites if you have to.

You want to try "new school kiting"
Both of these kites are quite capable at this. I would say the Torch is better at this style as it sits a little deeper and seems to offer that power for pop style tricks. The feedback through the bar is very good too. The Tribal jumps better, goes upwind better and has a better wind range though.

Wave riding
They both excell in waves but for different reasons.
The Tribal offers that instant depower through the bar which allows you to kill the power once you are on the wave in a similar way to a Flat kite.
The Torch is quite happy flying backwards so wont complain when you stall the kite when going down the line.

As for your Tribal size dillema-
13m + 9m= Good size choice for wave riding and unhooked riding. Remember when you unhook the kite will power up. Also it is easier to do if your not holding too much kite. The downside is you will need over 10knt

15m + 9m= This will cover the widest windrange and there is enough overlap to make it work. The downside is that the most common wind you will be going out in wont be ideal for either size.

15m + 11m= This will also cover your wind range. I have ridden my 11m to 35knt at 86kg so I would envisage you holding it to the high 20knts at least. The downside is it wont really be suitable for unhooking in those winds.

hello to all,

Thanks for the suggestions

I Went for the tribal 13 and 9.

Only flew them once on the beach (too cold for water-fun overhere)
With 17 knots no problem to stand on the beach-comfortable. The jumps seems realy huge and hang-time also seems very good. Kite looks very stable.
I also pumped my X2 12m² to compare, with the kite depowered i could not stand still on the beach.
air temperature was only 2°C, so kite pulls a lot harder than with 'normal' kite temperatures.

leaving tomorrow for a kite trip, i'll report how it was later, and if I did the good choices.

happy kiting,

nayy