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Product Review | Core Riot XR2 Air Padre has reviewed this amazing kite and Dubbed it LEGIT
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← 2013 Slingshot Kites Available
August 2012
I've now spent about 5 hours personally flying this kite and have used it in 3 separate lessons with students just trying to get up on a board. To quickly sum everything up, I am really pleased and impressed with this kite.
When you get the kite you'll get a really good and usable bag. I know that isn't a critical issue but it shows that Core was thinking of you when they decided on the bag size. Some manufacturers give you a really small bag and trying to stuff a 17m kite can be a hassle. Not so with this bag, it has sufficient space and a good wrap around zipper.
Okay lets blow this thing up. Yes it's a one-pump but again Core was thinking of the end user. It has a wide mouth opening that can be used with any kite pump. Instead of loading your tiny little nozzle you just do not use a nozzle at all and the hose just connects via the hoses quick release. The LE and struts are smaller than average so the kite blows up fairly quickly.
At first glance the bridles seem really long but then again it is a 17m kite with a long LE, so it is what it is. The Core Sensor Control Bar features a 2line safety (flag out) system and the bridles work great with that system. I tried flagging the kite using the 2 line system and it behaved perfectly. I also used a 1 line (flying line) flagging system with another bar and the kite is a bit to haul in but it never looped off the water like some kites do. I really prefered the Core bar matched up with this kite.
Before even riding I put the kite through some paces. I crashed it quite a few times in around 10 mph winds to check out the relaunch. Without even touching the bar the kite would roll around and then set itself back up for a relaunch at the edge of the window. I did this quite a few times and it always behaved the same. So it's a very easy kite to re-launch. In actuality it was a hard kite to even crash. It does not fall out of the sky to easily. I ran underneath it a few times and it seemed to just hover and then slowly go back into the window and recover itself around noon. I had a few students use it and there were many times that I was sure the kite was going to hindenburg, but no it just kind of floated back and hung out. I was amazed at how well the kite saved our sessions.
As for turning it is still a 17 but you really do not notice it to much. If you jump from a 12m to this kite then of course you'll notice it is slower but I would put it very near most 14m kites these days for turning speeds. It loops very easily too.
Just handling the kite getting to the water is very easy. The kite is very stable at the edge of the window when you are putting your board on. You do not really feel like you are on a 17m kite until you take that first dive. The kite then powers up really smoothly and you are off to the races. They call it a light wind kite but I would love to try it with a race board because you can tell it would love to get some speed going. Bar pressure is just a bit near medium, not to light but not to heavy either. The Core bar did not have a stopper ball and I wish it did but even after 2 hours of riding without one my arms were still comfortable. I've had 2 students on 3 hour classes with the kite and they never complained about the bar pressure.
Are there any negatives....? Just one to speak off. I tried a drift launch and dipped the LE in the water to help keep it down as it drifted away. I does this with most kites. As the kite drifts away it gets to the end of the lines and I spin it around and the canopy catches the wind and it usually dumps the water. This kites canopy held the water and that might just be because it is a 17m kite and I hadn't doen this on a kite that size but it was a pain to rotate the kite enough by pulling on lines to get it to fully open. Once it did it just rolled over the edge and I was off.
Overall I was very happy with this kite and I never thought that I would want a 17m kite but I would be glad to own this kite any day. So if you are looking for a good light wind kite I would not hesitate to put this kite at the top of the list!!!
Joel
We are going to keep up with reviewing products, that we provide, to help you find which product is right for you. Only our very favorite products will be recieving our Air Padre LEGIT Stamp.
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2012 Core Kiteboarding XR2
2012 Core Kiteboarding XR2 LW
2012 Core Sensor Control Bar
