Well, unfortunately there wasn’t enough wind for my big ass (6’4, 215lbs)to ride a 12m ONE, but I got some footage none the less.
As far as a review goes, I’m an OR dealer, and haven’t ridden any other “bow / SLE” kites yet, so let’s just call this my “impression”.
The wind was a frustrating 12 to 15 knots, fairly steady, but not even enough to keep me up wind on my 17m SS Fuel. But as the guys at OR put a bar together by hand for me to take on this trip, I had to get a ride, upwind or not. I am an intermediate level rider.
I am really impressed with the simplicity of the OR bar, nothing complicated or confusing here, just nice and clean.
The kite itself was put together with usual OR quality, especially nice were the recessed scuff guards. I was impressed with the ease of launch, due to the depower capabilities inherent in this design. Also the lack of bar pressure, which I’ve read is an issue on some of the bow / SLE kites.
Turning was sweet, can’t describe it any other way, smooth, quick, powerfull. The Punch Out design on this bar is my favourite, seems very functional, easy to reset after use and once again… simple.
I will stress that this was my first time flying the kite, and it does take some getting used to.
I’ll try to put together a better review this week sometime, but for now just watch the video….
Cheers,
Jeff
