Type 9, Helix and Atom 08 demo

I've been a bit slack posting my updates here, to time to catch up. A few weeks ago I was able to try the 9m RRD Type 9, a 9m Naish Helix and a 12m Flexifoil Atom 08 back to back. Thanks to SOS for providing the demo kite. The wind was blowing NNW about 20-25kts so we took the kites down to Woodmans Point to kite on the middle bay.

I've tried the Type 9 before, so I started with the pink Helix. The first thing I noticed was that the bar was a bit cluttered. This is because it supports a 2:1 setup and it has extra dangly bits for the depower. I've ridden GK Sonics so I've always been used a very clean simple bar. Also the donkey dick didnt seem like it was long enough. A saw someone else post this on the seabreeze forums.

I didn't fly the Helix for that long so I wont say too much about it. It did seem quite steady in the sky and was comfortable to fly. It had a good feel when moving the kite through the window doing transitions and downlooping. I was getting some pretty good boost and float from my jumps. I didnt really try any tricks the time I was on it, just a couple front/back rolls. I would have liked a more direct, responsive feel in the bar, like how the Type 9 is.

Next I jumped on the Type 9 again, and felt straight at home. The wind picked up a little bit and I was getting some pretty big jumps. Because you can fly it across the window so fast, it gives you a real good initial pop up. I find with the Type 9 you really have to crank the bar hard when jumping else it will start pulling you off your edge before you pop off. I feel real comfortable doing kiteloops on this kite and landed a few good powered loops, and had a couple nice stacks.

I rode the Type 9 for most of the session, and later tried the 12m Atom that was there too. It felt the most similar to my 07 GK Sonic, which is not surprising as it looks quite similar with the direct back line attachments and minimal bridal. I had fun cruising and boosting on that.