North are obviously going through somewhat of an identity crisis right now, because this week they released a strange but entertaining video clip singing the praises of 5 lines kites, namely their Rebel and Vegas models.

But they make 4 line kites? They’re actually one of the few companies left that make a freeride kite with 5 lines (there’s several with freestyle C kites with 5 lines) in a world where simplicity is key and nobody wants to jump off a bandwagon.

So why the sudden push for 5 line? Maybe North made to many Rebels this year or maybe their Evo is just too good on 4 lines, although after watching this video, it doesn’t exactly sell their 4 line models. It’s all a little confusing, so we put together this list of generally accepted pros and cons to four, and five line kites.

Which camp are you from? We think it doesn’t really matter, as long as you know how your safety system works, and are prepared to use it without thinking twice!

5 Line Kites (North Rebel, Naish Torch, Best GP, Airush Razor etc)

Pros:
-Very effective safety system, which inverts the kite on activation and allows it to settle in the water on its back.
-No bridle on the leading edge, keeps things simple because there’s usually no pulleys either.
-Can be used to relaunch kite without swimming towards it with C kite models.

Cons:
-More lines on the bar to get tangled during setup
-By the nature of 5 line models, they don’t tend to relaunch well due to being higher aspect.
-The bow-tie conundrum, where the kite inverts, and the 5th line ties itself around the middle of the kite. (Pretty rare)


4 Line Kites ( Cabrinha Switchblade, Best TS, North Evo, Naish Park etc)

Pros
-Simple setup, only 4 lines to get tangled
-LE can be smaller due to requiring a bridle to support it at several points.
-Kites using a single front line safety still have full depower when quick release activated.
-Having a bridle helps relaunch in some cases


Cons
-Dual front line safeties take a little while to depower, and in some cases don’t really work.
-Bridles have pulleys, and pulleys tend to be a weak point
-Some say the extra drag near the kite (caused by the bridle) impacts negatively on upwind performance.

Check out the video from North below if you’re interested, but demo your kites before you buy them, and learn how your own safety system wojavascript:void(0);rks before listening to brands promo videos!

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