Hi Peeps,
Well, it's all over for another year, the Action Sports WA annual demo trip to Sunny Exmouth was a hit. Every year around mid September the crew from Action Sports (Myself, Toddy and this year Wendy), close the store for a week and pack the Sprinter van to the gunwales with all the latest 2017 toys from our suppliers and set the compass to the North West, more specifically, Yardie Homestead wilderness camping park with some of our team riders (Tony, Rob, and Kingy. Dave absent this year due to OS holiday)
We had a quick sleep on Friday night after work, and set off at midnight that same night. After a pretty quick 13 hr drive with only fuel stops, we arrived at around 1:30pm on Saturday ready for our first session. We had good swell and 20+ knots of warm wind. This was the session to set the tempo for the next week. We basically had a falling swell which tapered down to small by the last day and wind no less than 20 knots and mostly between 20-25+ knots all afternoon every day.
For all of us Team ASWA and our Shop team riders, we were all decidedly far from match fitness and all of us were so sore the first three days that sleep was difficult due to sore muscles and worn out bodies. We did 4 days in the surf at Graveyards amongst the mating turtles and one full day in the buttery flat stuff at Sandy Bay in the Cape Range National Park.
We all had copious amounts of time on all of the new gear in different combinations flat water with freestyle gear and freeride kites, surf kites with twin tips and surfboards on freestyle kites and everything in between. This year was the best test session we have managed with perfect wind conditions to put all of the gear through a rigorous testing.
Instead of writing an in depth review on every piece of gear this year, I will be happy to write a review of whichever piece of equipment the breezers suggest. I will also ask the ASWA team to contribute their comments if they wish to add their own perspective.
The Testers: DM 95kg- Advanced freerider/wave/intermediate freestyle and boosting, Toddy 95kg- Advanced freeride/intermediate waves/boosting, Tony ~80kg-advanced freeride/boosting, Rob ~85kg- Advanced freeride/intermediate freestyle/wave/looping expert, Kingy ~90kg?- Advanced freeride/boosting and Wendelien ~52kg - Advanced freeride/beginner to intermediate looping/waves and freestyle. I hope I have done everyone justice. They are all very competent riders who would represent 80% of the total community in terms of Kite surfing progression and maybe a bit higher in terms of kite and board skills.
So stoked with the trip this year we actually came home a day early as we were developing sea ulcers, sunburn and exhaustion from too much kiting as well as the final day was going to be light winds and no surf.
We didn't test anything bigger than an 11m from memory and spent the greater majority of time on 7's with a smaller amount of time on 10's and 9's also. Smallest kite flown was Wendy on a 3.5m Best Kahoona on the windiest day. We will add some pictures once Toddy has a chance as he was also our dedicated Photog.
The gear taken up was as follows, please request a review of any of the items below:
Kites
North Rebel, North Dice, North Neo and North Mono. Also took the North "Click Bars" for a proper demo
Core XR4, Core Session and Core Free. A total of 22 kites in various sizes.
Boards
North X-Ride, North Jaime Textreme, North Select, Core Fusion 2 and LW, North Whip, North Pro Surf, North Pro CSC, North WAM and North Nugget. More than 10 boards were tested.
DM.
... yes please, can you do a review of Rebel and Neo plus Nugget,,,,,, Rebel vs Neo would be cool too!
cheers,
Robbie :)
I am struggling to contain my jealousy 
Can you please do a review of North mono, core free and core section- not heard a lot about these kites 
You asked... :) Any chance of a caparison between the Neo and Section?
It would be great hearing from riders who have rode them back to back and how they stack up.
ask toddy what he thinks of the new rebel, thats all I want to know, compared to last year. Dazza did you get out on the 7m in crazy winds again?
6 days and counting...gonna be a long fckn week!!! 
actually wouldn't mind hearing about the neo as well please.
Oh oh and did You get anytime with the clicker bar, what Yput guys think?
Hi Peeps,
Thanks for the interest. I think I'll leave the Rebel review to Toddy as he and Tony are the Rebel devotee's. I'm a bit more at home on the Neo and the Core kites although I did enjoy the Rebel and Dice and was quite pleasantly surprised by the North Mono, but that's a review for another post. 
I'll give a quick run down on the North Neo vs the Core Section. Neo vs Rebel etc is a completely different kettle of fish as you're comparing apples to oranges.
The North Neo is one of those kites that has been evolving over the years but more recently for the last 3 years or so when North made a concerted effort to put the Neo firmly in the wave riding camp. There have been small tweaks to the Neo over previous years offerings and if you owned last years, you won't find a massive difference in this kite, just like you won't find massive differences in any long established successful kites. Like the old saying says, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." There are small changes in panel layout and number to give a smoother flight and more efficient profile.
The Neo is quite unique in the world of wave kites where most offerings from other companies are quite gutless by comparison This includes the Core Section. The Neo is a very powerful little kite and as far as waves go, is the only wave kite that works really well with twin tips as well as surfboard riders. Bigger riders already know too well that the only kite for waves if you are over 90 kilo's is the Neo. A heavy rider on a Section or Reo or whatever, will need to ride one or two meters larger kite to get the same power as lighter riders. This is significant when you need a quick kite in the cross onshore conditions we get in most wave spots in the world.
The other great thing about a Neo is that if you are a beginner or a freerider and want a punchy kite that can boost really good jumps with some hangtime or want to learn kitesurfing, then the aspects of a wave kite design work well here too. Powerful, very forgiving, easy and quick re-launch and the ability to slow it down or speed it up by virtue of the adjustments on the short bridles makes this one of the only wave kites with enough versatility to make it appealing to more than just wave riders on surfboards.
My impression of the Neo is that the power is a bit more exponential in terms of amount of power as you sheet in. It starts quite soft and progressive in the first part of the sheet range and gets more powerful than expected in the last few inches.
The Core Section is more of a classic wave kite for surfboard riders needing a really quick kite. I'd say the Section is one of the most agile and responsive kites in the wave kite arena. It's really quick in the turns and has power similar to the Reo so big guys are going to need a slightly bigger size than someone on a Neo. Kite drift with slack lines is similar in both kites and I had the opportunity to slack line both kites, they both drift nicely until there is tension again.
I think the North Neo worked best for me when on a click bar as I had the ability to quickly drop 2-4cm of depower as I was dropping in on the wave and the speed was building apparent wind power when I didn't need it. Click, Click! The conditions were gusty and the wave break I was on did have a fair amount of water moving over it which changed apparent power in different sections of the wave.
Both kites were responsive, both kites were structurally very sound even in gusty conditions, and both worked well in the waves (as they should). The biggest difference for me is the Section isn't going to boost you on a twin tip without resorting to a much bigger kite so it's a bit one dimensional like many other wave kites, they lack the grunt to easily boost over a large close out set where Neo will give you the power to get out of the way with simply sheeting in the bar.
The Core Section builds apparent wind power similar to the Ozone Reo and some may prefer this to the moe grunty Neo. Style and body weight will determine which suits best. With me being ~96kg, the Neo is way more versatile because I could ride a Nugget, then switch to a Pro Surf and then go boosting on a twin tip all on the same kite. If it came to purely waves, both the Neo and Section were excellent and didn't take a lot of adjusting to get used to the differences, (which were mainly power). Like I said, "click, click" and that problem is solved.
The Bar on the Core is a little more agricultural compared with the fancy schmancy North bar (especially the click bar) but some like a minimalist concept so it works for them. Personally, I'd ride the click bar with the Core and have the best of both worlds.
I actually prefer the inflation system on the Core kite as it is a very large port with no techy bits, just plug in and pump with ease and no remembering to close off the additional dump valve on the left wing tip when inflating. I am an unabashed fan of both kites but prefer the North 2017 click bar.
Of course we only offer our own feeling on these kites and I hope I have inspired you to maybe request a demo if you are interested.
DM
For you Eppo,
The North 2017 Click Bar was one of the highlights of our demo as it really divided everyone in the group in their opinions prior to test. Toddy was anti click bar, or should I say to be fair, he was anti price tag vs function. Tony, Rob and Kingy were sceptical, I think Wendelien was enthusiastic towards it, being the lightest rider with the shortest arms, and I was pro click bar (being a techy guy who has a heart in engineering).
We brought four click bars to the demo and set two up as 5th lines for use on the Rebels and two as quad for the Dice, Mono and Neo. Having played around with it in the shop beforehand, I was pretty well versed in it's function and was keen to try it. Now, to be clear, this did not make me a better kiter, I didn't jump higher, nor turn quicker, I didn't suddenly start landing kite loops blind, nor did it help me get shacked in the green room. But ....
The basis for the Click bar is the ability to adjust the trim of the kite from the bar without stretching out and reaching for the trim toggle when you are overpowered and it absolutely does this and does allow you to hold your line without adjusting your posture or stance, so I guess it will perhaps improve your kiting in some ways. I, being 6'3" tall and having a positive ape index of 2cm (my span is 2cm wider than my height), was never concerned about reaching the above the bar trim system in the first place, but for Wendelien, this was a massive saviour.
As a wave rider on the face of a large swell as it starts to jack and you go flying down the face preparing for a bottom turn with building apparent wind, I can tell you that the absolutely simple and precise method of accurately trimming the kite out by 2cm increments with the touch of a button whilst lining up the first bottom turn IS a revelation!
I only really made one or two adjustments to the trim whilst riding so it's not a game changer like that. It is however VERY nice to never have to worry about untwisting your lines after multiple kite loops down the wave, or heaps of back rolls on only one tack. The bar sorts its out every time, without you ever worrying about it again. The lack of three lines going through the bar in favour of a single plastic/rubbery depower piece is aesthetically very pleasing. The lack of dangly trim in your face is also very pleasing and the simple bar ends and integrated floats also looks very pleasing. The safety system still works perfectly and you get an additional "Oh ****" handle for the 5th line lovers on top of the front line flagging.
As I said, for me, there weren't any massive game changing improvements that the bar offered, but after having flown a few kites with the click bar, and then unpacking a smaller kite with the new 2017 Trust bar, I can tell you, I didn't want to use the trust bar. I did use the Trust bar in that instance because the other bars were being used, but I was much happier back on the new click bar the next day, and I'm not even in the demographic where the bar will make a massive difference.
I'll let the other testers put in their feelings on the Click Bar. These have been mine. Do I think the added cost is worth it? Absolutely and if you can't afford one, I strongly suggest you DO NOT demo one as stepping back to the old bar, leaves you a little flat and wanting more. It really does do everything the designer and manufacturer say it does and with ease. Even flushing the bar out after use is simple and effective.
Please drop into our store for a demo if interested.
DM
For Youngbreezy,
I had hoped someone would ask about these three kites as they haven't had much press to date. I have spoken about the Core Section in the previous reply so will focus on the other two for you.
The Core Free is the latest freeride kite from Core. As many of you are aware, I am a bit of a Core fan having loved the original GT, GTS and XR4. We received the Free kites in sizes 7m and 9m late at the end of the last season. We were looking for some better conditions to test them in rather than the gusty and punchy winter squalls. So here we were with our not so new kites with 20-25 knots of wind teasing us.
TBH the Free's sat in their bags as everyone clambered for their favourite North kites, and it was only when Wendelien brought the kites out on the beach on the flat water day at Sandy Bay, that the kites got a good solid run. Actually, getting Wendelien to come in from her testing of the kites was a very long wait as she toook to them like a duck to water and was throwing some really nice double back rolls and boosting nice jumps all over the place.
The Core Free didn't turn out to be the kite I was guessing it would be. I guess I was hoping it would tip it's hat firmly in recognition of the power of the old original GT in terms of power, but it didn't, which in reflection, is probably a good thing as they were grunty as hell but very heavy to steer and maintain bar pressure.
The new Core Free was a lovely, well balanced kite with reasonable power, probably on par with most brands kites, but what it did offer to me was a very linear and progressive bar pressure and power. The bar throw was so smooth and power delivery was so predictable and linear that it made the kite really easy to use. The turning was quick and somewhere between pivotal and radial and it's speed wand control was excellent. Jumping was dead easy and it looped with moderate power.
I rode it with settings on medium pressure and medium responsiveness and it was really nice to fly. Stability was in line with other Core kites in that it was something you could absolutely take to the bank and rely on. I didn't test relaunch but I'm guessing the delta ish shape would lend itself to simple relaunch by just turning the bar. If you let the bar go, the kite pretty much fluttered down to the edge of the wind window and sat securely.
This kite sits squarely between the GTS and XR ranges in terms of "C" vs Open span, vs Delta vs square tips. As a wave rider, it will work fine, but doesn't have quite the duration of drift of the Section with the less surface area of the wingtips allowing it to dip towards the water once the power was released a little sooner than the squared wingtips of the Section.
Boost is good but not as good as XR, but turning is quick and nimble but not as good as the Section. Looping is good, but not as good as the GTS. So what is it good for? Basically, everything! The Core Free does everything really well but not as well as it's more specialized brother and sister kites. It's my opinion that the Core Free would make one of the very best kites to learn the sport of Kitesurfing, as it isn't going to hold you back in any area. Simple to use, fun to fly, and super versatile for beginners all the way up to advanced freeriders. It's a much better all rounder than the original and more powerful GT, but won't pull your arms out, and has a much better bar feedback than it's long bridled predecessor.
I'm sure dedicated booster, wave rider and freestylers will prefer a more specialized kite, but the other 80% of riders will love it!
DM
Also for you Youngbreezy,
The North Mono. This is one of those kites where you kind of look at it and go, "One strut eh? Ha, gimmicky learner kite". I too was a bit guilty of this despite trying to keep an open mind throughout all the testing as you never know with a new kite and can be surprised if you have preconceived ideas.
The poor old North Mono sat patiently in it's pack and never uttered a word of protest as the testers clamboured to reach over it in favour of the Rebel's, Dice, Neo's and other more well known and favoured models. Well, to tell you the truth, perhaps it was just me as I think i was the only one who hadn't ridden the Mono to date. Doh! (I hate being the last in one the secret) Perhaps a little arrogance or a slight superiority complex had put me off bothering to even try the Mono as I wanted to ride the more prestigious models and consider myself a fairly advanced rider. What could a single strut kite possible offer an advanced rider?
It was the last day of testing and I had to do it, I just had to try the North Mono to have a valid opinion, this is why I haven't ventured a single word before now. I'd rather have no opinion than a misinformed one. So it was that I grabbed the 9m Mono and pumped it up. I almost laughed at the (Multi Mono inflation system). Seriously? It pumped up quickly and had a slightly larger diameter leading edge than the others. I was expecting a low aspect simple kite similar to what Airush had experimented with many years ago but was quite surprised when the kite was fully inflated and sat on the sand in front of me.
As soon as the kite was launched and went up overhead, I was a bit stunned at the high aspect ratio shape of the kite. It had the plan shape of a performance kite with only a single strut in the middle. I jumped on the surfboard and with a quick dive took off. Power was good and we started shooting upwind immediately. With tension on the bar, the canopy was absolutely beautifully smooth and had the most perfect looking shape to the foil despite the absence of the two wingtip struts.
I did note a little back stalling at full power, but as Toddy reminded me, we were flying this kite on an old bar and lines so that may have accounted for the 3 or so cm of trim I needed to set it right. Once the trim was adjusted, the Mono 9m flew no differently to any other multi strut kite when powering upwind. It turned just like any other kite but did flutter in the trailing edge a little more than normal if you allowed the bar right out. By keeping the bar with a little tension, this was significantly reduced to be in line with most other three strut kites.
The turning was a little more pivotal as it appeared to be a cross between the higher aspect of a Dice with the open shape of the Rebel. The Mono drifted well and was more than responsive enough for wave riding. I'd love to have a crack at the 7m for wave riding as the 9m was typical of a 9m on a cross onshore wave and not as fast as a 7m. Derrr!
So where does this kite fit into the picture? It's a great freeride kite which works well with a surfboard or twin tip. If you were looking at traveling, then look no further, the ability to fly in light wind, and weighing less than a 3 or 5 strut kite, makes it a perfect traveling companion. Pop it into a crush bag and leave the full bag behind for the ultimate in lightweight surf and freeride kites that the airlines will appreciate. It will make a fantastic beginner kite as it's so forgiving but advanced enough to offer more to the intermediate rider. The down side? It's wind range but I am being quite harsh here. Of course with less struts, the canopy will get a bit fluttery when over powered and at the top end of it's wind range but as far as I have tested, this is it's only noticeable difference. It would still hold the same range as a normal strutted kite, but will make more noise and be a bit less efficient when really overpowered.
We are using these kites in our school this year and reckon we will have the greatest progression our school has ever seen. These kites are also cheaper. A surprisingly, bloody good kite, but you need to cast your preconceived ideas aside and make sure that after lunch you have a little room left for a few slices of humble pie if you think you know this kite before you try it.
As always, we have a demo in three sizes in store all season long.
DM
dewwwwd
what a review!
comprehensive and interesting
a very easy read
cheers mate :)
ps i'm a neo, drifter, pivot guy on surfboards, with the odd ozone kite...
Ta dazza.
As i suspected the ability to quantifiabley adjust incremental trim in the surf, especially on a SB is the clicker bars forte.
Interesting perspective On the mono.
Well explained, and thorough as usual. Cheers.
I'm interested in the rebel review thanks toddy. . . . I'm also awaiting for the shop review slander as usual. . . . It's taking its time. . . . . . ??
Thanks action sports its good to hear about those kites, I was mostly just curious having not heard much about them.
Your reviews are great very well detailed and fair not super pumped up and over hyped, good work
Hi Jamee,
We will have Evo's coming in our second order, due around November/December. By all accounts, the Evo has become quite a good kite. We haven't stocked them for a couple of years but are looking forward to seeing them back in the shop. Will happily review them when they turn up.
DM
Hi Snalberski,
We are looking at maybe running a trip for punters next year. Hit us up around August next year.
DM
Keen to hear your thoughts on this years whip and pro csc - perhaps a comparison?
So the button depowers and the winder re-powers? Thats amazing i thought it was the other way around.
Sorry guys, Toddy and I have both written replies about various items, but interruptions in store and work distractions often sees them accidentally closed or deleted before they get published. Will have another crack at it Tuesday when it should be quieter.
Thanks so much for your continued interest.
DM
Is that core valve new this year? I cant believe how fast it pumps up and how much easier it is to pump.
Select to expand quoteAKSonline said..
Sorry guys, Toddy and I have both written replies about various items, but interruptions in store and work distractions often sees them accidentally closed or deleted before they get published. Will have another crack at it Tuesday when it should be quieter.
Thanks so much for your continued interest.
DM
Write them in word first and save as you go.
I'm impressed, the old ozones aren't too bad, but even the new slingshots have the ancient ball valve with the tiny inlet.
I could pump up an XR4 10m quicker than a brand new fuel 7m.
For many people this isn't important, but I finish work at around 5:30-6pm in summer and like to kite after work on most weekdays.
Every extra minute of kiting is gold to me.
all of the gear we mentioned here, plus some more is available to demo at any time.
Come grab the gear and share your opinion rather than just waiting for us shop guys to give our mostly unbiased reviews.
Toddy
Select to expand quoteActionSportsWA said..
all of the gear we mentioned here, plus some more is available to demo at any time.
Come grab the gear and share your opinion rather than just waiting for us shop guys to give our mostly unbiased reviews.
Toddy
The 10sqm XR4 isn't available this afternoon! I HAVE IT! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOST!!!!
See you in orbit suckers.
Select to expand quoteAKSonline said..
Sorry guys, Toddy and I have both written replies about various items, but interruptions in store and work distractions often sees them accidentally closed or deleted before they get published. Will have another crack at it Tuesday when it should be quieter.
Thanks so much for your continued interest.
DM
... so, is the Rebel and Nugget review coming or not???? Maybe its a case of "if you don't have anything good to say then don't say it at all",,,,,, or maybe their so good their too busy selling????
Just wondering is all.
Anyone else have any experiences on the Rebel or Nugget?
Robbie 
