Are they serious?

But wow ! What a kite !

Suppose they have to sacrifice long term reliability for performance, will be interesting to see how thin the bridle and lines are.

I understand you Husa. It's getting ridiculous. Soon it will be comparing dick sizes at the pub afterwards.

So.... At the Rangarok snow kite race this year. Last years chrono won by a non sponsered rider then followed by the flysurfer sonic.

Where was the R1?

If it surpases all foils thus far surely it would win such a prestigious race?

Ahhh,,, Marketing hype that's what it is. Every years its the same. This years kite is soooo much better than last years. The reality is that its maybe slightly better.

Anyway.

To obtain high performance they need light weight, they must sacrifice strength to obtain that. If it as stronger it would be heavier and less performance.

There are other kites to fly if you want strength/durability over performance.

Stating bridle change at 60 hours is at least letting customers know in advance what to expect. Also the 60 hr mark will have a safety factor built in as well. If you are non racing and its not critical you could probably push replacement out longer. Or replace when they look worn after visual inspection.

Ozone is de best.

No need to justify Steve, we all know ozone are ahead of the game...

2 strokes are quite cheap to rebuild and race.

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Kamikuza said..
But you gotta do it all the time! whichnwas my point.

Be be interesting to see how much a bridLe is going to cost...

But how long before you replace bridle lines on a speed 3/4? I would do mine every year approx.

I do 100 sessions per year ave about 2hrs a session spread over 5 kites. So.... 20 sessions per kite..... 40 hours to replace bridles on my speed.

It seems about right to me. Its just that someone has published a replacement interval

Red thumbs from... Ozone retailers?

Yup, spare parts lines get replaced randomly, probably once a year on the 21 which gets used the most. I think the others have had it once each. Bridle lines get replaced if they break, but I've never replaced the whole lot - that's madness!

Especially when you can stretch them back into shape...

From one of the main designers at Ozone, overnight.

"Using proven Chrono technology means that we have been using design technologies in the R1 that we have also been using in the Chrono. Speedsystem and bridle lines must be replaced every 60h to ensure the kite remains factory trim. Bridle lines do stretch/ shrink unevenly and if you want to have the max performance from your R1 you should replace them regularly. Just as you do on any race machine you have to replace/ change things. Thats what we recommend off course… "

So its about winning and max performance, not that the actual bridles wear out. Every foil kite bridles need to be inspected regularly, and riders at the top level will be able to tell if their bridles need replacing. Remember this is a race kite, not for freestyle, not in the same market as the FS speed series kites, not even close.

Chrono2 will compete directly with the FS speed series kites and is being built to be more durable and to be more for hooked in freeride kiting.

Need to compare apples with apples here to be fair to all concerned.
The gap between everyday free-ride and high-end race is getting bigger and bigger.
Its getting super competitive at the world series level, top riders like Johnny, Nico, Joey, Max, Julien etc are finishing within seconds of each other now, if not even closer!!!
Great thing about our sport, you have access to the EXACT same gear that Johnny and crew use to win world titles.

Chrono V2 soon to be released is getting even more beefed up for the free-ride ( with even stronger bridles than the current Chrono. )
Great for weekend race warrior or free-rider, or as option for those looking to switch from LEI to foil kites. Chrono is not slow and still a very competitive race kite as we saw at Redbull Rag and Kitefoil Mexico.

If you buy the R1, you are the rider who is hunting for the very best performance you can get!! Every bit of performance counts!!!!
This is no different to any other performance sport!
On-road cycling, how much life are you getting out of a race specific tyre used under race conditions?
Jet ski racing being red-lined during race weekends, the super-chargers are being rebuilt far less that the recommended 100 hours of the weekend warrior versions.

Ozone are calling out that if you want the kite to perform to its very absolute best potential, their performance racers look to maintain their kites to a certain standard to get the very best out of them. No doubt if you have experience with foil kites, have NOT been hammering the kite, kept the pullies on the speed system clean and free-running and are not racing every other day like the pro riders, you going to get more life out of the set-up.

If you are a free-rider, but still wanting the R1 over the Chrono, they do have available the option of the Dyneema bridles same as used on the Chrono. (as stated on the same website quoted above)

Kiters have options of what model they want to buy, and buying the right model for the right application is the responsibility of the rider.

Im a competitive racer myself. Those quoting above, im not sure if you are racers yourself who are concerned or are non-racers interested in the topic of the new race gear. I'd be interested to know.

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Gorgo said..

It's reasonable to assume that the skill level of the top guys is very close. In that environment it's the gear that makes the difference (which is kind of sad). It's nice that ordinary riders can buy all this high performance gear, but it has the reek of the windsurfing competition arms race about it.

What you have said is true to many sports.

Its the nature of these sports and our own doing, and its lead to the current level of performance in these sport.
Products evolve because we expect and demand them to evolve.
look at the developments in F1 and how thats now filtered down to everyday cars.
Its not just sport, look at the arms race in everyday life between brands, mobile phones, TV's laptops/PCs etc. Some might still prefer to have their old Nokia 3310 and you can still buy new phones from the servo that's not far from it for a under $50 if you CHOOSE TO!

Should the top level of all performance sports be prevented from further development. This has been done on occasion with the likes of RSX and the new Formula LEI divisions.



Thank those that have pushed the boundaries, or we'd still be on some crazy type kit! :)

No LCLs... that'll be a fun job, replacing bridles.

Wait a minute..... I might be even more slow and stupid this week than usual.

Are we talking replacement of the entire bridle system back to the kite? or the speed system bridles and pullies? The way interpret it is that the speed system bridles should be replaced every 60 hours. Not the entire bridle.

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Kamikuza said..

Flysurfers have a mixer, not a speed system. Don't mix them up, eh. They're completell different.

Ahhh... infact they do exactly the same thing..... just different marketing names.

The flysurfers typically have more adjustment. But also more prone to need re-adjustment.