Blade 17M kite demo

[MK]

Blade "Fat Lady" kite coming in next week. I'll be coordinating to get it out for demo in skilled kiters hands = Level 3 PASA ability and IKO:

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This will be great to get some hands on experience to compare with some of our contending leaders in the biggy kite category. Light wind gear is expensive but always session savers. Maybe I should help level the field by demoing a new Lightwave Wing board with it...

If you get to ride it your feeback will be appreciated! These are tricky propositions to hand over expensive and so thank you in advance for your interest.

[MK]

By the way, not sure how the industry gets by with what some of the gear and models are called. For those of you who may take offense my apologies, I didn't name it. Keep a light heart and mind about it and I hope you'll get a chance to focus on the fun factor.

[Barry P]

Sure. Put me on her dance card.

[Adam B]

I have tried the 8 meter trigger before and I really liked it. I wonder if the 17 will be a good kite too.

[RobH]

Flew the lady early Feb for 10 minutes inlight winds. Didnt find her to have enough low end grunt for my liking with a light wind kite. She moved through the sky nice, followed input well. just felt short on power while downstroking through the power zone. Also took the 18m Cab crossbow out at the same time, kite was huge and more park and fly as slow to respond but had the lowend grunt. The large CB fits its market for a race kite, cant say I would recomend it for freeride as its slow. Neither kite really fit what Im looking for in a light wind kite although they both fit a niche. looking forward to hearing feedback from others.

[JRN]

I am not certified, but Pam sez I'm certifiable. The only 17's I have flown were all BEST products. The BFK (another politically incorrect name) a 5th line c-kite...scary lack of de-power. The Waroo 17 too heavy, and also slow turning, & now the Taboo 17, equally slow. I have been on the pond with both Turbines and Ozones, and felt it held its own. It is more of a low aspect shape, better for hang-gliding than racing, but an adjustment to waiting for turns, and waiting for the power curve in boosts, does lead to some fun in low winds. I am always skeptical when any mfgr. sez they have a fast big kite. Around 14 or 15 sq. mtr. all bets are off IMHO. Hope MK wil let me try it regardless.
I just hope it isn't a you break it /buy it scenario. I have managed to trash some gear, but I always blamed the equipment, not flying too close to trees, sailboat masts, young children, pic-nicking families... On second thought...

[Kevinousdigian]

I'm a firm believer in 17s if you enjoy getting out kiting more often. 2 yrs ago I was in Florida and there were 3 nice steady sea breeze days I had to sit out because the 14m td3 wasn't enough so I was motivated to go bigger. I bought a like new Ozone 17m Zephyr and have really loved that kite. This year I was in Florida and had 4 wonderful sunny, 80+ degree afternoons with 9-11 mph winds. No white caps but just fun to be out in the gulf riding some while on family vacation. Here's a picture of a sunset session with some dolphins, manatees, and sh---s.

Today I was up at Shell lake and started on the 13m octane but the wind seemed to up n down. I rigged up to the Zephyr for the first time since February and was again reminded how much fun the kite is for a big kite. Pulls you up through upwind to get to more wind, fast enough to easily downloop it, jumps awesome and gives you such floaty jumps - feels like a parachute coming down.
The cons to the Z are the big bridle and harder to relaunch in under 10 mph so maybe the Fat Lady can improve on those apects but relaunch in light wind is probably challenging for any big kite, especially if she's fat.

I doubt any 17m can beat the Z in range. It gets going in the real light stuff and amazingly it's very comfortable in 20-25 mph winds and rideable to 30. Of course if you get to the beach and it's that windy you'd rig smaller but so many times in MN the wind comes up for a little while and then goes back down. The Z is just a blast when really lit so no need to rerig just hold on for some sweet rides.

Would be fun to try some other 17s though including the Fat Lady and we can fly them back to back in our gusty MN conditions. If you like to ride more then get a 17 and you'll be able to get away from the beach and just keep riding especially in July and August around here where we get so many warm, sunny 8-15 mph days.

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[Barry P]

Has anyone been out on Mike's demo kite yet?

[MK]

It just arrived Wednesday. Windsor a little heavy today. Looks like some good opportunity coming up within the next few days. I'll post in here when I go out, hopefully can connect up with some you all.

[MK]

Tuesday looks to be a good day to try this kite out... I think I'll plan on being at Ramsey with ESE from 11-4. I'll post in here with timeline changes. Wednesday may prove to be a better low-end testing option, we'll see how it develops.

[MK]

On my way now. May get a chance to do side-by-side comparison to Zephyr.

[MK]

Winds up! Barry testing now. Winters on the way. I'm switching to Lightwave Wing 153cm. 175 Raceboard worked great at under 10mph winds.

[Barry P]

Thanks Mike for letting me try the 17M Lady. Winds started out around 8-12 at first and increased a bit to I'd say 13-17 by the end of my 45 minutes with the kite.

Compared to the 17M Zephyr I have I'd say:
1) Steeper power curve or response to wind speed, so jumps feel a bit more aggressive than the Z's lift, and when looping the kite down through jibes there's a bigger burst of power to either take advantage of or to be careful of.
2) Easier relaunch than my Z.
3) On 28M lines it was not as good upwind as my Z which was flying on 24M lines... so maybe it was the extra line drag, not sure, but it sat back in the window just a little more.
4) I sure messed something up with how I used the above the bar Cam-cleat De-power hardware. After cleating some line off, I then let it out but the cleat had somehow rotated on the lines so it was now positioned down near the bar and I had very little travel left. I came back to shore, put the kite down (it set down nicely on self-land) and worked the cleat back up near the top, relaunched (self-launch went well) and enjoyed the rest of the session - and I didn't try fiddling with the cleat again.
5) Nice bar and kite construction.
6) Lighter bar pressure than the Z. The amount of pressure on either are just fine. I was getting clear feedback from the Lady without looking at it.
7) A big kite but good turning speed. About the same as the Z.

Thanks Mike!

[jrjohnson1]

Thanks for the review Barry, very nicely written with a lot of great specifics. The Zephyr has been the supreme light wind kite locally so it's nice to hear an honest comparison from a non sponsored viewpoint. Also sometimes it's hard to get a good read from the magazine reviews which all tend to sound the same so your feedback is greatly appreciated Barry.

[Mike W]

Barry always give very thorough, quality reviews. I think he is spot on. I flew the Zephyr and Fat Lady back-to-back as well. Here are my impressions: The FL feels more nimble than the Z. Lighter on the bar too. The FL has more pop for jumping. The Z sets you down for a softer landing. The Z might go upwind slightly better. Both kites seem to have great range, but I was flying them on the upper end of their range, so I cannot comment on low wind grunt for the FL. The Z is great in that respect. I too could not figure out the sheeting system on the FL. The Z is a higher aspect ratio kite. The FL flies a bit farther back in the window.

Thanks, Mike, for letting me try the kite too. Great fun!

[JRN]

Sounds like it has alot of good features. The price point is always a factor on the big ones, & I got my 17 used. I think alot of riders are also seeking that rangey 14 like the t-3's. Blade seems to be aiming for that
niche formerly held by Best, for us budget minded shoppers. Thanks for giving us all a chance to check her out!

[RobH]

Nice reviews guys, sounds like your demo was with the kites having good powered conditions. Hoping to hear some of the same feedback in lighter conditions when the kite is underpowered to see how they compare. I dont recall seeing the same comparison between Turbine compare with the Zephyr, how do they compare ?

[MK]

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The wind yesterday showed remarkable range during the demo of this kite from 11-4pm. I started riding right about 11am, no witnesses until Barry showed. The winds were well below 10mph as I suspected. I shlogged a bit but was really amazed to be actually riding in the lowest of winds.

I was able to launch the kite without issue and keep it in flight even in the lulls when wind wasn't strong enough to keep me planing on the board. I rode my 175 Raceboard which no doubt helped me succeed. The upwind angles are considerably more of a game with little to no margin for error in lighter winds. Riding in lighter winds is uber fun to get away with but punishing when the wind drops; you just end up swimming with gear.

Since I rode until about noonish only, my experience is only on the low-end side of this kite so far. I did get to fly Barry's Zephyr just as he was heading out on the Fat Lady, thank you for letting me do that Barry. It likely colluded my experience since I was flying two different kites for the first time but I was very happy to ride the Z (with 153 Lightwave Wing, I'm 210lbs).

I'm not as excited about pushing a product onto anyone as I am about discovering the ability of a kite. I'm thankful Blade is allowing us to try this out. It's not easy to get kites to demo with all the cost and risk at stake. I'm really glad Kevin, Barry, Mike W, and Terry all flew it (all level 3 PASA/IKO riders). We should be able to get several more times to fly it. Yesterday surprised me with the opportunity to find the complete range of this kite from lowest to highest wind speeds. Naturally there are a few critical variables to keep in mind like skill, body weight and board size. Watching the others boost and float made me envious:) I'm looking forward to playing with it on the higher wind ranges, seeing how it feels while jumping.

*My review is all based on riding from 11am-12pm, 175cm raceboard, line set is factory 28M, level 3 IKO/PASA, 210lbs.*
Pro's:
- incredible light wind launching; ~6/7mph while standing on the ground
- very easy to fly and body surf with one hand
- innovative arm length adjustable feature for Throw
- turning speed is considerably fast for its size
- low bar pressure
- 90 pumps to 9psi (Rally 14M 2013 is 130 pumps)
- Quick Release very smooth both release and reset
- 5% lighter LE Dacron (same as used on Cabrihna); clearly designed for lightwind and durable (unlike North Dyno being a great lightwind kite but not as durable).
- coated lines - reduce tangles
- ceramic center line swivel (as opposed to stainless steel)
- one line flagging

Con's:
- kite drifted a "little" while idle; needed to manage it from falling down. (Very similar as lots of kites)
- Throw adjustment needs to be learned prior to riding - preflight
- 4M factory extension lines can catch and tangle
-

I'm searching for more con's but will need to do some more demo time. I'd like to see:
- how well it drift launches
- assembly of QR while adrift
- launching while adrift
- higher end range
- jumping
- float
- play with innovative Throw adjustment. Intriguing how you don't sacrifice depower...
- see how kite sits in the window at higher wind speeds.

I like the one-bar approach that offers very simple adjustment (it takes 30 seconds) for two different widths to use on all kites; immediate cost saver. I'm also realizing this could really be 3 kites in one:
1. Race kite - construction light with fabric 5% lighter and smaller leading edge (air weighs 1.2kg per cubic meter)
2. Lightwind - session saver; note nobody was kiting when I was yesterday. My low wind threshold was expanded.
3. 7mph to 23mph range yesterday - upper range has a lot to do with skill and weight and for me at 210lbs I can benefit from it's max higher wind range.

The short answer:

Really good kite, solid construction from LE to bridle attachments to control bar/systems, appears to be a great one kite quiver/2 board option, deliberating though until further testing.

[Terry Dunklee]

When I arrived at Ramsey there were solid whitecaps and it looked perfect for a great 11M T3 session. I was hesitant about taking the 17M blade out in those conditions , but Kevin and Mike W both encouraged me to give it a go. With the Crazyfly 137 and full de-power I had a very comfortable session in winds in the upper teens with gusts 21-23. At times I wished I was on a smaller kite , but it was never scary overpowering conditions. Boosts were high with a very slow, smooth, soft landing.The kite was stable powered up, easily tracked upwind and yet sat back enough in the window to drift back with you when carving down the waves. Bar pressure was light in low winds but rivaled the TDs when fully powered. Transitions and down loops were easy as the kite pivoted quickly around the wingtip. I did note the surge Barry mentioned during transitions but that seemed to lessen as I got used to the kite. I also thought the kite was a little "twitchy" in low to medium winds , but that may be operator error as I'm not accustomed to the lighter bar pressure. Later in the session the wind dropped off. Even with no whitecaps I was able to plan, head upwind, ride toe-side and manage a few jumps. Overall a very well made kite that was a lot of fun in variable conditions.

Thanks Mike

[MK]

Steady 8/9mph in forecast tomorrow. Who's riding?