2015 Airush Wave Review
Wave riding is one of the oldest water sports there is. With a board, without, with a kite, a paddleboard, ski... whatever your weapon of choice, you simply can't beat it. In September, our very own Andy Cooksey headed to Sumbawa for some sweet left handers and had the brand new, 2015 Airush Wave and Converse with him.
The Wave is a kite dedicated to wave riders who want no compromise. Super fast and reactive turning with a huge amount of depower available at the bar, means you can loop, pivot and throw this kite through the window with almost zero pull. This allows you to surf the wave rather than be dragged along it by an over powering kite. When you want to ride with a but more power through your harness, simply sheet in and lay into your rail. And the drift... yeah, amazing!
Andy Cooksey - WA Surf Owner and wave rider extraordinaireThe Airush Wave is one of the few wave kites that can handle all the styles of wave riding. Its three strut design and deeper profile make it great for drifting down the line. That’s where most kite models stop. But for those who like to throw the kite around for a more powerful wave riding style, this kite is really extremely fast to turn.It doesn’t stall and shoot off after a turn either; the power is even during a super tight arc. I feel like I only need one kite length off the water to down loop. It also has an amazing amount of depower within arms reach and still turns when depowered. This means on the wave you can loop the kite exactly where you want but it won’t rip you off your feet or down the line and away from the pocket.The relaunch is great. Definitely better than some other ‘wave kites’ I’ve ridden. It sticks in the sky better than most kites as well, even when I’m walking over the urchin infested rocks in a fading Indo breeze. If you oversheet the kite is flares the wingtips, but doesn’t lose power. So if you’re falling back and instinctingly sheet in hard, it will catch you rather than stall out.The standard Airush Analogue bar comes with bar AND line extensions. So you can reduce the lines by 3m to get an awesome small wave setup, or put the bar extensions on to get the perfect bar for the bigger kites. The bar features a low V setup too which I prefer, plus it’s better for a line-mounted Go Pro. You can easily switch the bar from a knots and loops setup to a loops and knots setup, so I’ve been using it with North and Naish kites with no problems. Definitely the most versitile bar available.
This is not really anything other than a Wave kite. I have unhooked on it, taught on it and boosted on it. But really there are better kites for all those things. This kite is for surfing. On the bar side I personally prefer the Airush conversion kit to replace the depower strap with a simple cleat system. The kite has so much depower within arms reach that I hardly touched the depower strap so it seems uneccessary to have so much webbing and straps dangling around.
Here's what Airush have to say about it
The Airush Wave Kite has created a legion of dedicated surf followers through its groundbreaking design, blending a unique combination of forward speed and incredible drifting capabilities. The Wave responds perfectly to rider input and allows you to get into the perfect position on the wave, no matter what the wind conditions.Refinements in the chord length, wingtips and canopy layout make for a smooth power delivery and fluid steering consistent across the range, while the V3 bridle system maintains even tension throughout the kite enabling perfect steering even when depower and sheeted out.With the most advanced construction on the market and perfect balance, the Airush Wave takes surf kiting into a new realm. // Unique planform allows the kite to fly forward in the window when required while sitting back and drifting in the turns. // Tight turning with minimal power // Increased LE Diameter in Smaller sizes for greater stability and support // Aramid Load Frame Technology // Double Rip Stop Technoforce D2 by Teijin Canopy // New Oversized SPS valve (Single Point Inflation System) // All New One Pump System
Why not try these on our next Friday Downwinder Demo.
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