Session 362. I picked up two new kites - Airush Union 10m and 8m - from Ivan at the The Zu Boardsports, and traded in my Lithium 12 and 9.
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| Ivan, happy to sell me the kites |
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| Me, happy to buy them |
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| Out with the old |
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| In with the new |
There was some good wind at St Kilda, I used the Union 10. I pumped at The Zu with the handy compressor.
I reset the bridle to the "low bar pressure" attachments on the leading edge, and the rear line attachments to the "medium bar pressure" (middle) attachment point on the wingtips.
The new analogue bar is much lighter.
I setup and launched then headed out past the learners. There was a good swell coming past the breakewater. I rode it into the beach then continued along towards Albert Park. The kite is very easy to control and parks well when riding waves.
I toured across near to the Spirit of Tasmania then headed back. The leading edge is much thinner than the Lithium 12 which helps the kite go upwind really well.
I then did some runs to the breakwater and back out, surfing the big swell in. I did some jumps and got a real shock when the kite kept flying up! It boosts much better than the Lithiums did and heads for the moon! I didn't have any trouble landing them but the extra airtime takes some getting used to.
I tried one back roll and over rotated then crashed - the extra boost in the kite provides more airtime and therefore more rotation so I will go easier next time.
The kite has more pull on downloop turns compared to the Lithium too.
I rate the Union 10 out of 10 - it does everything well and I couldn't find a fault. It think it was definitely worth upgrading, particularly before my other kites (over 3 years old) lose too much value.
A word of caution for beginners though - test fly a Union before buying one. They turn and fly fast and could be a bit too responsive while learning. If you are starting out an Lithium may be a better kite for your first year or two.
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St Kilda Wind (not extreme!)
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| Fawkner wind |
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GPS Log
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