9m Peak - First Impressions

Day 1 - Static - Wind 3-5 mph
Got my used (pretty much brand new) Peak 9m today and had a chance to go fly it for about 30 minutes, but didn't have the time, gear or wind to do anything but static fly. This is my first impression:

Essentially, it's exactly what I expected, with a couple of slightly-irritating surprises. However, they're pretty much insignificant next to the fact that I FLEW this kite today. Today's "wind" at about 6-6:30 pm is the same it always is. 0-3 mph with 5 mph thermal gusts. Colorado wind sucks overall, but it REALLY sucks in the summer. I have had dozens of 4-hour days like today just trying to get something to fly. I've tried a 15m, 18m, 19m, arcs, LEIs, foils, and and eventually I learned (took me a while -- I'm stubborn like that), that there is NO F##CKING WAY a kite will fly in this wind. That changed today.

Amazing Upsides
Wind Range
The wind was probably about 1-3 mph on the ground when I got there and about 20 feet up, it probably was up to 3-4 mph. I also got a few gusts nearing the 5-6 mph range up in the air. I just laid it on the ground in a heap, walked the lines out, shook it out and it jumped into the air no problem. I DID have to pull the back lines a bit to get it to spread out, but once I did it happily took off like a 3m trainer in 8mph winds. Awesome.

Setup
See above. I just walked out the lines, shook it out and flew. not nearly as much bridle mayhem as I was expecting, too. I suppose I was broken in by the Psycho IIIs. Anyway, setup was a snap.

Depower
During my hotlaunch, a "pretty big" (i.e. about 6mph) gust came up as I started leaning way back to prep for the pull. I also let out on the bar a little -- and almost fell on my ass. I can't wait to get this sucker in some wind. The flapping is disconcerting (see below), but there is an awesome side effect that a lot of people won't consider: When you depower, the kite flaps and therefore causes turbulence / friction, so it doesn't just take off like a rocket (or like an LEI/Psycho/Foil/etc). It just sort of depowers and keeps slowly trucking along waiting for you to give it its proper shape again. Pull in the bar and it's back to about the same speed, but this time with power. Incidentally, this flapping / lack of speed thing is awesome for HUGE wind range.... not so great for boosting (see below)

Power
I was stunned by the amount of power I generated in a) no wind and b) not flying very fast and c) not really looping. I probably could've skied today (and maybe even buggy -- downhill, maybe). You just pull in the bar, regardless of which direction it's facing and you get some power back. The direction doesn't matter because it's so light, so it generates roughly the same power going up as it does diving -- okay, maybe that's an exaggeration, but in light wind it's not far from the truth. Loops definitely generate a decent amount of power, but not nearly as much as a foil, arc or LEI. That's also kind of a function of the wind. Anyway, the kite is very un-complicated -- you just fly it and pull the bar in and it makes power.

Size/Weight/Simplicity
I have yet to see how small I can get it, but the bag is about the size of one of those free drawstring bags that everyone gives away as crappy vendor schwag. The kite packs up smaller than the bag -- about the size of a large dictionary or two. There are only 4 lines, and everything stays attached (take THAT, you anti-parapackers! ), so it's a snap to understand, check, and get in the air. Tearing down is a different story, but that's probably just me being a noob.

Bar / 1Hand
One thing that I haven't heard anyone talk about is how tiny and light the bar is. The bar pressure is really low (have to check again in high winds), so I think I could steer the thing all day with one-hand, which is a HUGE bonus.


Very Mildly Irritating Downsides
Slow
Today, the Peak was slow to turn, slow to build power, slow flying, and exactly perfect what the wind was doing... For a kite that'll fly in 0-5mph winds, I expect to sacrifice a little performance... duh. It FLEW!!! Anyway, that being said, it certainly not setting any records for tightest turning radius, I *might* have been able to get a 3m to fly today, but it would've been a close thing, and it would constantly be slow-turning, slow-flying and slow to build power. In other words, exactly what I'd expect. I can't wait to see how this thing does in 10mphish winds.

Bar Bight
Okay, so this is actually annoying, and it's about the only thing that I was actually down on. The bar / line system is such that when you turn, the bar bights on the power line and you can't power/depower until you return the bar to neutral. This is sort of a pet peeve of mine in depower kites and flysurfer is normally really good at allowing for depower AND turning, but that is NOT the case with this kite/ bar system. It might become less annoying, or more broken in to become a non-issue, but I typically don't like it when it functions this way. What if you need to depower midway through a tight loop? If you de-turn to de-power, you just get a much bigger loop going faster, which is how disasters happen. Anyway, it's worth mentioning. I'll update as I get more experience with it.

Teardown
The teardown was fine, but I was worried about wrapping it up too tight and/or folding the little support struts. The flysurfer manual wasn't much more helpful. If it wasn't for those thing, I'd just wrap it as tight as I could and fold it in half, but I'm worried about permanently bending something. The end result is that I folded it much like my wife folds sheets. She just sort of gently puts some #@%$#! towards the center and then folds it in half, which results in a weird, loose, chinese dumpling sort of thing. Anwyay, then I just closed my eyes and shoved it in the bag. I'll figure it out, but I figured it was worth mentioning.

Lift
In 0 wind, you shouldn't be jumping anwyay, but there is almost no natural lift in light wind. It won't fly fast to generate upwards power, and when it's above you it just either sits there or overflies a tiny bit and luffs back into its spot. I'm pretty sure I know how it's going to do with apparent wind, but getting the Peak to move fast enough to boost is going to be hard. Maybe at the top of the range. I'll update as I figure it out.

Flappy
You depower -> The kite flaps. This is actually sort of a benefit (see above in the Depower section), but it's still something that you'll have to get used to. It appears there will be two types of depower on this kite. 1) depower to just before it goes flapping (useful when you're just sort of regular depowering), and 2) depower because of a gust or something bad (useful when something goes sideways). The flapping always seems to start at the same bar spot, so pushing it past that is a lot like the Cabrinha depower system, where you push it "just a little bit further" and you're really triggering the safety at that point. Anyway, I think I'll find it endearing after I get used to it, but it certainly feels like you've done something wrong at first .

Rollover
A lot like an LEI, in light wind, it's not happy sitting at the top of the window, it tends to roll off to one side or the other. I only mention this for arc users, who are spoiled (I SO miss autozenith).



So this kite obviously gets full points for low-wind performance. I can't wait to a) get moving with it and b) try it in some heavier, variable wind.

Quote: Originally posted by ssayre

I'm unclear on bar bite. Is that when you have the bar cranked for a turn and it binds not allowing it to slide up or down?

Yes, that is what I'm referring to.

Well done review for sure. Nice to see your thoughts on the kite now that you have it in hand.

It's kinda creepy the way it jumps in the air in near zero wind eh?

In regards to you comments on boosting, to be fair you're static flying in extremely light winds on a touring kite that isn't designed to lift. When you get it out in 12kts and moving it will be a different story.

Turn rate is slow without effort. That said I've pulled off a couple kiteloops on the 9m in 15kts with some effort but not much. The 6m is not a problem especially in 20kts plus. Turn rate on the 6m is damn fast when needed and having the option to really stall one tip completely like a kite on handles is handy.

I still haven't experienced any issues with bar bite. Or maybe what I consider noticeable bar bite.

The flapping. 1 don't look at it. 2 ignore the feedback through the bar. 3 you'll get good at 1 and 2. :P It's not the prettiest depow but as said before it's like SLE. But on an SLE the struts seem to dampen the bar feedback when depowed. No struts on the Peak. What it lacks in style, it makes up in effectiveness. Find it endearing? hehehe maybe.

5m extensions will give you a bit more bottom end. A 13cm centerline pigtail can be added to change the bar position for full power and give you a bit more bottom end, more power sooner but at the cost of a little (what we consider excess depow) in light wind.

We've taken to what we consider a standard packing procedure whereas we lay the kite flat, fold the trailing edge to the bottom of the leading edge, thereby containing all the bridles, lines out to one side, and burrito roll from the side opposing the line exit point. Once rolled, fold in half and secure with a strap. Folds the 6m small enough to fit into a camelback. you can easily fit both kites and bars into a mid size camel back (we have ours in a Peak Bagger, no joke that's what camelback calls it)

It is a little weird getting used to bending the stringers. they're tough though just use a little caution.


Great review. Now I want to go fly one of ours but I gotta go to work.

Quote: Originally posted by ssayre

I'm unclear on bar bite. Is that when you have the bar cranked for a turn and it binds not allowing it to slide up or down?

exactly.

there is a little flare built in, but it's a little metal grommet in a carbon bar, so.I think.it's a little.limited. bah...phoneposting.

The bar bite has calmed down quite a bit with use. I have some updates I need to post, along with some video. I should also say that this is a FANTASTIC first depow for a new flyer. Less likely to try to kill you on a screwup, especially in "touring mode". Great suggestions on the leaders & center line extension. I was thinking about doing that since I like a Little backstall when fully bar in. It's good to know I'm not alone

Video and more detAils to come. Oh, and I totally dialed in packing. It works famously and is super tight.

Quote: Originally posted by Demoknight

I might be picking up a used 9m from a guy in Michigan next week. He is waiting to get it back from repairs. Depending on how big the tear was and where it is, I'd still consider just getting one new for as well priced as these are.

Heh, I think I'm waiting on the same guy. It's probably best for me if someone else buys it though as I really shouldn't be spending more on kites.

That's the same guy I bought mine from. He's a pretty stand up dude, if a little particular about his kites. He was slightly put off that the speed 3 I sent him had a bit of wear on the depower line (nothing notable -- demoknight can attest -- but I think he's use to owning brand new kites). The Peak I got from him was close to immaculate when it arrived. Still need to post those videos, don't I?

Demo, you would love this thing for low wind, but I'm guessing the 6 is more versatile due to it's faster turning / looping ability. I wouldn't say the 9m is "slow" by any means, but my 10m speed 4 turns quite a bit faster / tighter.

Hey Dave,
I am glad you are finally using the Peak in the application it was designed for and realizing how awesome this kite can be. The Peak was not designed as a boosting/gliding kite and I hope I was clear about that from the beginning. Actually one of the reasons I traded you for your 15mSpeed 3 is to have a boosting/gliding kite for conditions where I want to do that. For the record I was not unhappy with the condition of the centerline (which isnt really that bad anyway...it was just an observation...and I am really glad that you are happy with the condition of the kite I sent you. Have you tried the Spleene Session yet??

but now you've really ticked me off...posting videos of all that snow up at Rabbit Ears!!!! hahahaah. We are still waiting for good snowkiting conditions to return here after a week long teaser of freak 30" snow before Thanksgiving. We really got spoiled last winter with almost 4 solid months of good snow and ice. So send some snow our way please.

If you want the Peak to turn faster just pull on a leader and it will spin on a dime. Clearly the Peak is different than the Speeds...or most other kite for that matter...but sometimes each job calls for a slightly different tool.

fyi/The new Peak2 has been improved in several ways that might actually address some of your comments...including an improved bar, more depower capability, a profile that delivers more lift, etc...however it is still not designed to lift like a Speed.

jonesing badly here in MI
Pray for snow for everybody!
Merry Xmas

Nice Vids! You sure have lots of snow:o Wisco is Waaaaaaay behind in snow production compared to last year. Snow drought Don't feel bad Chris, I've gotten specific instructions on how to embed a video on this forum and I still can't do it