“Proficient in Foil, 49 years old, 68 kg, I finally got to fully try out my GONG Strutless 15m with 28m lines.
6 knot winds in the beginning of the session that ended up being around 12/13 towards the end (lots of TT in 14m, I was the biggest Kite in the water!).
I bought this Kite for the ultra light wind, no racing but I do love do have plenty of Kite for some good performance.
I’ve got a few friends with high ratio ram-air Kites around here, and even the best of them have come back to shore swimming, or in a boat….so for me, security is a priority.
Don’t got the budget for it anyway. However with the new arrival of moderate ratio ram-air Kites made me doubt my choice.
Setting her up is super simple, thumbs up on the construction, the Leading Edge is surprisingly thin. In 6 knots she flies easy, careful at the zenith, shocking the Kite can cause her to go up over your head kinda like a chambered Kite, you just need to bring her down a bit to back her up. So a large window for flying.
On the water, pure fun, lots of comfort on the Bar, real agile for a 15m, horsepower is evident, glassy waters, and more than 27 knots in the gusts at the beginning of the session
An it’s true you can get her far out into the window, upwind is excellent.
I was afraid to be limited in the high wind range, with my low weight, but had a good surprise, at its worst I was slightly over sheeted obviously, especially in the crosswinds, but felt total security, pushing the bar out and full bore in up/down wind. Depower confirmed.
Hindenberg at the beginning of the session, (less than 10 kts at that moment), no problem with the relaunch.
Last remark about the transitions, the kite offers a surprising vertical support, perfect for keeping it low and mean in low wnd.
So my choice was 100% validated, for 1/3 the price of chambered Kite, because I’m not into racing, don’t need it.”
Kitesurfer : Raf and his GONG Kite 15m Strutless V3.
