Big Air has been around since the beginning of kiteboarding. As soon as people had figured out how to ride along they started trying to jump as high as possible. The trend then was for ever higher aspect ratio kites which travelled faster allowing you to convert that forward speed into lift. It was not long before people were getting loads of air time and started doing tricks like spins and board offs.
As the next generation came along they used their freestyle kites and created kite loops. The emphasis here was on raw power and height as opposed to more technical tricks. As kite loops became mega loops and riders perfected them, more tricks were added.
Today another generation has come along combining all the technicality of old school big air with mega loops and now double and triple loops. In order to feed this progression the kites have had to develop too. We now have a new breed of modern big air kites.
These new kites have to be fast and really drive forward in order to be able to double loop with ease. The speed also helps them generate huge amounts of lift all whilst remaining stable in high winds, predictable and easy to use. Quite an undertaking! Designers have been testing all kinds of things and there are still plenty of very different looking kites out there.
The Flysurfer ERA uses a 5 strut design to support the air frame and give it huge depower. It uses a classic dacron and ripstop construction with a high pressure leading edge to further improve rigidity and responsiveness. From the media released by the team riders the kite is clearly delivering huge amounts of performance.
The Ozone Vortex Ultra X has just been released and this kite is completely different. It is a 3 strut design with a Aluula air frame. Both of these help reduce the weight of the kite, which makes it faster, whilst the Aluula allows the leading edge to be narrower whilst also extremely rigid. The use of new materials like Aluula makes the kite expensive but delivers performance.
We strongly encourage anyone into big air to give this new breed of kite a go and feel the difference for themselves. It is good to know that if your budget does not stretch to Aluula models, there are still good options out there.
