Tag Archives: Peter Lynn

The Peter Lynn Escape v7

June 8, 2018 CedFly

I’ve always enjoyed every aspect of Kiteboarding. I think it goes back to my addiction to power kiting.
As a result, Â you will find me on a twin tip, on a strapless surfboard, on wake skate in strong winds in soft winds in waves on flat, getting stoke just from being out there and having fun whatever the conditions. (haven’t tried foiling cause it’s so big and I have the luxury of riding windy spots most of the time)

In the past I used to enjoy my Peter Lynn “Swell” as a “do it all” kite, it rides magnificently in the waves, but it jumps and loops and does all the other stuff pretty well too.
But then came an Escape v5 prototype. More C shaped than its previous incarnations, it had something different from the Swell that got me hooked. It was that vertical lift, and the smoothness in the loops. I just had to admit that for megalooping it did have an edge.

After working with the designer on the V5 and the V6, I just had to have it in my quiver.

The tradition has been carried into the “Escape V7”

It is such a smooth kite! you notice it immediately in flight. Compare it with most other kites in the sky and you will notice that it has less flutter and that the canopy looks smoother in the air. As a result it is a super stable kite, super predictable. Besides those attributes, the fixed bridle gives it that connected feeling in whatever input you throw at it and the bar feel is just perfect, not too heavy, not too light.

Last year I ended up with an 11m Escape v6 in Sardinia and absolutely loved the kite for airstyle and general free ride. This year I will be there with Escape v7 13m, 11m and 9m. I already had a few session on the 13m and was pleasantly surprised at the manoeuvrability of the kite for its size.

For my weight I’ve always maintained the the best size boosting kite would be an 8 and with the addition of 8m and 10m, I finally have that size to throw around! I’ve had a few outings with it and YES, it is as I expected.
It feels like a 7m but has more hang time. I have not been overpowered on it yet, so still to find its top end, but the loops have been an absolute blast!

The “Escape v7” as just been tweaked. There is no radical change in the kite, but yes it’s smoother and even less flutter in those big loops. I’ve also been messing around with line length and getting some great results for different applications especially for radical megaloops.

I strongly suggest you try this kite for yourself.

Ced

Thanks for the pics to M. Borsato

Kiteboarding

New Video: Change of Season, Waves and big air

June 20, 2016 CedFly

In a moment, Summer turned to winter on the east coast of South Africa. So here is a video featuring very different conditions but not so far apart in the linear context of time.

On two occasions I met up with Steff BegereÂ from Swing Kiteboarding. He has become a fan of the Peter Lynn range of Kites and was keen on both occasions to demo the new models. So we met up on the beach, first in Port Elizabeth where we had a fun wave riding session and then on a colder gustier Cannon Rocks where pulling kite loops isÂ testament to the ability of the Peter Lynn Kiteboarding “Swell” V2 to perform even under trying conditions.

I hope you enjoy the video even though some of the footage is rough and tumble.

Ced

Kiteboarding

Airstyle – Old School – back to the roots

April 23, 2016 CedFly

When I first started kiteboarding back in the dark ages, it was all about airtime. I mean what other sport gave you that thrill of being in the water and at command get airborne ?
You just never seemed to get enough of that. Then we started to develop styles.

But then Marketing and the Kids got involved. And things got kind of complicated.

Much discussions have been trashed out on the battle field (forums) about what kiteboarding is for different individuals. And so you have wake stylers, free riders, wave riders, with boots, strapless, with straps, strapless freestylers, mega loopers, big air, Airstyle, mega crashers the grass mowers and the kooks. ( I might have missed somebody 🙂 )

A lot of people follow some kind of a police fashion; wear the pants, wear the shorts, don’t wear the shorts, fall on your face rather than put straps on, don’t be seen without boots, etc…

As with much of my life, I tend to disregard trends and kind of go where the wind blows. Excuse the pun.

So after much meanderings in the different aspects of kiteboarding, here I am looking at getting back into some floaty airs and some old school tricks (which seems to have evolved into Airstyle thank to Toby from kiteforum.com)

But like everything, things have changed, mostly the equipment has changed. Partly, the equipment is perhaps at the source of this fragmentation within the sport. 15 years ago riding waves down the line was impossible, the kite would front hindenburg as soon as the lines lost tension, and relaunching was a serious mission, especially in surf, everything broke easily, and boots were left to the wakeboarder.

The kites have evolved into very specific design for different types of styles and conditions…

Back in the day allÂ the kites were powerful slow beasts, perfect for Airstyle. Today you sit with this scenario:

standard kites on a standard 21m set up are generally too fast, the lines are too short and the bars generally not set up for hang time tricks. So you gotta do a custom set up. My first step towards re entering the realm of board offs and slides was to choose the right kite, get a shorter bar with a different set up and lengthen the lines.

My kite choice is a 13m Peter Lynn Fury because of the amazing float it has in the jumps being a high aspect ratio. At my weight (70kg) I could have maybe gone for a 15m, but I live in a place where the wind can get really strong… and in strong winds, Â 15 m becomes a handful. I find the 13m is comfortable even pat the 20 knots mark. Then 45cm bar with 24m lines which will probably get extended to 27 to get that maximum float time and slow down the flight speed of the kite. Â This gives you more time to concentrate on the board.Â I am also using the inside attachments at the wing tips. The Fury is fast as it is also a race kite, but I find with these settings it’s slow enough to do plenty and still fast enough to loop it during slides and other moves.

The ultimate set up would be a micro loop on the bar which allows you to hook in at full power and hook out as you touching down. However for now, the stopper on the de-powerÂ will have to suffice.

A small light board would also be ideal. But for now I’m gonna use my AXIS 134 Limited as I find it highly versatile. A bigger handle also helps. You also need to set up the straps on the board nice and loose so that the board pops off your feet when you need it to!

It’s a different type of riding. Lots of power, lots of time in the air and lots of losing the board whilst working on new tricks.

At the moment I m just working on the foundation for new tricks meaning getting my timing right with the kite and getting the board on and off. Also revisiting the famous dead man 🙂