Norris Hill, Norris, MT 11/13/2009

What a day. Blue skies, 12+ inches of fresh pow., killer terrain, great winds, good friends, and of course the new EPIC 14m Screamer and 11m Renegade to top it all off.

Several friends showed up riding 12m Ozone’s. Having to show that LEI’s are just as capable, I busted out the 11m Renegade. I was a little underpowered but still able to climb the steep hills, glide and boost with ease. The stability and the relaunch of the kite were amazing. After getting used to the new kites they handled the variations in wind from terrain great.

Being my 2 time out since knee surgery I can’t complain one bit. With winds of 17-25mph and gusts up to 27mph I was amazed I held out for 2hrs. At that point it was time to sit in the snow and take some pics.

Rhett took out the new EPIC 14m Screamer and was throwing down some great boosts. He said that the kite handled great in the winds. He never felt over powered and thought that the kite floated amazingly.

I was never able to get out today on the 14m Screamer since my knee was done for by then, but I am hoping to get out in the next day or two and give it a try.

A Epic day on the Oregon coast, we had the Screamer 7m, LE Screamer 10m and 6m Renegade.

Conditions were perfect, NW winds clear sky's.

Rob R. who rides 2009 Kimas rode the 6m Renegade and came off saying the Renegade is a big improvement, most notable was a lighter bar pressure, He say's the relaunch was better also!

Rob also rode the 7m Screamer, he really like it, but the Renegade was more suited to his style.

Great day to have the new kites out!

Aruba Nov 2009

Have a look at some of the photos coming out of the latest trip Dimitri and crew are doing to show off all the new kites. This looks like a tough life eh? If you knew Dimitri’s travel schedule and talked to him while he was in China, it actually is work. Looks good though, eh?

There are more in our media section

Epic kites

Epic kites from the snow of Montana to the warm beaches of Aruba!

How Epic!

Here is what people are saying after a ride on the new Epic kites:

Bob N and I joined Tom V and a few of the Bellingham crew for a stellar session at Locust late this afternoon. I got to ride both the 12m and 9m prototype/demo Epic Screamer kites (I guess I should have said an epic session at Locust ). Boy are they nice! Especially the 9m!! I was never a big fan of the Eclipse kites, but the Epic - what a responsive, extremely fast turning kite. But super smooth and stable - it's fast but not twitchy. And I don't know how it does it but its got huge boost and hang time - I hate to admit it might even be better than my 2009 Nemesis HP.

Epic Kites in Montana

The 14m Screamer and 11m Renegade arrive here in Montana today and I am looking forward to getting out and riding them this week and weekend. The forecast calls for snow so we are hoping to get the first pics. of the kites in action on the snow. If anyone is interested in checking them out this weekend get a hold of me and we can set up a demo for you.

Here is some reviews from our friends up in Bellingham.

I have been able to get out on the Epic Renegade 9m, and the Screamer 9m and 12m.

I made a video yesterday of the 12m and 9m in action

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaKgUhffThI 12m Screamer 20mph

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vtWJSd99jM 9m Screamer 25mph

(Note, I am no Dimitri, and weigh in at about 220lbs)


Several others have been out too, and the feedback has been nothing but positive on the kite, even from the most critical riders. The screamers have similar jumping characteristics to the thruster, but with better hang, and a softer landing. Turning speed also seems very similar to the Thruster as well. the two biggest differences I see from the thruster is that the Screamer is more stable in strong gusty winds, and it seems to be easier to relaunch.

Not joking when I say that everyone who has tried it (except for a devout C-kite rider) wants to get one or more.

I spend only about 10 minutes on the Renegade, but to me, it seemed like the 2009 nano, except more solid in the air. Relaunch was easy, bar pressure light/moderate and it was more responsive than another "delta" kite that I flew back to back. Low end power seemed higher on the Renegade, but honestly both the 9m Renegade and Screamer had enough power to get me going upwind as the wind was dying. The difference is that the Renegade seemed to pull right from the get go, wheras the Screamer seemed to develop more power with more board speed.


Below are reveiws that were sent to me after riding the screamers.

#1 Major approval of the Epic, stable and turns fast like a Thruster.
I'll have to be adding the 9m to the collection of random kites in my
garage. T said the 12m was also lots of fun, looking forward to that
one next time.
B


#2 Definitely a thumbs up for the Screamer. I rode the 12m yesterday at
both ends of the spectrum. It was super stable and easy to handle at
28mph and still had enough pull to keep planning in the mid teens at
the end. I think Andy described it best by saying that it's a blend of
the best characteristics of an 09 Thruster mixed with an 09 Rise.
-Perfect turning speed, both initiation and across the window
-Very stable in the gusts with very little movement unlike the
Thruster.
-Very backstall resistant (the kite will deform well before it
backstalls giving plenty of notice, however, if properly trimmed you
won't even get that)
-GREAT jumping kite with incredible hangtime and soft landing (only
problem is that it loops with very little input and somtimes without
even knowing it but that's my problem, not the kite.
-The kite moves way forward in the window with agressive edging making
for stellar upwind performance.
-Easy relaunch when well powered (didn't get to try it in the lighter
winds)
-Lots of depower with a relatively short bar thow
-Construction and build quality second to none. Very nicely made.

I'm definitely sold on it, and that's after years of riding Best.
Andy, it's ALMOST as nice as a Nemi HP!!!
(it's actualy better, but I can't admit that to Andy)
Looking forward to trying the 9m

T


You can check out more footage as we get it put together at www.bellinghamkiteboarding.com

Thanks,

Andy