Latest News, Blog & Videos

Wing foiling has officially taken off. This new and exciting sport is really resonating with riders from SUP, surf, kite, wake, wind, and more. Right now knowledge is limited or skewed and choosing the right gear is necessary to have a good time. Building off of our first wind wing comparison video and blog about the Slingshot Slingwing, Naish Wing Surfer, and Duotone Wing Foil, this blog will detail the differences and benefits of the two most popular wings in the market right now, the Ozone Wa …

The goal of this video is to help you decide if the Vegas is right for you. I’ve done videos on C-kites in the past and when checking the forums, a lot of people got the impression that I am completely against C-kites like the Vegas. That’s not the case. That video was meant to deter beginners from starting out on a kite that would hold them back. The Vegas is an incredible kite but it does have some drawbacks for inexperienced riders. The grey area comes into play when you hit t …

Hey guys, it’s Nathan here from MACkite, and today, I’m going to talk to you about the 2020 North Orbit. 2020 NORTH ORBIT We’ve not had a chance to thoroughly review the North Orbit at this time, so this post contains more of our first impressions as a reviewing team. Because we had limited time on it, and were testing it in some conditions that we weren’t necessarily used to, we want to get some more time on the kite to further develop our opinions on what we think thi …

Heads up, this blog will be updated this week. We aim to keep these more extensive. Tuckers trying to catch up at the shop here.  This will be the second part of this discussion. Last year we looked at 7 of Slingshots wing options. Those are all the same for 2020, so we will just focus on the three new designs to keep it concise. Apollo 60 cm  2020 Slingshot Apollo hydrofoil wing  The 2020 Slingshot Apollo 60 foil wing will undoubtedly be a top choice for kiteboarders. De …

We’ve had the new Moto for a full year now and we wanted to give you an updated review. This is going to be a shorter video but, unlike the Switchblade, there are some new insights we wanted to share. If you’re not familiar with the Moto, last year Cabrinha released a new kite in the lineup- something not to replace, but to complement the Switchblade, essentially a lighter and faster 3-strut version with characteristics of its own. This was a clever solution to a big problem for Cabr …

Today I will review the Duotone Jamie Textreme twintip, going over its strengths and weaknesses, and explain why it’s been my board of choice for the past three years. This June, Hilary, Rygo and I went to Bolonia, Spain for the Duotone distributor meeting and had the opportunity to try out the new 2020 gear. There we met Jaime Herraiz and Manu Manuel, the two masterminds behind my favorite board, and got to pick their brains about what goes into making this product so great. First off, …

The Duotone Dice and Rebel are two kites that are completely different in design, on the water and in their approach to the different disciplines. There are aspects that cross over, leaving people confused on which kite is right for them, like big air, high performance and a "rip you off the water" feel. In 2020 the Dice has some re-designs while, aside from material changes, the Rebel is the same. Rather than doing reviews, I thought it would be more valuable to cover the changes... all the dif …

In 2020, the name North Kiteboarding is coming back. While this is a completely new brand, they have assembled top players from across the industry and created a new lineup. In a time when products have become ridiculously over-complicated with a multitude of options, North has taken an elegant, simple, yet masterful approach to every facet of their brand, from form to function. In a way, they are like the Apple of kiteboarding. Now before we go any further, we wanted to clear some things up. Th …

Duotone has really stepped up their Hydrofoil and Foil board game for the 2019/2020 season. Two of our favorite new Duotone hydrofoil products are the Pace and Free foil boards. They both feature a quality design and construction for beginner to advanced riders. In this video blog, we will walk through their similarities and differences and point out how that will affect your foilboard experience. Surfboard or Twintip construction The easiest difference to spot on these boards is the constru …

Slingshot went back to the drawing board for 2020 and has brought us two brand-new kites - the Rally GT and the Raptor. Many are wondering - who are these kites for, and what is the difference? We've spent some time on both kites and have developed opinions on what we feel the differences are. In this short comparison, we'll sort out those differences and help you make the decision - Rally GT or Raptor? We'll cover some basic flying characteristics of each kite, broken down by category below. …

What is the Rally GT? Let's start with what the Rally GT is not. The 2020 Slingshot Rally GT is not the same Rally that you've used before. It's entirely new for 2020. They (Slingshot) went back and forth, deliberating a complete name change and landed on Rally GT (rather than an entirely new name, which could make sense with a kite that is such a far cry from the original Rally design). What is the Rally GT, then? The Rally GT is Slingshot's "Do-it-all" kite for 2020. Every brand has one of t …

What is the Raptor? The all-new Raptor from Slingshot for 2020 is their new user-friendly big booster, capable of taking you to heights you've never achieved! According to Slingshot, the Raptor is their dedicated high-performance freestyle/freeride crossover kite, tuned for big boosts, lofty airs, and aggressive performance. We tend to agree with this - it's a five-strut jumping powerhouse! The Raptor, although excellent at jumping, tends to really lean its focus in that direction and forego …

Two freestyle kites that at first glance look similar, yet are noticeably different on the water... the long-standing Cabrinha FX and the even-longer-standing, yet new to the category Liquid Force NV. If you’re looking for a kite to take your kiteloops or unhooked riding to a new level, these will get it done. The question is, which kite is right for you? Today we’ll break it all down and dive into everything you need to know. Let’s dive into some common attributes between …

Last time on Sessions we explored Key West and the Canary Islands with our team rider Blake Olsen. We were filming for our  kiteloop playlist and just enjoying the islands with good friends. It was so much fun visiting what has become one of my favorite cities for kiteboarding in the USA. The only downside was that I had just injured my knee snowboarding and I had to sit out on most of the riding on both of these trips!  Testing the Liquid Force NV V9  Getting back on the wa …

Freeriders, foilers, jumping junkies, take note.... Newly released from Cabrinha for the 2020 season is the new Freeride kite, the AV8.  It is designed for maximum power and efficiency in a user-friendly kiteboarding kite.  Taking lessons learned from Cabrinha's previous powerhouse kites such as the Contra, Crossbow, Velocity, and Apollo, the AV8 kitesurf kite is a two decade long pursuit of easy-to-use power combined with cutting edge hydrofoiling concepts. With a 5-strut, durable …