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KITEWORLD SUMMARY:
Superb upwind, nice, steady jumps and the steering is slow and predictable. It couldn't tick many more boxes for early intermediates, lighter riders or people getting into the sport. Very forgiving and so simple to fly.
THE HYPE:
Low aspect ratio, three strut, ultra-light, affordable and great in the waves. The Light is aimed at the traveller, wave rider or for schools' teaching programmes. The Light is also the kite to own if you are interested in learning to ride unhooked. It's the handlepass, unhooked kite that will allow the rider to learn those ballsy moves with ease. All in all it's a kite to leave you smiling.
TEST TEAM NOTES:
SET-UP:
CHRIS: Everything on it is slim and refined like it would be on a foil. Ozone certainly aren't afraid of bridling their kites!
GEORGE: As Ozone's beginner kite it's simple in certain ways, such as no one pump and it only has three struts, but there's still loads of attention to detail with the netting over the valves and everything being so neat and tidy. They're still as keen as possible to keep the aerodynamics sweet, which could be why there's no one pump. I think the bridle has seven attachment points on the front, so that leading edge isn't going anywhere! That's a lot of bridle for a seven metre. It's got two cross-bridles that are at 90 degrees to the canopy to stop it rolling through itself, but when you unroll the kite in wind, that bridle keeps the kite C shaped and stops it lying flat so it catches the wind. Just weight it down with a bit more sand. All that bridle could be intimidating on your first time out, but the dealer should show you how to set it up, and once you've done it once, it's easy.
CHRIS: Yeah and it totally works, it's so stable. The construction seems really good even though it is so light - which is probably why it flies so well. It really behaves itself. Line adjusters on the side of the bar are good. Again, another pull release on the chicken-loop. Long 27 metre lines slow the kite down nicely and you get loads of leverage on that depower strap because of the way it's designed with one of the easiest to use cleats. It doesn't matter how short your arms are.
GEORGE: All fully-spinning and it's definitely rangey, there's loads of depower.
GENERAL RIDING:
CHRIS: It has that foil feel in that it flies really high into the window and is really efficient. Definite good points are that it pulls you upwind like a train and you don't have to work to turn the kite, it's all just very easy, comfortable and soft. A very positive and rewarding kite to go out and have a good time on. You won't get the biggest jumps with it, but it has good float.
GEORGE: It's really stable, and once you're moving along it just generates power. It's very efficient and will sit right at the front of the window, which is why it's a doddle to go upwind on.
WILL: It doesn't haul you either, but it does have that initial punch of power to get you out of the water. It's only a seven metre, but you don't have to work it loads to get power.
GEORGE: Yeah it's impressive, but still very tame. The back lines felt too long for me - I had the bar right down against the chicken-loop a lot, but it is aimed at beginners. Advanced riders would want more power.
CHRIS: Yeah, when you pull in those last couple of inches you expect a real surge of power, and it doesn't have that, which is great for getting into the sport and forgiving those early bar- andling errors. We shortened the back lines, but it was obvious the kite has been designed to sit right at the front of the window. For a recreational rider to go out, have a good time and not get hauled about and for easy, fun kitesurfing it works very well.
WILL: It's great for riding strapless because you can dump the power. And when you heet in you never get that grunt that rips you off the board. At the same time, however, when I was trying to do transitions I had it sheeted in and could have done with some more power. I've never gone upwind so fast on a kite, though.
GEORGE: It's fast enough and has good depower to work in waves. Good for getting used to unhooked freestyle, but once you're used to it you'd want more power.
CHRIS: Dangle-passing is OK. Because the kite flies out of the power quickly you can pass the bar easily, but the bar isn't designed with that in mind. The cow horns are angled away meaning your hand slips down them if you do anything really powered.
SIZES:
3, 5, 7, 9 and 12m
This test is in issue #27
www.flyozone.com
Stockist:
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