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The Parafoil Kite
An Engine For Many Extreme Sports
There's always a good parafoil kite or 3 going on online auctions, such as the following....
For a good overall picture of the parafoil kite scene back in 2007, see the big information table below. Prices change, and a new kite comes onto the market from time to time, so this info is obviously out of date now. However, have you seen anything like this table anywhere else on the Web? I don't think so! Out of date or not, it tells you a thing or 2 about foil kites. The cheapies are at the top of the table, and are not necessarily of much use to you as a traction kite! Ok for a bit of a slip'n'giggle out on the frozen lake with someone's old pair of skis or toboggan, maybe. Serious about going cross-country under parafoil kite power? Look towards the bottom end of the list.
| Price US$ | Manufacturer | Name | Type | Sizes (sqr m) | | <100 | Brookite | Sky Witch | 2-line | 0.6 | | | Brookite | Sky Wizard | 2-line | 0.8 | | | Flexifoil | Buzz | 2-line | 0.8 | | | Flying Wings | Mighty Bug | 2-line | 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 | | | HQ | Bongo | 2-line | 1.2 | | | HQ | NPW 5 | 2-line | 2.4, 3.4, 4.4 | | | HQ | Symphony | 2-line | 1.2, 1.4, 1.8 | | | Ozone | Imp 07 | 2-line | 1.0 | | | Spirit of Air | Power Foil | 2-line | 1.1, 1.4 | | | Thunderbird | Speed Foil | 2-line | 1.0 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 0.7 | | | Rhombus | Firebee | 4-line | 1.0, 2.0 | | | Feed The Rat | FTR | depowerable | 2.0, 3.0 | | 100-199 | HQ | NPW 5 | 2-line | 6.9 | | | HQ | NPW 9 | 2-line | 3.4, 5.3, 7.6, 12.0 | | | HQ | Rush | 2-line | 1.3, 1.8, 2.6 | | | HQ | Symphony | 2-line | 2.2, 2.7 | | | Ozone | Imp 07 | 2-line | 1.5, 2.0 | | | HQ | Beamer III | 4-line | 2.0 | | | New Tech | Ballistic | 4-line | 2.2, 3.6 | | | Ozone | Imp Quattro | 4-line | 1.5 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 1.4, 2.0 | | | Rhombus | Firebee | 4-line | 3.0, 4.0 | | | Feed The Rat | FTR | depowerable | 4.0 | | 200-299 | HQ | NPW 9 | 2-line | 15.0 | | | Ozone | Imp Trainer | 2-line | 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.5 | | | Gin | Zig | 4-line | 1.0, 2.0 | | | HQ | Beamer III | 4-line | 3.0, 4.0 | | | HQ | Beamer TSR | 4-line | 1.8 | | | New Tech | Ballistic | 4-line | 4.9 | | | Ozone | Imp Quattro | 4-line | 2.0, 2.5, 3.5 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 3.0, 4.0 | | | Spirit of Air | Cyclone | 4-line | 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 | | | Feed The Rat | FTR | depowerable | 5.5 | | 300-399 | Gin | Zig | 4-line | 3.0, 4.0, 5.5 | | | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 1.8 | | | HQ | Beamer III | 4-line | 5.0, 7.0 | | | HQ | Beamer TSR | 4-line | 2.5, 3.6 | | | Flexifoil | Rage | 4-line | 1.8, 2.5 | | | New Tech | Ballistic | 4-line | 6.2 | | | Ozone | Samurai 2 | 4-line | 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 | | | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 2.5 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 5.5 | | 400-499 | Flexifoil | Rage | 4-line | 3.5, 4.7 | | | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 2.6, 3.8 | | | HQ | Beamer TSR | 4-line | 5.0, 7.0 | | | Ozone | Samurai 2 | 4-line | 5.0 | | | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 3.5 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 7.0 | | 500-599 | Flexifoil | Rage | 4-line | 6.0 | | | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 4.8 | | | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 4.5, 5.5 | | | PKD | Buster | 4-line | 9.0 | | 600-699 | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 6.2 | | | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 6.8 | | | Gin | Yoz II UDS | depowerable | 1.8 | | | Ozone | Access | depowerable | 6.0, 10.0 | | 700-799 | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 8.5 | | | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 8.5 | | | Gin | Yoz II UDS | depowerable | 2.6, 3.8 | | | North Husky Ltd | n/a | depowerable | 7.3, 11.3 | | 800-899 | Ozone | Razor | 4-line | 11.0 | | | Gin | Yoz II UDS | depowerable | 4.8 | | | Ozone | Frenzy | depowerable | 5.0 | | 900-999 | Gin | Yoz II | 4-line | 10.6 | | | Ozone | Frenzy | depowerable | 7.5 | | 1000-1099 | Gin | Eskimo | depowerable | 4.0 | | | Gin | Yoz II UDS | depowerable | 8.5 | | 1100-1199 | Gin | Eskimo | depowerable | 6.0 | | | Ozone | Frenzy | depowerable | 10.0 | | 1200-1299 | Gin | Yoz II UDS | depowerable | 10.6 | | | Ozone | Frenzy | depowerable | 12.0 | | 1300-1399 | Gin | Eskimo | depowerable | 8.5 | | | Ozone | Frenzy | depowerable | 14.0 | | 1400-1499 | Gin | Eskimo | depowerable | 11.5 |
Did you notice some groups or categories in all that parafoil kite data? Here's what I saw... - 2-line stunt kites for flying in the park, with steering ability but not much power for traction sports
- bigger stunt kites, with more useful amounts of power
- small 4-line traction kites that could be used to snowkite, for example
- low-end depowerable parafoil kites, tough and ideal for beginners
- more expensive 4-liners, quite good to snowboard or buggy with
- mid-range depowerable foils, perfect for snowkiting
- most expensive large kites, stable with smoothly controllable power over a very wide wind range
Hope you got something out of all this parafoil kite info!
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Last updated: 12 Oct 2009
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