We at air understand how the wind can be an addiction. We are no different than you we’re passionate about kiteboarding and, Like you we’re out there every chance we get. Our gear research is about discovering what will give us more great times on the water.
Our experience teaches us that kiteboarding gear can be rated on very specific variables and these variables define what you want. Evaluating these critical traits (32 for kites & 19 for boards) directly leads us to choosing what we personally ride and what we in the shop recommend for you.
We have tried a lot of gear over the years. During these trials we have had a lot of great kiteboarding sessions and discovered many great things. They have also provided us with more kitemares than we would like to admit.We remember all the good and bad what exactly made us excited or downright frustrated.
Here’s how we get the Airscore
The scoring system we use evaluates how stron or weak a trait may be everyday riders are asked to stress test gear and then rate each trait. Individual trait scores are calculated based on which weighted key factor group they fall into
For example, the trait “craftsmanship” falls into the safety category. We feel that safety traits are 3 times more important than comfort traits we multiply craftsmanship score by three.
We take all rider results, line up scores for each trait and throw out the highest and lowest scores.Participants score the individual trats and then average them across all participants. This way, we have a solid average test score for each trait, which has compensated for anomalies
How do we get the raw score of the gear well its easy we take the average of the traits across every key factor.Then to keep is simple we break it down into a 5 point scale.
Now we have added a value bonus!This takes the gear cost and calculates a bonus. Basically, the less expensive the kite, the bigger the bonus!
Then we also add the value bones to the 5 point number! We have the air score. With that in mind here’s what you can expect:
5 Stars, air’s top rating, gives you a gear ranking very high in all four key factors. While some things may still need you attention to suit it to your needs you will be impressed with the ride this gear will give you right out of the box and will give you the opportunity to increase your skills.
A 4 star rating gives you at least moderately high on all key factors for that gear. There may be a few individual traits that didn’t score in the high levels and may need some minor attention but you’ll be on the water without needing to do any tuning.
if it has 3 stars this indicates that one or more of the key factors is scoring ony moderately. This gear is still good and you will have fun riding but there are limitations in riding styles and wind ranges. This gear may take more effort to use but it is safe.
2 stars indicate the gear is scoring low on at least one key factor. This gear bust be tuned out of the box before using and has limited ability. Quality comfort and convenience are usually sacrifced for the price of kitesurfing.
If the gear has 1 star this means the gear is scoring low on two or more traits. This gear has significant flaws and Simply, the gear should be recalled and re-designed.
Just about perfect
We have spent a lot of time in the complexity of developing this kitesurfing evaluation system however it is not perfect. Every rider has their own opinion and many are strongly biased on brand loyalty we strive to use only non-sponsored kiters in our testing (with an educated objective mindset).And that is why se throw out the lowest and highest scores.
There’s always that person that is skeptical, but we’ve done our best to include every possible thing into one of the listed traits.Sometimes a kite or board may have something unique about it which falls outside our rating system. That’s why we’re always on the lookout for new trends and are open to evolving the air scoring method.Give us a call if you have any good ideas!
