Naish Boxer III 9M

When I was still but a lowly newbie, and I MEAN newbie to kitesurfing I planned a trip to Egypt, Moonbeach to be exact, where the weather was warm and the winds were perfect. I owned a 12m and a 15m so what else would I possibly need!!

Well... after booking and doing the inevitable EXTRA research on where I was going I discovered if I wanted to get the best out of the lpace I had better get my hands on a 9m! Fortunately due to the miracle of work (yes I do actually work folks!!....Occasionally!) I went to see Mark at Whitstable Windsurfing and got some great advice and left the shop £350 lighter and the proud owner of a new 06 Naish Boxer III 9m complete.

Well I was desperate to use this kite before I went but lets be honest here! You buy a 9m kite 5 days before you go on a kitesurf holiday there is not a chance in hell that the wind gods are actually gonna let you fly it before you go!!!

So I get to moonbeach and its perfect learners 9m weather! Well I was still at the stage where I could go right foot forward without a problem but left foot forward was definitely challenging! Well due to perfect wind, butter flat water and 90 degree sunshine I had both directions cracked on the first day and was finally in a postion to learn a bit about the kite!

What I learnt was I LOVE IT!!!

As a foil flyer I always though that a 9m kite was an absolute monster, and as foils go it is! It is also like flying a bus of beachy head, unless you get it right it just falls out of the sky!!!

Well was I in for a shock! a 9m Lei flys like a wasp! The Boxer III is a medium aspect kite, it is fast through the window and had me grinning like a lunatic in minutes!

By the 2nd hour of the 2nd day I was actually making 'upwind' progress!! Something that had seemed like some kind of Voodoo magik prior to this with my Hydros!

The build quality of this kite is absolutely ROCK solid, the 5th line safety system is excellent, but I did find the leash banging against my leg a bit odd and after a couple of dunkings I diod notice it was wrapped around the chicken loop. Not something that is too essential but as Naish's safety system is an odd 'grab the web cover at the top of the chicken loop and slide forward' this did give me a minor amount of concern.

The kite is marketed as an 'all terrain' kite and although I have no plans to landboard with this EVER! I am toying with the idea of snowkiting with it! Yes I am that impressed with the build quality!

This kite gave me my first taste of jumps and as with all small kites like this it shoots you airborne very rapidly but it doesnt have a great deal of float! Not that I cared as I was too busy thinking "Ive just made it into orbit!!"

Some say a beginner shouldnt even think about a small Lei but this was as friendly as you made it. Something that is often the case with kites. Granted I did learn the following day this isnt applicable to ALL kites! (I flew an 05 14m Rhino that scare the bejesus outta me!) Would I recommend this to a beginner, well in hindsight probably not, but not because its a dangerous kite but more because of the winds you take it out in. I am now loathed to get this baby out in anything less than 30mph where its an absolute beasty!!

Its an amazing kite, great build quality and attention to detail. It flies well has a good fifth line system and in my opinion is only let down by its bizzarre relaes system. Something I didnt have to use in Egypt and as I now fly it on an 06 Slingshot bar system it is not an issue. Its a fast kite, will get you very high very quickly but DONT expect floaty landings. Its a high wind kite if you really want to get the best out of it. But it flys well, the sheet in/out doesnt make it too ugly to fly if you are horrible overpowered but at the time I only had 03 kites to compare it with.

As with most Lei's this size, its not that much about aspect ratios as you are generally flying them in high winds anyway so you are going to be lit up regardless. I like my little Boxer and its price onhly made it more attractive and now its been superceeded by the SLE I have seen it for sale new kite only for £299 which in my opinion makes it a steal!

By : BlindJP