Ozone Fury 4.5M

Well, this should be the 1000th review on the site. I just logged on and it said 999, so here goes:

After working my way through the HQ ranks with Symphony 2.2 and 1.4, followed by a beamer 3.6, then added beamer 2.5 and 1.8, I found that in the winter ballistic winds on Westward Ho! and Black Rock Sands I was struggling upwind and losing confidence in my kites, and I had too many low end and the 2.5 wasn't getting used. Now, in hindsight, it was my ability at the time rather than the kites as the 1.8 beamer took some brutal punishment from me, but did break a few lines...

Anyway, at the end of frustrating session on the Ho! and speaking to a couple of the regulars (Thanks craig W) and trundled over to On-Shore at Woolacombe. Gareth there gave me some excellent advice and after a productive discussion I opted for a Orange, Blue and Yellow retro Ozone Fury. Gareth unfurled it in the shop and I was immediately impressed by the build quality. Mylar reinforced leading edge, stitched bridle lines and sewn sleeved power and brake lines. The handles are neoprene covered and all of it is packed into a red bag in a duffle bag style. It comes with some ozone stickers and a keyring as well as a comprehensive instruction manual. I'm not sure if it also came with kite killers though, if it did then great, as this is an excellent beginners kite.

Well, off I went home with it, and the next day decided to fly it in around 20mph winds on my In-law's hill farm in north Devon. This was my first mistake. Sheep are naturally curious when a man with a bag walks into their field, and with 200 of them it was inevitable that something would go wrong! I should have learnt when flying the symphony in that field and a bullock took a fancy to the kite line as I launched, and got a good flossing!

So, in between shooing them away and trying to put the lines on (should have been easy as the handles, lines and bridle all have numbered tags so you don't get it wrong!) I got it wrong and as I launched the kite went into a terrible spin and I couldn't stop it. With totally tangled lines I ended up using myself as a winder and wound the lines all around me. not a good start.

2 hours of line untangling later I put it together the right way and went off down to Woolacombe beach. I parapack my kites and after pegging out the handles I walked downwind letting the lines slide out of the bag. At the end I took out the kite, shook it out, and the kite just sat up itching to fly.

First tug on the lines and up it went, and along the beach I went doing giant steps....must lean back next time! I've really enjoyed flying it since and the build quality is excellent. The lines are so strong, and are showing no signs of fraying. I've ditched the handles as I prefer the flexi handles and killers, but that's personal choice - there is nothing wrong with the ozone ones.

So, what's it good for? Well, it is an awesome traction kite. Its got great pull and turns on a sixpence. For buggying it became my first choice kite for the higher winter winds, and earlier in the year I had a couple of great days at Westward Ho! with it. The first day I had it up in 18 to 20mph and did 7 miles with it with speeds up to 20mph in the buggy, but it was probably too small as sometimes I struggled when I hit a soft patch of sand, but I'm a bit of a chicken...

...but the next day saw 30mph plus onshore and the fury was my smallest kite! I was aprehensive and first launch got faceplanted and dragged down the beach... so it couldn't get any worse could it?

Anyway, got it up to the zenith, got in my flexi-buggy, and dropped the kite into the powerzone and we were off. This kite likes to be locked in at a low height to get max power, and does fly best using the brakes. Once it was locked it on a run it was brake trimming that gets the best out of it.

That day the kite took amazing punishment. I crashed a couple of times and took a huge OBE by the rocks, and a couple of times I got confused and dived it at speed into the sand. On one of these I did burst a cell - putting a small 2cm tear into it, but considering the speed it hit the ground I'm amazed it didn't do more damage. But, it gave me a top speed of 32mph over a 20 mile run.

I love this kite. I love the colour and its flying characteristics suit me. Since then I've got a 4.5 fury in the same colours, a 6m samurai which I then quickly sold on and got a 7.5 frenzy which will soon make way for a 6m access. I'm converted to ozone now and can't fault them.

A great beginner to intermediate kite, super strong, great lines, and great fun.

By : beara