Peter Lynn Venom 2

You would think that the excitement of getting a new kite would wear thin after a while wouldn't you?

Well it doesn't!!

There are few times as pleasant to me as looking at the new kite on my hallway flooor awaiting a thuruogh playing with in the morning. This is intensified when it's a totally new model as well.

So there we were.... a brand spanking new 10/13/16 combo sat on the floor, t shirts and DVDs put away and a damned good inspection of the 10m underway.

If you have read my other reviews you will see we have stuck with the Peter Lynn Arcs each year... other kites have come and gone but the Arcs remain. Sam is now a Peter Lynn UK team rider and his general response to trying another kite is "It's OK... but the Venom does XXX better!" So after a zillion hours last year on the Venom we were quite excited to see what the Venom11 could do that was better.

Where to start...... OK.... start on the bag.

It's very simillar to the V1s, the biggest change I can find is the zipper on the extended bag tube goes over the top now, making pushing a kite with batons inserted into it a little easier.

The bag is really comfy when used as a rucksack and has a carry handle on one side to move it as hand luggage.

Onto the kite then.... we pulled the coffe table aside and got the 10m out.... the usual good quality ripstop was there, great colours again, the stiching is even and happily easy to repair if anything should go wrong!!

The Venom had a "flight adjuster" in the center of the bottom strap, the Venom11 has them in the wingtips too..... these speed up the turns... but beware, they CAN make the kite a little twitchy if you overdo it with the pulling in of straps!

So, pre flight everything was looking good, easy to spot improvements and still with the rugged quality we have come to expect.

First trip out with them....

The wind was high 20-28mph so it was 10m time..... now last year Sam had been landing some REALLY good tricks with a massively powered 10m...... we had high hopes for it this year.

We were not dissapointed!

It turns SO much faster, the profile is much more rigid, the venom felt slightly "mushy" when turning, like an old powersteering system, turn, a slight hesitation, then turn.... not now! With a touch of the bar the kite responds..... lovely, much more "intuitive" flying than last year.

Power..... there is LOTS of power, it is like the whole range got and extra 5cm on the chicken loop line..... like a venom with the restrictors removed. This is helped all the way by the increased speed of the kites. The 10m is nearly as fast as the 8m was last year and can almost produce as much power as the venom 13 through it's speed!!

The 13m, this would be the one that most land users would get the most fun out of, really fast, loads of "pop" and still with good float. Don't get me wrong, this ISN'T a "park and ride" style kite in most winds, it doeas need working up and down the window, but crikey... when you do it is amazing!

The 16m is as big as most land users under 13stone will need..... over that and for water you will love the 19... more on that later.

The venom16 suffered slightly from being a little more sluggish on the turn and that was with a 60cm bar.... Venom11 on a 50cm bar, turns on a dime and produces LOADS of sheer grunt. this will get you up in the air early and hold you there till you want it to stop!! This is the size that does "park and ride", give it a couple of sines to get moving then stick it at ten or two o'clock and hold on!!!

The 19m.... right lets get something straight here!

Arcs DO NOT like low wind, get a bridled foil... oh... say an 8.3 reactor.. out when the wind goes sub 11mph!

this kite is ASTONISHING.... a really powerful beast of a kite from about 8-10mph if you work it, 11mph and you have a "park and ride" sky tractor attached to your harness!

The venom19m I didn't bother with as it turned too slowly and seemed " a bit much" whenever I tried one.. NOT the Venom11! This is the only one that really likes the 60cm bar... it will fly on the 50cm but it isn't as nice.

This years 19m turns as fast as last years 16.... it produces more power than last years 19 and the jumps are.... well floaty doesn't even come close to how this kite feels!

I have been using it in the water and having BIG fun with it, using it on land and getting going with barely a breeze.

So that is a brief individual run down on them, what have they all got in common?

The upwind performance on these is astonishing on land and water, the venom was always good, the Venom11 is even better. Launching is improved, let it fill up and there are NO bowtie worries anymore as they are much stiffer this year.

Depower range.... this is nearly as good as a Bow style kite, it just loses out those last few percent.

And.....

Saving the best for last.....

NO MORE CARBON SPARS!!!! YAAAAAAY!

We now have smashing Blue anodised Alloy spars, easy and cheap to replace and till robust.

Please note, this isn't the mad ramblings of someone who has just blown a wad of cash on new toys and is all giddy with them..... we have had them five months now and have had plenty of time to find fault, get over the new kite smell and want new toys.

I have other kites as well, quite a few as I like to try new things, but Sam Only sticks to hs V2s..... He says nothing else comes close and if you had seen some of the things he can do on these then.... well you might agree!!

If you want a "try before you buy" session, drop me a PM and meet up, you wont regret it!

By : adamski