Duotone came up with an interesting concept with the current Juice. All sizes, i.e. 11, 13, 15 and 17m are usable in the same wind range. It just depends on the weight of the kiter and the board he chooses (twintip, foilboard…) which size he opts for. So I was curious about the new Juice and put it through a low wind test comparing it to the Icon Rebel.
Location: Egypt, Hamata, shallow lagoon, just low tide and 15-20cm of water at the shore
Wind: Almost none! Everyone was coming back with kits in the water and huge chamber kits were landing that were barely staying in the air. Maybe 5-6 knots?
Used board: Duotone Spike 153cm
Duotone brags about the small weight of the Juica! Hey, it’s made of lighter material even than its predecessor and has only 3 struts. You can already tell the difference from the Rebel when turning the kit after inflation.
Start
Juice flew out to twelfth with ease. He had minimal pull on the bar, but still enough for me to feel where he stood and what he wanted to do without looking. He was steady in the air and I was really surprised he stayed there. No backstall or frontstall.
Rebel didn’t want to fly out. It wasn’t enough to move the bar all the way forward, it was also necessary to take away some of its power (depower). When he got to twelve, I had the feeling he was going to fly over me and I pulled the bar back up again just to be sure. So it was necessary to keep him moving, which can be quite tiring in deep water with a board in hand.
Riding
Despite a seemingly weak pull on the bar, I was able to get Juice going with the first swing. The ride, while not upwind (remember, 5-6 knots), was continuous. Even on the next wave there wasn’t much noticeable change in stroke, the Juice spinning rather slower and steadier. This will be an advantage e.g. On the foil, thus not losing balance and stability.
The Rebel could be pitched, unlike the Juice, which gave me more speed and I was able to maintain altitude and return from where I started. It spins faster and you can clearly tell when it’s pulling and when it’s not. And when she pulls, she wants to go upwind!
Relaunch
I haven’t tested how easily the kits restart after falling into the water. I think in test conditions they would just stay lying down, especially with a 4 cord bar. If it really did, it would probably be more like a Juice. Both can be ridden with 5’s though. A cord that could be used to turn the kite around and get it back in the air even in that kind of windless conditions.
Conclusion
Interesting how big the differences can be for kits from the same manufacturer, same size.
If you want a kite for freeride in light winds, with which you can jump at least a few meters up and stay in the air for a while, I recommend the Rebel. But try to avoid a complete low end, especially in deep water. There are also better alternatives for beginners!
If the kite has to be easy to handle and work in the lightest possible wind, e.g. for foiling, I recommend Juice. A big plus: the Juice is also suitable for unhooked freestyle! Especially, it no longer “pulls like a tractor”, which was said about its predecessors 😉
A good alternative to consider is the Flysurfer Soul 15m, a kite that combines all the good features of both kits and definitely all the other lowwind kits. The advantages of the chambers are fully realized in lighter winds! There is no need to be afraid of them, a lot has changed in the last years and with the Soul practically all the disadvantages of such kits have been eliminated. If you don’t dare to do it yourself, I offer training courses which you can find out more about here.
What about other inflatables of this size? Certainly in light winds, lightweight kits made of special, usually less durable materials fly best. Often they are marked e.g. LW suffixes, they are more expensive and can withstand less. It also depends on the shape: slim and stretched seagulls will pull you upwind while with “ordinary” big ones you will just struggle not to get pulled downwind. My personal preference: when 15+ so chamber! I like the Flysurfer Sonic2 15m best, with which I can jump up to 10m even in bad conditions. But it’s also not a kite for everyone, stretched racekite, not the most stable, with extra fine material with extra thin lines. For a standard kiter I prefer the Soul 😉
As a board, I recommend the Woodboard CRBN 138cm, unless you want to ride on a restrictive, fun-impeding door! It’s downright incredible how this board performs in bad conditions and works great for heavier kiters too. If you want to test it out, report back!
If you have any further questions or would like advice, feel free to write and ask. For more information about the kits and what the manufacturer claims about them, please visit their website directly: