The new Duotone Vegas 2019 is here. For those who are clueless, Vegas is the C-shaped Duotone kite oriented to wakestyle. It is a kite that by its shape and program, is recommended to advanced riders who want to do tricks unhooked most of the time.
When we open the new Duotone Vegas 2019, first impression is that you are facing a well-built kite. As North kites in recent years, it is a good contruction with reinforcements in the important parts and made to last.
Duotone keeps as in previous years (with North), the "Trinity TX", which is a fabric that has 3x2 in each square, making the construction more resistant and durable to time and impacts.
The Duotone Vegas comes with a multitude of setups to suit most riders. In the rear lines we find the classic configuration with a Soft / Medium / Hard setting.
Putting the pigtail in Soft Setting you will get a kite with less bar pressure, faster and that will pull more closed and soft kiteloops in addition to developing the power in a more linear and smooth way.
On the other hand we find the Hard Setting, where the kite has higher bar pressure, the handling is more precise, its turn and kiteloop is more open (generates more power) and above all, makes the kite slower and less sensitive, so this setup is what we recommend to unhook!.
The Medium Setting is a setup halfway between the two and it is the one that comes by default in the kite.
We can also configure the front lines between High Depower / Medium depower / Low Depower. Duotone Vegas is a C-shape kite, but if you put the pigtails in High Depower you will find a kite that has enough depower, jumps reasonably well and is quite reactive. If you come from a Vegas 2013/14, this is the setup that will make you feel more similar to that model and therefore, is more accessible to all audiences.
If you change the pigtail to Low Depower mode, you will discover a kite oriented to wakestyle where you will find more pop and slack when unhooked. If you combine Low Depower and Hard setting, you will have the perfect setup to make your wakestyle tricks.
We have tested the new Vegas 2019 in several sizes with the Click Bar bar without V..
When we went out to do wakestyle, we found the kite we expected. The kite in the air feels very compact and with enough delay in the bar, added to that it has a very explosive and controlled pop makes it perfect for unhooked tricks. The wind range is good and its re-launch is very simple thanks to its fifth line.
With Low depower / Hard setting it does its job very well, but if you're looking to jump / big air with this kite, it's not the best choice. Even if you change it to the High Depower mode, it is a kite that only shows its potential if you use it unhooked, for any other type of riding there are better options, such as the Duotone Dice 2019.
Before we can make a realistic comparison of the new Vegas 2019, we have to tell you an aspect that changes the behavior of the kite without being the kite! And this is, the bar.
The Wakestyle bar we have been using in recent years has been discontinued, and this was the bar of choice for most users. This year Duotone has brought to market a shorter Click Bar, and is the one that they offer as a replacement. The bar is a bit longer than wakestyle one, but has the great advantage of being able to choose where to place the V of the front lines, and this makes the Vegas change quite a bit its behavior.
The construction and shape of the kite is practically identical, changing some minimal aspects such as the dacron shape of the trailing edge.
In the air the kite feels just like its predecessor. Where we have found differences is in the pop and the slack but we believe this comes by the bar and the position of the front V than by the kite!
The new Duotone Vegas 2019 is the ideal kite if you are already throwing unhooked tricks and want to move to the next level. With the right setup, you will find a very comfortable kite to ride and with which you can have a good time in any wind or sea condition. But where this kite really stands out is in its side of New School / Wakestyle, where with the right configuration you will have what is possibly the best kite to unhook of the market..
Carla and Rodri, combined experience flying kites of more than 30 years. And a Kitesurf World Championship...🔥