We just brought in a big box of compression kite bags from Dakine and it’s a product we’re really excited about for 2 reason. They’re cheap and they’re functional! Compression bags are made out of a super lightweight nylon material so you can get rid of your heavy stock bag that came with the kite. When you’re traveling with a golf bag, space and weight are the two big concerns.
These bags cinch down really tight around the kite so you can fit more kites into your bag, and you save a ton of weight you didn’t realize the stock bags had. So, you don’t have to worry about tipping the scales at the airport check in station.
Or, you can use the cheap black compression bags to replace your stock bags so that you can keep the stock bags looking clean and new. That way when you go to resell your used kite, it will look a lot fresher than some dirty, torn up bag. We’ve found you can fit at least two compressed kite bags into one stock bag so you can easily throw more kites on your back when walking to the beach.
We just got in a shipment of accessories from Hyperflex wetsuits. We recently acquired them as a brand and we couldn’t be more amped about the quality and price of their products. The Playa Jacket is one of our favorite, must-have items for winter kiting. You’ll see pictures of Dmitry Marimendes wearing one in most of the Hyperflex advertisements lately. It’s super warm, stylish, well-made and low-priced.
We brought in some of their 3mm Mesh Skin Gloves which are only $19.99. We were really impressed upon trying them on. For under $20, they are comparable to gloves we’ve seen that cost 20 or 30 dollars more! They’re really warm, flexible, have pre-curved fingers and won’t cut your circulation off. We’ve tried gloves with dry seals on the wrist but they end up being so tight that not only do they keep water out, they keep your blood from flowing to your fingers too!
The Cyclone 5/3 Split Toe Boot is going to be our choice bootie for the fall/winter kiting season. It’s on sale from $47.99 down to $39.99. The lower strap is a great feature and it has an external split toe with a connection piece to keep any lines from getting snagged around your big toe. They’re sized more true to our standards too since they’re an American company. The 5/3mm thickness will keep your feet plenty toasty, even in 45 degree waters.
After a successful teaching and demo season over the summer, it’s time for us to drop pricing on all of our personal kites to get them out of the shop and make room for exciting new 2010 gear like the Best Nemesis NXG and the Slingshot Octanes.
Most of the used kites we have at the moment are Slingshots, like the REV2s, RPMs and even some ’09 Fuels. However, we have an 09 Waroo and a few Kahoona’s left that are aggressively priced and won’t last long! Here’s a quick breakdown of what we have, all are priced as kite only unless stated otherwise.
The HD GoPro POV cameras (point-of-view) are being released at the end of the month and we couldn’t be more giddy with anticipation. They just leaked the most killer video to showcase the clarity of this camera so I had to share it with you. The cameras will be available on October 31st but we’re taking preorders now so you can be sure we don’t sell out before you get yours. At only $299 for the HD HERO Helmet camera, it’s a steal of a deal.
We just got our first shipment of the new Rayne Isis which is the pro model for women’s downhill longboarding champ Brianne Davies. So far it has exceeded all our expectations. It’s like a smaller, but topmounted Demonseed. The Isis has a really comfortable downhill feel to it when tucking. It’s less expensive than the Killswitch and the drop locks you in really nicely since the drop extends the full width of the board.
The w-concave is a little bit more correctly positioned for freeriding and downhill (it starts further back which feels really nice for pushing). It also has more mounting holes so you can shorten or lengthen the wheelbase and really customize your ride. One of our longboard pros describes it as a deck he would actually pay full price for and not just nab the shop demo.
Insect just unveiled their new Mosquito Drop deck. Now the Mosquito has a .5″ drop for even more stability. Plus, it has a full radial concave to really lock your feet in during slides. They’ve improved their mainline construction to make the decks stronger by laterally distributing the energy and allowing more of that energy to be transferred through the nano instead of the wood. The concave is a little bit deeper and the slight camber creates pockets between the drop and the camber so you always know where your feet are. They now have a gloss finish over the nano to help protect the composite and make it look extra pretty.
We are in the process of putting together a video with Steve Hopper, the mastermind behind Insect Longboards, explaining the new construction and design behind the Mosquito Drop. Watch for that to be released soon! For now, come by the shop and try out our demo so you can see what the hype is all about for yourself.
After much anticipation, Orangatang finally released another duro for their freeride wheel family. This time, they’ve produced a super slidey yellow 86a durometer for the freeride longboard junkies out there. So far, only the 75mm Durian and 70mm Stimulus wheels are available at the moment but the 66mm Fat Free isn’t far behind. If these 86a wheels are too hard for your liking, you may want to try the original 83a purple Freeride wheel.
Unlike the Retro Freeride wheels, the Orangatang Freerides come pre-broken in so you don’t have a long break-in period. We haven’t had a chance to try them out yet but a review will be on the way soon! We only have limited quantities at the moment so get ‘em while they last!
Concrete Wave Magazine (the longboarding/skateboarding Bible) just released their annual DVD called Evolutions. This is the fifth one they’ve done. They compile 4 minute video clips from skateboard manufacturers, shops, teams, communities….basically whoever wants to get on the video can do so for a small chunk of change.
After seeing last year’s Evolutions DVD, we’ve been counting down the days until we could have our own installment, especially since videos are such a big part of what we do. We have a small stack of DVD’s available for free with your next order but only while supplies last! For now, you can at least watch the Motion Boardshop video here:
