Kite Review - Cabrinha 2012 Drifter

[Lonny]

The Cabrinha 2012 Drifter

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Generally when the new season starts, which for us in South FL is around October, it is also right around the same time the new Cabrinha kites are released. The last 3 seasons I have been very happy with Switchblades, as I find them to be the best all-around kites in the Cabrinha line. They are just the go everywhere, do everything kite. This season before I selected my new quiver I was very intrigued by the specs for the Drifter, which is a new kite in the Cabrinha 2012 lineup. When it comes to choosing a kite, I never let someone else speak for the kite, and that includes technical write ups and other kiters. In fact I generally do not like anyone to tell me much of anything about a kite I am testing. I like to go into it without a preconceived notion of what the kite is about or how it rides, etc. The simple fact of the matter is the only way to know if a kite works for you is to test it, and test it I did. Here are my honest findings...

Fortunately, for us we have had an amazing beginning to our season. In October alone there were about 17 days over 15 knots, and I think I rode 16 of them. Not too shabby. In Miami the sweet spot kite is usually around a 9 or 10 so I picked up a 9 Drifter to see what it was all about. As I mentioned, I have probably logged about 17 days of riding, or about 40 hours of water time in the last 4-5 weeks in conditions ranging from 13 to up to 28 knots. Almost all of the days were spent on the 9, and one day on the 7 Drifter. I only rode in wave conditions ranging from side-shore to on-shore in knee to overhead surf.

The Cabrinha 2012 Drifter

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The first thing I immediately noticed about the Drifter is that it is extremely responsive to rider input, and turns effortlessly and smoothly. I had gotten used to the Switchblade in that when you are in waves you generally have to think in advance about what you are going to do with the kite on a wave and anticipate a bit. For example, when you are going off the lip with a SB you have to send the kite before you do your turn to time things out. The Drifter is amazingly responsive. When you see it happening you can control the Drifter almost instantly, send it where you want it to go, and it goes. It is a wonderful feeling. It flies extremely well even if you are just controlling it with one hand.

I have flown many kites that are fast, but this kite has a fast yet also very smooth power arc. It pulls very predictably and evenly throughout the powerband. For instance when I down-looped the Drifter the power was predictable, and very even - not more in the beginning and less in the end. It also steered extremely well with the bar sheeted out, which was a very pleasant surprise. The Drifter also had excellent feedback through the bar. It has a respectable amount of bar pressure - I felt the power in the bar, but not anywhere near the point where it was uncomfortable. I personally like a kite with feedback in the bar, and like to know where the kite is by feel. Frankly, I would call the bar pressure and feel absolutely perfect.

The Cabrinha 2012 Drifter

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It is called the Drifter right? Yeah, and they named it aptly. All I can say is get in the pocket of a wave, park the Drifter and surf. It does not stall or pull you. You can actually pull in and legitimately almost completely forget about this kite. I was so amazed by how well it flew above my head that I would actually try to stall it to see how it would react. I would intentionally fly the Drifter poorly, sending it over my back shoulder just to see what it would do; it was hard for me to force it to stall. It wants to stay in the air, be stable, move with you, and not pull you out. It begs you to use the power of the wave and just surf. I have never had a kite let me go front side on a wave and not pull me to some extent. The Drifter will not only let you, it almost insists you do it!

So is the Drifter the perfect kite? Well, it does have a few minor weaknesses. I found that the range on the Drifter was a bit of a drawback, especially when compared to something like a Switchblade. The low end was not very good, to the point that when I was underpowered it felt gutless. I would sometimes dive the kite and it felt like there was no power. I also found that it had a narrower sweet spot. In other words, the range of wind you feel comfortable in is tighter than other kites I have ridden like the Switchblade. It tended to feel a bit more overpowered more quickly than a comparably sized Switchblade would in the same conditions. However, I must say that it really was not a problem. I do not think it would be fair to compare the range of this kite to a Switchblade or Crossbow. And frankly, I only mention it because some people will want to know how the range compares to other similarly sized kites especially in the Cabrinha range. I also found that the upwind performance of the Drifter was a bit lacking, but that is to be expected side effect since it was designed to sit naturally further back in the window to stay aloft with you. It does require that you are more conscious and focus on being efficient getting back upwind to surf. Mind you it was not terrible, but worth mentioning.

The Cabrinha 2012 Drifter

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I have spent time riding every kite Cabrinha has ever produced. From the first Black Tip all the way to the 2012 range. This is the most perfect kite that they have ever produced for my style of riding which is only strapless with a skimmer, surfboard, or a wakeskate. Overall I can say without hesitation that if you like to ride strapless this is hands down the best kite Cabrinha has ever produced. The delivery of power is so smooth and the kite is so effortless to fly that it make strapless riding better. Even though the kite has some drawbacks when it comes to range and upwind performance the benefits of effortless power, easy control, smooth delivery, and stability far outweigh any minor shortcomings. When they designed this kite they clearly had a focus and a vision. They nailed it - period! I do not stand on the rooftops and shout about a kite very often, and I am pretty low key when it comes to endorsing a product. Frankly everybody makes a decent kite nowadays, and I know you might be reading this saying, "yeah another Cabrinha whipping boy pimping a kite." However, I have always given my honest opinion. I can honestly say the Drifter is a great kite, and absolutely the kite to choose from Cabrinha if you like to ride strapless. Give the Drifter a spin you might be pleasantly surprised, but don't take my word for it....

Key Features:
• Excellent slack line/drift stability
• Responsive direct turning even when steering with one hand or a sheeted out bar
• Smooth power arc and delivery
• Three strut lightweight canopy


Have thoughts, questions or opinions. Please feel free to share them...

Lonny

[BertrandC]

Just kite the 7 and fully agree with you,
... one huge benefit : the kite is light, light, light !

[Blacktip]

Lonny, thats a nice review. Im riding the 7m for about 2 months, and I would like to reply to your thoughts and add my own experience.

Im riding Cabrinha kites for years. I also didnt know what to expect from the Drifter. Hooked up the new Quicklink bar to the kite on the middle knot, but after the first session I wasnt really happy. Strange looking shape, pinched-in wingtips. Backstall, heavy barpressure, arm pains etc. I depowered the bar but still wasnt good enough.
Turned out the new controlbar was not tuned correctly. Frontlines were 7cm too long according to Cabrinha's tuning methods. After correctly tuning the kite my next experience with the Drifter was perfect. Perfectly smooth feel and I would say the barpressure is light. You can basicly feel the lightness of the kite. Also no more backstall, the middle knot is perfect for unhooked.

The waveriding part of this kite is great. No need for me there to add anything to your thoughts. There are two things you mention that I would like to stress.
Firstly. Even though the kite is quick and quick to respond, I think the true benefits of the Drifter lay in its drifting abilities: using the power of the wave and surfing from your board, rather than stearing the kite for power. Stearing takes away from the surfing feeling. Also, when you surf a wave from your board, it allows for a kite to really start drifting. Riding skills combined with the Drifter =
Secondly, I noticed the Drifter allows you to complete turns better, without the kite pulling you away. Also when surfing unhooked. All in all, the Drifter leaves you ''surfing with a kite'' like never before.

Im riding a 7m on a trigger 6'3. I was actually surprised of how well I could ride upwind. Seems strange for a kite that likes to sit deep. But as soon as youre up to speed and are able to sheet the bar out, you can see the Drifter changing shape and pointing nicely to the edge of the window.
I think kite efficiency is more noticable on the larger sizes. 7m is smaller and quicker, together with a bigger board you are quick up to plane. Planing is more important for going upwind than anything else. For example: a board doesnt go upwind well because of the outline, channels, fins or whatever. It goes upwind better because it planes earlier than that other board.

I was worried this 3-strut kite would lose out on canopy stability like some of the other 3-strut kites on the market do. But im well impressed on how Cabrinha managed to put smoothess and stability in the Drifter.

But I do like to point out the importance of ''bar tuning''. Flying lines do stretch and making sure the bar is correctly tuned makes for the best first impression of a kite. Not only for yourself, but also for anyone that tries your kite. Or anyone that uses a test kite from a dealer.

[Lonny]

Hey Blacktip,

Welcome to LTS! Great post, and excellent additional feedback. I am curious about your comments regarding your front lines being 7cm too long. Did you check your line lengths to make sure they were equal by hooking up the bar in advance of your first session on your 7m? I have run into a few bars that were not set up properly at the factory before, and always make it a habit to check my bars before I use them. I am not a big fan of surprises.

Also, your point about bar tuning is very important. Bar tuning and maintenance should be part of maintaining and normal use of your kite during ownership. Too many riders set it and forget it, and do not realize what a massive difference a properly tuned kite can make. Front line stretch is normal and needs to be adjusted accordingly.

[Blacktip]

Thanks Lonny,

I didnt check before first flight. Didnt expect the lines to be off. So some of the 7cm could have been caused by stretch. But the wingtips were already pinched-in too much when I just launched the kite.
Its easy to adjust the difference via the centerline adjuster. In the meantime I also had to adjust for the actual line stretch itself, and now I find myself running out of adjuster line Im up to the splice already. But I think the stretch is stable from now on.