TELL ME ABOUT IT: Flysurfer Indie

One-strut kites are often aimed primarily for foiling. Is this your intention – who will want to ride it? 

We are delighted to add another LEI kite to our product line and are super happy with the outcome. We have chosen a different approach and mainly built it for kiteboarding rather than foiling. It’s a very good progression kite and the first choice for traveling to your favorite surf spots.

Talk to us about the flying characteristics? 

You can expect excellent power delivery in light wind, combined with great kite feedback over the wind range. It sits calm and stable in the wind window and really benefits from its light weight. Therefore, it drifts amazingly and is backstall resistant. You will easily reengage with the kite after loops and be positively surprised by its turning speed. Overall, it is a very playful and well-rounded one-strut kite with good jumping performance, drift and grunt.

How does it fit in to the rest of your LEI range? What advantages does it have over the other LEIs?

The obvious one is packing size, which makes it very convenient for traveling. It covers the light to medium wind speed range. The relaunch is phenomenal, and the kite is intuitive and easy to fly. It is our best freeride LEI kite.

And how does it compare to your foil kites which are also suitable for lightwind riding, in terms of performance?

You can compare it with our HYBRID and add more lift and better bar feedback. Gybing and tacking on foil or surfboards are easier to practice. The top end is better, and you jump higher. It is not comparable with the SOUL or SONIC kites but is more accessible to the broader audience. The simple answer is that anyone who doesn’t enjoy riding foil kites will feel immediately at home with the INDIE.

What materials and construction details have you borrowed from your other LEI kites? 

We adhere to affordable and proven standards to prevent further increases in the retail price of the kite. We believe in a fair price point and know we can achieve great results with our material mix. The INDIE is based on the STOKE and influenced by the knowledge we gathered during the ERA development.

Do the bigger sizes differ in any way from the smaller sizes?

They differ in weight and aspect ratio. We also added an extra free-flow hose to sizes 11m and above to speed up the air inflation and deflation of the kite.

Which designers and riders have been involved in the development of the INDIE? 

As usual at FLYSURFER, it’s teamwork. LEI kite designer Luke McGillewie has worked closely with Maximilian Kühnhauser on the files. Trimming and testing involve many people in different areas, but Julian Zens and Luca Ceruti mainly gave feedback to Luke. I usually join them in the later development stages.

The Olympics are nearly upon us! With such a big presence of FLYSURFER kites in the racing scene, we’re guessing you guys must be getting excited! 

We are always excited about racing events or competitions in general. We are all fans of the sport and the athletes who are dedicated to their sporting careers. It is a huge step for kiteboarding and an amazing opportunity for the youngest to fulfill their dreams. I particularly hope sponsors outside of the industry will realize the advertising potential we offer to a diverse audience. ■