| If waves and surf are all you dream about, then the RRD Religion is your kite! The RRD Religion 2011 is the only truly dedicated wave riding kite on the market today. Many companies design kites that work in variable conditions, but when it comes to wave/surf dedicated designs and features, there is only the RRD Religion. As most reachable waves for kitesurfing in the world are side or on-shore the RRD Religion has been designed to address these conditions. You won't believe the easy of shooting upwind, but also the smoothness of parking your kite and surf the waves, no matter what size. The turning speed of the RRD Religion kite is unbelievable. This is the fastest turning kite on the market for their size, but also super stable. Welcome to a new era in kiteboarding - a wave/surf specific kite that will take your riding waves to a new direction.
Features: - Silly Turning speed; This is the fastest turning kite you have ever flown
- Easy to handle Power; Amazing depower
- Flies in the lower window for constant bar pressure;
- Instant Water re-launching;
- Bullet proof wave construction.
Technology:Insignia double tape leech;
- PVC round label strut end protectors;
- Metallic PU strut end reinforcements;
- DP 175 LL Dacron;
- Tejin T9600 Canopy;
- New moulded struts protectors;
- New PVC Inflating valves protectors.
- New SPS system with a new designed in- flating valve;
- LE Parallel seams for maximum strenght and lower stretching on leech area;
- Horizontal seams in the maximum profile areas for optimized shape;
Sizes: 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11.5m. Now available with the brand new 2011 RRD Global Bar V3. The new Global Bar is composed of 5 pieces: - 2 x New side dual density endcaps with soft ends, for easy line rolling and a new quick trim to adjust the bar length
- 2 x narrower diameter carbon bar tubes to improve grop potential and reduce hand fatigue
- 1 x middle aluminum cast and polished integrated piece for de[power rope movement.
INCORPORATED SAFETY LINE
A great innovation in terms of safety by keeping the de-power rope clean and protected. Both the de-power rope and the safety line are running inside a dual chamber tube that hides these two basic lines. No more tangling around, it's all clean and safe!
DE-POWER ELASTIC TRIM
In order to avoid the problem of having the excess of the de-power trim rope hang- ing around, and possibly going to distrub you while kiting, we have added an elastic bungee inside the spectra rope that allows you to reduce the excess rope and shorten it until 50% of the stretched lentgh. Same functionality, no rope on yoru way!
QUICK RELEASE INTEGRATED CHICKEN LOOP A completely new design for this moulded chicken loop part. Ergonomically conceived, it is compact and complete of all features, clean and precise. Very easy to be released and remounted with one hand.
RRD RIGID THREAD FLYING LINES An exclusive product developed and manufactured in Italy exclusively for RRD. This new revolutionary lines are made with: an inner uninterrupted unidirectional pure dyneema fibers, covered by a pure dyneema 30° woven fabrics. The combination of these two styles of weaving the fabrics allow to obtain an unmatched low stretch factor of the lines reduced by 85% compared to the classic flying lines. The Rigid Thread lines allow the kite to be faster in the turns, to quicker transfer the power of the kite to the board resulting in more response and better handling of the kite in any conditions. The reduced stretching factor of these lines will allow a perfect trim of your kite in the time without the need to re-adjust your front lines! No stretch, better kiteboarding! Below is what Andy from SOS Australia talks about when he tried the new RRD Religion! I just got it lately… right when my trip here in the Philippines started to be more waves-oriented…
Anyway… the following, are my ideas… and believe they are true or not… there’s not much of negative in it…
For sure (and nobody that had a go with this kite probably disagree…) is a totally different kite from the rest available now  … A SLE C kite, agreeing with Niall’s description. Massive tips give to the kite plenty of response plus a big leading edge and a new bridle system make it stay more into the power. All that ends up in a totally different way of flying that really match with what is needed for riding waves down the line without too much kite movement  …
As pointed already is amazing the way it just stay in the air delivering power during the riding… no need to steer it to much when power is missing, just a little touch on the bar will fix immediately the lack. I have to admit that the first time I tried I had problem to get used to it  , trying to do a lot more than was needed… trying to make it fly the way I was doing with the Obsession.
I don’t want now say that Obsession is not good anymore for wave riding, I still love it… at all! but Religion… make life easier … that’s it.
I can totally understand all those comments from riders that are improving so much… it is a very reliable friend during your moves in the waves, and doesn’t ask too much to keep delivering his power.
What I really love, especially for my kind of wave-riding style, is the huge power it can deliver when in the light wind condition you do start moving it… especially when you are coming down from the wave with the feeling that you have not enough power to go back and hit the lip, there is when it totally amaze me: if you have this kite attached to your bar: just send it back, and before it’s even half way the power on your body is enough to make you think that is time to bring it back, results: you hit the lip with so much power  , due to the kite position still in the power zone, that the spry is double the size of the wave!
Maybe this short clip can give a better idea of what I’m trying to describe, is about a very light wind day:
With proper wind it can really stay around the power zone, without having that kind of wide side-window to side-window flying that will make you have an hard life with timing and inconstant power delivering.
This clip should better explain what I mean:
Following are my 3 favorites quality of this toy:
- Fast reactivity :
as soon as you pull on one of the bar side it starts transferring plenty of power without delay, this mean that in those kind of moments you really need some more power (going fast downwind to reach that section of the wave that you need to be at; fix a mistake you made not transferring the right pressure on the board at the right moment, and so on…) the Religion will give it to you immediately with just a little action on the bar… meaning: no need to steer the kite all the way on the opposite site, just a little pressure and the kite will change is angle and start flying and pulling without any delay. No need to loop with proper wind… And if you do loop it you can ride a wave even when you are struggling to ride back upwind! (as in the clip…)
- Wide wind range :
Easy control when over-powered… but still good in light wind. I’ve the 10… and I go out with it as much as I would go with 10.5 OBS2 in light wind, if less, just a little… actually for wave riding especially in low wind condition I prefer more the power that this kite can deliver during direction changes and loops.
About the hi-end… when I can ride waves with good power with my 7 OBS2 the Religion 10 can still do the job… last time I went out with some other rider one guy came asking why I was still with a 10 when he was happy with is 7… my answer was… that it was still fun…
- Solidity :
solid than everything else I have ever been flying:
the structure is compact and rigid, you have this feeling even before it’s inflated: a strong kite. Once ready you can see easily that even the worst self landing on a bad surface will not easily damage your kite, plenty of dacron around the leading-edge-tip areas; much more around every panel, it all give you the feeling you can try a little harder… had a really bad crash in a two meter heavy shore break… to late in getting out, the lip sucked the board and myself down at the very last second… very bad for my body and the board… we both got smashed on the send! as soon as I was standing on the shore, no tension on the lines anymore, I realized the kite was having the same treatment from the same wave 20mt ahead… I still feel pain thinking back at the all picture! but… nothing bad happened: the kite was there on the shore, plenty of sand and water on top, and the guys on the beach, as well as me to tell the truth, couldn’t believe the bladders didn’t blow-up and no any rip was on the material…
And more… few days ago I twisted a little my knee loosing control of the board on bumpy water at full speed on a stupid small wave… strong pain at the moment… didn’t want to keep going… had to make a self landing right on the dry reef, couldn’t walk on that all the way back to the beach… well… the kite is still all in one piece… no rips, no scratches…
I’m traveling around the Philippines since 6 months now, the most of the time I’m alone… plenty of spots with reef and very little sandy beaches for landing… Feel way happier now with this armoured-kite …
I’m very curious about how good it could be for teaching  : water-relaunching is so easy,
no need at all to grab the side line: it just rotate on its self and fly up by using the bar… depower is plenty (with the stopper all the way far…), smooth and predictable. I’m sure it would give an easier time to the students… and for sure to the kite school owner!
It does go easily up wind!
Definitely this kind of “more into the power zone flying” make wave-riding really enjoyable: you have not to wait for your kite to end his race on the other side of the window when changing its run. it just turns and stops in the power making your life easier during the riding. When talking with the RRD guys in the meeting in Corsica for the 2010 French Market (at that time, Sept09, there where only prototypes ready) the idea of a kite that could fly more inside the window was sounding very good to me: faster turning speed, less answering delay, less stalls…
but…. going upwind??? that was my concern: would have it be able to go upwind easily wile staying so much inside the window??? but… don’t ask me how… it does go upwind… no problem at all for that …
What about freestyle???…
for sure it gives is best in the waves:
- steady, predictable and with plenty of power available at every moment on the bar in offshore wind…
- very fast in on shore wind to make you go back to the lip without spending time waiting for stalls or delay during its turning…
But all this doesn’t mean that it’s not going to work at all for freestyle… I love the way it loops and the constant power it deliver, don’t really mind to use those quality during my transitions with my directional…
Of course… Obsession is the one for my twin-tip, but in case I’m in a spot with a good flat water inside and waves on the reef, and I am too lazy to pump-up two kites but starving enough for both conditions with both kind of boards, (especially when I’m alone and self-landing is too tricky to risk twice…) there I go: Religion is the one for both sessions…
Bar Pressure on the 10: I reckon is a little more than 10.5 OBS2,
Negative points:
don’t know… I’m sorry for the ones that are going to think that is something I have to write…
but I don’t really see any of them… luck of grunt for someone: when I need more… I just make it move! Maybe the bag for some other? well, as far as it keep and protect my kite… for me is fine…
Here a movie about this discovering trip; you can see a little of both, Religion and Obsession, in the waves… pay attention on the window width during the kites movement for the wave-riding…
That’s all… and, as always, there’s not better truth than… trying!
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