Over the past couple days Hurricane Michael quickly grew from a tropical storm to a category 4 hurricane. This massive storm skirted Tampa Bay providing 20-25 kt winds and a day with 30-40 kt winds. After riding the 9m we decided to do a 2019 Cabrinha Moto 9m review.
Rider Weight: 160 lbs
Wind Speeds: 20 kts to 40 + kts
If you haven’t read our review on the 12m Cabrinha Moto you can check it out here.
We knew from test riding the 12m Moto that the 9m would be quick turning, good for boosting, and handle strong winds well. We tested the A and B setting to compare bar pressure. The B setting will have more bar pressure than the A setting. The Moto on the B setting is similar in bar pressure to the Switchblade on the A setting. The Moto on the A setting will have lighter bar pressure than the Switchblade.
2019 Cabrinha Moto 9m – Fun As Hell
The Moto is supposed to be a freeride, foil and surf kite with all-around characteristics, a lighter/ more nimble version of the Switchblade. Typically kites that have drift characteristics do not boost well, the Moto is the exception. Some of our highest boosts ever were on the 9m Moto. This kite 100% can jump huge and have floaty airs. They did not compromise its ability to jump when designing this kite.
The 9m Moto is smooth through kiteloops. Whether you’re doing megaloops or controlled downloops, the Moto delivers a controllable and smooth amount of power through the turn. This will give you the comfortability to commit and control your kiteloops. On the 30 – 40 kt day there are not many kite models that we would have felt comfortable looping, the Moto was one. The other kite we would have felt comfortable looping is the Cabrinha FX.
During the storm a few squalls came through that increased the gusts to over 40 kts. According to James Kite Blog, at 160 lbs it is not recommended to take a 9m out in over 27 kts. The 9m Moto handled the gusts incredibly well, it never got to the point where if you moved the kite it would rip us off our edge. Even on this upper end spectrum the kite did not flutter or punch forward and drift back, it stayed super stable in the sky. Even though this kite has three struts, it also has battens on the trailing edge which gives this kite added stability on the high end spectrum.
We love this kite and are super excited for a windy season on the 9m Moto.
