Ozone REO V7 Kite

The Reo V7 is a wave kite and Ozone are unusually blunt about it: they don't test the Reo with twin-tips, because it isn't a freeride kite and isn't built for jumping. That kind of clarity is worth a lot — you know exactly what you're buying.

The platform carries over: low aspect, three struts, very fast turning and silky movement through the window. The seventh version, arriving two years after the V6, is quicker to respond and markedly stronger at the bottom of its range.

The headline change is transverse sail shaping on the leading edge. Ozone borrowed from their own paragliding designers: an extra seam near the leading edge allows genuine three-dimensional shaping of the canopy. The result is a cleaner aerofoil, a tighter canopy, more drive up through the window and less drag. The bridles are thinner than the V6's, shedding weight and parasitic drag.

What all of this means in practice is simple: the kite luffs later. It holds its shape further toward the edge of its range and stays predictable and readable for longer. In waves, where the kite spends a lot of time near that edge, this is what matters. Drift and float overhead — the whole point of a wave kite — have improved too.

Best suited to solid intermediates and above with waves on their mind. The fast turning, crisp control and excellent drift also make it a strong freeride foil kite, where the kite needs to stay responsive across the whole window.

The standard V7 uses heavier cloth than the Ultra-X version, which suits riders who regularly rig and launch on abrasive beaches. The smaller sizes in strong wind are also worth taking in this build: the weight saving matters less up there, while the durability matters more. One local note — Ozone's factory is in Vietnam, a few hundred kilometres from our own spot.