Sizes Available: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12m
High Wind Test Sizes: 6, 7m
Slingshot Says:
The SST lets you forget about your kite and focus on your connection with the water. It delivers precision power and performance when you need it, and a feather-light feel and hero-level drift when you want the kite to disappear. These characteristics make the SST perfect for the surf, but don’t it in a box as just a wave kite. The SST is one of the most versatile freeride kites in Slingshot’s lineup. All the same great flying characteristic that make it so much fun in the ocean translate to a fun and agile open-water setup, and by far the best freeride foiling kite you’ll find.
The SST is fine-tuned to fly deeper in the window than most kites. This, combined with the kite’s shape and bridle setup, yields hero-level downwind drift and steering response, even when tension on the lines is minimal. It’s the park-and-ride performance that you dream about. It pulls you into position, drifts with you like a shadow, then re-engages at the flick of a wrist.
The SST features a reinforced surf-tough canopy designed to take a beating if it goes through the wash and a condensed version of our IRS bungee that cannot get wrapped around the wingtips. Surfers love this because they can ride hard and trust they’ll pop back up when they take a tumble. Not surprisingly, beginners, instructors and schools love the SST’s durability and easy relaunch too.
Visit for more info: www.slingshotsports.com
TKB Says:
For 2018 the SST has dropped the “wave” off its name, presumably in an effort to get the message out that this kite is an excellent option across multiple disciplines. The high wind models in the SST are 3-strut low aspect shaped canopies that feature the shortest front bridles in the test. While the standard sizes of this kite sport a large diameter bayonet style inflation valve that requires no nozzle on the end of your pump hose, on the 5m we tested the inflation nozzle is a traditional 9mm valve with stopper ball. It turns out the large diameter bayonet valves don’t fit well within the smaller diameter LE – which is fine by us since at this size the kite blows up quite fast. The SST features a single setting front bridle without any pulleys and three settings on the wingtip. You’ll find loops on the front bridle pigtails and knots on the wingtip pigtails. The SST features the shortest front bridles of the test, which is a nice feature when it comes to wave riding as you’ll have less chance for the bridles to snag wingtips when the kite gets rolled in the surf. The most apparent feature when riding the SST is its lightning-quick steering response, which stays true in the bigger sizes. The SST feels extremely responsive through the start of a turn and the overall turning speed feels extremely quick from start to finish. With a pivot style turn the SST is highly responsive which helps you put the kite exactly where you need it, but when you combine that with medium to light bar pressure there are moments where kite awareness was not quite as apparent — this was something we noticed in the first couple minutes of our sessions but then adapted happily. The SST has excellent progressive power delivery through the length of the throw, drifts well and generates a fair amount of power through turns. The SST has plenty of depower so long as you set the adjustable throw a little longer than stock on your bar. The SST can be a little sensitive to oversheeting in the smaller sizes when underpowered as is true of many kites at that size, but seems to strike an excellent balance between stability and active high-performance flying. Overall, the SST scored high marks with regard to its speed, drift, stability and steering dynamics, and while it is a top choice for surf it’s also a great option for general freeride and foilboarding.
The SST can be used with either the Compstick Guardian or Compstick Sentinel control bars. Either of these bars is fixed length bar that comes in three sizes: 17” width with 20m lines, a 20” width with 23m lines (3m ext), and a 23” width with 27m lines.
Our kites came with the Compstick Sentinel that features above bar power tuning, with a single center-line safety depower, spectra sheeting/throw line with sliding stopper, adjustable length throw, tuning cleat power system with a toggle that uses a magnet to control excess tuning slack and a low-V. The Sentinel offers a sturdy quick release that integrates a below the bar hand swivel which also doubles as a quick release guard. The Compstick is the only bar in our test that features dual outside line OS handles and this year’s bar has new bar ends which create a break between the floats and the bar tip and which also offer bungees for wind-up. The team liked the smaller diameter grip and the thin rubber lines along the grip and how they make for a very solid grip.
Visit for more info on the bar: www.slingshotsports.com/2017-Compstick-w-Sentinel#.WUgdJhMrK34
