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Sizes Available: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14m
Sizes Tested: 8, 10, 12m

NORTH Says:

Are you ready for the EVOlution? The best all round kite on the market, now in a 3 strut format! The Evo is a hugely popular kite for North Kiteboarding, with exceptional hang time and huge boosting capabilities. For 2018 the Evo was completely redesigned, taking the great DNA from the previous models and using all our knowledge to create a truly fantastic delta-shaped kite. The goal was to keep the incredible upwind performance and huge jumps with floaty hang time, but also to make it easier to fly. Removing two of the struts took some of the stiffness out of the canopy and improved the handling of the kite. It also reduced the bar pressure which makes it an easier and less demanding kite to fly. With easy sheet and go handling, and incredible relaunch, huge hangtime and blistering performance is within easy reach for every kiter out there. The Evo is also exceedingly versatile, so if you are looking for a kite that can boost to the moon, handle the latest freestyle tricks and tow you into some amazing waves, the Evo is it!

Visit for more info: https://www.duotonesports.com/kiteboarding/kites/evo/

Our Testers Say:

“All around super fun kite, fast, stable, great power range, smooth power delivery and loops well. Steady workhorse providing all-around performance, and super clean bar with new Click bar technology.” // Justin Lord

“Reliable kite that performs with dependable familiarity. Click bar is very slick and easy to operate. The best part of the bar is the ease of adjusting the throw quickly for any type of riding. Great go to kite when the conditions get sketchy, just wants to keep flying.” // Rhonda Reyna

“Great all-arounder, stable and good wind range, boosts easily. Sits a little deeper than last year’s, consistent power throughout, lots of hangtime and super friendly while performing beautifully.” // Dray Murray

Meet Our Testers

TKB Says:

The Evo is North’s performance freeride option in a 3 strut medium to higher aspect layout that excels in big airs with impressive boosting and easy handling characteristics. This year the Evo has morphed to 3 struts compared to last year’s 5-strut design and North has made it their goal to accentuate the Evo’s user-friendly handling while keeping its performance freeride big boosting chops as is. When it comes to inflation, North’s large diameter inflation valve dubbed the ‘Airport Valve II’ connects directly with North’s pump hose without the use of a nozzle and the inflation system’s twist valve rotates with the insertion of the hose to keep air in the system. Deflation happens through both the inflation valve and a dump valve on one side of the kite, making both inflation and deflation quick and easy. The Evo offers three settings on the wingtip for changing between Hard, Medium and Soft settings and the single setting front bridle makes use of a single pulley for adjusting the kite’s angle of attack. The front bridle attachment ends in loops and the wingtip attachment pigtails end in a knot. The role that the Evo plays in the North line can be considered similar to the Rebel, especially now that the Rebel is a 4-line kite and features a smooth leading edge radius profile, but the slightly lower aspect Evo offers a slightly different flavor of freeride. The Evo features light to medium bar pressure which tended to feel a hair lighter than the Rebel and offered incredibly smooth power delivery over the course of the throw. Some testers thought the Evo offered more depower, which in comparison to the Rebel, happens in a larger amount of throw. Testers reported the steering response to be refreshingly crisp and the turning speed quick in a slightly more pivotal steering arc. The Evo is exceptionally intuitive and easy for boosting big airs and the amount of lift and hangtime were noted by almost every tester. The Rebel might have a little more performance in the lift category, but is a different animal when it comes to bar dynamics. The Evo scored high marks for its upwind ability and its relaunch was very reliable from nose down in the bottom of the window. By pulling on one line it would roll to one side, taxi to one side of the window and relaunch easily every time. Overall, the Evo is a great progressive freeride kite for all levels. The easy bar pressure and intuitive steering make this kite super predictable and its performance is sufficient to match the expectations of more experienced kiters.

The Evo can be flown with the Trust bar or the Click bar; we have included descriptions of both here.

North’s Click bar is back for its second year with a few changes like an updated color scheme that visually sets off one side of the bar, more plush bar ends, changes to the quick release and a new V-distributor for increased durability. That said, we didn’t get one of those bars to test with our North kites so we rode last year’s Click bar which means the only thing that is different for this year is that we now have tested other designs that have come to market and have a bit more perspective on the concept of adjusting the kite’s power tuning mechanically through the outside lines. The Click bar comes in a single 49cm length with 22m or 24m line lengths and features a single center-line safety depower system, medium-height V, a durable plastic throw line that untwists itself after you spin, a sliding stopper and North’s proven push away quick release. The bar features retractable bar bungees, soft bar ends and integrated floats. The Click bar settles the debate between above or below the bar tuning by placing it exactly at your fingertips. The twisting motion for power up takes a little bit of focus while riding and the button for depower is easily accessed at all times. While it’s a big shift to the systems we have come to know, seamless controls like this are the future of the sport. While some power down systems require the twisting of a knob, the ratchet knob built into the bar end is easy to grab a hold of, easy to rotate while kiting and easy to tune on the fly. Compared to other systems, the mechanics of North’s Click bar is entirely closed, which means you won’t be washing it out. The upside of testing last year’s bar is that we were able to put a used bar through the test and the system worked as crisp as if it was just taken out of the package.

Visit for more info on the bar: https://www.duotonesports.com/kiteboarding/bars/click-bar/

This year the Trust bar is essentially the same except that if you are looking for a 5-line bar, instead of buying the dedicated 5-line bar, now you simply purchase the regular 4-line Trust with a the 5th line optional kit. Essentially, you can switch back and forth between 4 and 5-lines from the same base bar purchase. The Trust bar is a dual adjustable length bar that comes in two options, 42/49cm and a 46/53cm lengths. On the smaller bar you can choose between 19 or 22m lines and on the longer bar you can choose between 24 and 27m lines. North feels line length is an important tunable feature to match with your kite and style of riding. Our Evo came with the 4-line base version with the single center-line safety depower that runs up to one of the bridles. The center lines are knotted for rigging purposes.

The adjustable length spectra throw line features a tuning cleat with a magnet on the depower strap to keep it in place. The Trust has a push away quick release with a below the bar hand swivel that also functions as a quick release travel guard. At the time of purchase you can select from three different chicken loop options. The first is the Rope Harness Kit which is a super short loop with a metal center for rope traveler based harnesses. The second and probably most common is the Freeride Kit which is the standard length chicken loop for regular freeride, and finally a Freestyle Kit which features an extra large loop for those that are unhooking on a regular basis. We tested the bar with the medium sized loop, but would be interested to try the Rope Harness Kit. The Trust features a spectra trim/throw line, a sliding stopper for long tacks and a firm molded chicken finger to prevent accidental unhooking. The padded bar ends are tunable and offer integrated floats and retractable bar bungees for a clean wrap up. The bar grip is fairly plush eva with middle of the road texture which makes the Trust a very comfy bar and continues to be a bar that gets rave reviews during our test week.

Visit for more info on the bar: https://www.duotonesports.com/kiteboarding/bars/trust-bar/


This page was updated on July 16, 2019. 

Want more gear reviews all in one place? Read detailed and objective reviews on the 30 kite models and 33 board models that Tkb and freeride testers reviewed for the 2018 Freeride Gear Review Guide.