Tkb Review: 2021 Core GTS6

Sizes Available: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13.5, 15, 17m
Sizes Tested: 9, 12m

Core Says:

GTS6. Like a friend that pushes us beyond our comfort zone to a place with no limits, CORE’s newest Universal Series kite unlocks your wild side. Reward yourself with mind-blowing megaloop power and deutscher precision. The indomitable GTS6.

The GTS’s accomplishments may be well known amongst the hardcore freestyle crowd, but we’d also like to mention the kite’s impeccable manners in unpredictable winds. It effortlessly absorbs unexpected gusts on those unforgettable downwinders and then, it delivers gut-wrenching megaloops when you unleash it.

So, what’s new for the GTS6? Well, we’ve beefed up the leading edge and we’ve made significant improvements to the struts. They’re now lighter and more robust. The new larger diameter ExoTex Light struts resist bending, save weight, and lend a sportier, punchier feel when looping. Don’t worry, everything you love about the GTS5 is still in the 6er. The three strut, Future-C canopy still forms the nucleus of the GTS. Reward yourself with mammoth power and cracking loops that you so richly deserve.

Visit for more info: www.corekites.com/us/kites/gts6

TKB Says:

The Core GTS is now in its 6th version with its C-shaped leading edge arc, boxy wingtips and 3-strut airframe that gives you punchy freestyle performance with load and slack unhooked freestyle and powerful kiteloops. While the GTS is marketed with crossover potential into freeride and wave disciplines its main territory is performance freestyle riding. Version 6 gets lighter Dacron struts, some small tweaks to the leading edge and shorter length bridles, but largely the GTS still delivers a punchy C-kite feel with extra precise steering that freestyle-oriented riders have come to know.

The GTS features Core’s proprietary inflation valve that requires a normal size pump hose without an attachment on the end to be inserted into the valve and rotated to lock (it’s worth noting that some pump hoses such as the stock North hose or aftermarket pumps like WMFG have a female fitting that is too large to fit Core’s valve, so keep a regular hose on you at all times.). With the large size aperture, the kite inflates very quickly and the valve stays closed until you screw in the stopper. When it’s time to deflate you pull a 2.5-inch plastic finger (hidden in a pocket of the center strut and attached by a small tether) into the valve to allow the air to deflate. The GTS utilizes two pulleys and a slider on its leading edge bridle and offers three settings (Wave, All Around, Freestyle) on the front bridle to tune the kite to your specific needs, with the stock position set to All Around. The wingtips come with three attachment points that offer Medium, Easy and Super Easy settings. The leading edge bridle connection point ends in a larks head loop and the wingtip attachment pigtail ends in a knot. The wingtip uses a bit of Dacron with a small panel of double ripstop along the trailing edge and a medium length batten on each side.

The GTS6 does a great job of blending C-kite style performance with upgraded handling that makes it much more than just an unhooked freestyle kite with some extra depower. The bar pressure on the GTS feels light to medium and the steering response with those big boxy wingtips feels quick and precise. The steering arc is not quite as tight as the Nexus which adds up to a bit more power in the GTS’ turns and grunty kiteloops that give the rider more punch. The low-end grunt and steering is a great combo for big vertical sends with decent hangtime, meaning that it’s no slouch for big air, but the GTS really shines in unsent jumping where its grunty yank and release gives you a sudden pull followed by line slack to complete unhooked maneuvers. While the GTS has precise steering that works great in waves, it works best for those willing to fly the kite more aggressively across the fall line to keep the kite in position and go down the line. Even though the GTS’ pedigree is more freestyle than freeride, it brings enough depower and steering precision to be quite appealing to those riders that want a C-kite experience with a softer more user-friendly curve for fun all-around riding.

2021 is a big year for the Core bar line with the addition of the Sensor 3 Pro and Sensor 3+ bars, which feature some fairly large changes to the bar’s chassis and safety system. The Core control bars have always been known for their light weight, clean feature-rich design, and above all else, their unique rotator style quick release that required the rider to rotate the quick release rather than push away, in order to trigger the safety system. While the advantages of rotation have been discussed in infinitum, the ease of resetting the bar with a click-in system is clearly a big selling point, along with a standardized motion for triggering safety across the industry.

We focused our attention on the Sensor 3Pro with its carbon fiber construction and Tectanium Vario lines and the Standard Loop (you can swap that out for a metal slider version and larger freestyle unhook loop). The boldest of the many changes, Core’s new quick release features a minimal shape with molded grooves that do a great job of guarding against accidental triggers but allow you to get a good grip on the trigger when needed. The QR features the new click-in style reset where you just need to insert the end of the loop back into the QR body and it clicks itself close. It’s a very clean design and the key on the end of the QR loop is really easy to find its way back to its target with a very obvious audible click that gives you good confirmation that you are back in business. The power tuning system uses a Cam cleat and a toggle with a bungee built into the tuning line as well as Velcro to keep the toggle in place during riding. The tuning system is both clean and simple as well as very smooth and easy to operate. The above the QR handle swivel has an excellent smooth motion that also acts as a quick release guard and transitions into the double PVC coated throw lines that travel through the bar with a single centerline safety depower that’s routed up one of the lines. The PVC throw lines feature a fairly thin diameter which we noted translated into remarkably smooth movement of the bar during riding; the bar additionally auto untwists your center lines after you do spins. The bar’s center insert has a logo that tells you when you’re holding the bar the right way and on the other side, a red ”˜stop’ sign and a red line that goes all the way across the bar indicates when you’re holding the bar wrong. The bar grip has nice, thin, EVA on it with good texture without bumps or any of the asymmetrical ergonomic shapes. The bar ends got a complete redesign, becoming more streamlined with the bar’s end opening up to adjust the length of the bar by just pressing and rotating a cassette and also creating the crutch needed to wind the lines when you’re done with the bar. The floats are separate from the bar ends and feature hidden bungees for a clean wrap job. Once again, Core has re-imagined their kite bar with some very innovative concepts while keeping the overall product in a nice lightweight, simple and clean layout that is sure to continue to be a cult favorite to riders of all persuasions.

Visit for more info on the bar: www.corekites.com/us/bars/sensor-3-pro