Naish Psycho Nvision

Stepping into the new era of Big Air kites, Naish has introduced a brand-new model to their lineup: the Psycho. Designed with Big Air performance at its core, this kite features a five-strut design, medium to high aspect ratio, and the latest materials available, helping you to elevate your skills.

Recently, Naish unveiled a premium segment in their lineup called Nvision, where they combine the latest cutting-edge designs with new materials to maximize performance while maintaining their legendary kite construction. For the Psycho, they have used the latest Aluula Gold 82gsm material for the leading edge and struts, resulting in a thinner profile. If you’ve kept up with recent developments, you know that Aluula replaces Dacron, dramatically reducing the kite’s weight while significantly improving stiffness. This makes the kite more reactive and playful, offering superior performance compared to traditional Dacron kites. In addition to its Aluula frame, the Psycho retains Naish’s renowned 4×4 yarn canopy, which is stiffer and more durable than other canopy materials. The kite also includes necessary reinforcements so overall it feels completely bomb proof and gives you the confidence to go big without worrying about pounding it into the water if things don’t quite go to plan…

While many Aluula and Dacron kites focus on minimizing weight at the cost of reinforcement, Naish has taken a different approach. For a Big Air kite, a bit more weight doesn’t negatively impact performance, especially at high wind speeds. The real performance gain comes from the frame’s stiffness. Thus, having a well-built kite that can withstand strong wind conditions for a long time is a significant advantage. Additionally, Naish uses the latest Aluula technology in seams and stitching in their Nvision lineup, ensuring a durable kite that will maintain its performance and will feel new for longer, and won’t ‘bag out’ over time.

On paper, the Psycho sounds great, in hand, it feels light and in the sky it looks shiny. But how does it actually perform? The new Psycho is a fast to very fast and powerful kite with medium to high bar pressure. The low-end performance is good, with normal bar pressure that increases at the high-end, yet the kite remains stable and solid on the bar. As a Big Air kite, its lift and hang time are crucial. In several sessions under normal powered conditions, the Psycho impressed us with its lift and hang time. The lift is explosive and the hang time is great, even in less-than-ideal Big Air conditions. This kite doesn’t need to be at its top-end to deliver its best performance. It’s easy to jump high with this kite, making it accessible for most riders to improve their personal best heights quickly.

But where the Psycho truly excels in its kiteloop abilities. This kite loops effortlessly, allowing us to perform our entire repertoire from our first session. Thanks to its Aluula frame, you can place the kite as low as you want by varying the bar input, and it will always catch you back, even at the lowest points. This feature is ideal for learning tricks involving kiteloops, enabling you to start with high loops (the safest way) and gradually lower them as you gain confidence. One-handed kiteloops for board-offs are also remarkably easy. The only downside is that super aggressive kiteloops cause some flapping in the canopy.

And what about freeriders or intermediate riders you might ask? Well, the Psycho has a wide wind range, is easy to boost and is not overly technical. It’s easy to handle in gusty conditions, highly reactive, intuitive, fast and has easy water relaunch capabilities. Freeriders and intermediate riders looking to have fun will appreciate this kite from their very first session. So the Psycho isn’t just for pros! Its ease of use, power, and speed make it ideal for freeriders or those starting their Big Air journey. It offers outstanding performance without needing to be fully powered, allowing you to enjoy its capabilities even in the low range and learn new tricks without the risk associated with powered winds. This kite is a fantastic tool to rapidly improve your skills, providing full trust from the first session and enabling quick skill advancement.