777 Hybrid, BRM S3, Ozone Pocket Rocket: High Wind Comparison

This info is currently on the Pocket Rocket v1. I'll update when I have v2 experience in a few weeks. Scroll down for reference on everything and watch the youtube video for my analysis on how these parawings compare.

Quick Notes:

BRM S3 3.4

Pocket Rocket v1 2.4/3m

777 Hybrid 3.1

My Experience:

1. Pocket Rocket: 1000+ miles

2. 777 Hyrbid 30 miles

3. BRM S3 15 miles

All I do is DW/UW runs.

Where the 777 Hybrid Wins:

Top end:

1. 777 Hybrid 3.1 over 40 knots

2. Pocket Rocket 3m upper 30 knots 2.4m 45 knots

3. S3 3.4m low 30 knots.

Retract:

1. 777 Hybrid (perfect concertina after retract!)

2. Pocket Rocket

3. S3

Where the S3 Wins:

Upwind Speed:

1. S3 (15mph average) (if you run the math, this saves me 20+ hours a year of upwind travel!!! 🤯 About 107 hours a year upwind)

2. Tie (12.5mph average) 777/Ozone (about 128 hours a year going upwind)

Redeploy from full stow on foil:

1. S3

2. Pocket Rocket v1 (biggest expected improvement for v2)

3. 777 Hybrid

Where the Pocket Rocket v1 Wins:

Wet Launch:

1. Pocket Rocket

2. S3

3. 777 Hybrid

Gybes:

1. Pocket Rocket

2. S3

3. 777 Hybrid

Harness Lines:

In high winds I don't like any of the manufacturer harness lines. A rigid monoloop from windsurfing is the only thing I'll use due to its ease of hooking in without looking or guiding the loop.

Tangles:

They all tangle differently:

1. BRM S3 tangled for me if I rode with it in my hand, but did great with poor stowing.

2. 777 Hybrid was awesome riding with it in my hand, but I struggled with redeploys after full stows.

3. Pocket Rocket v1 tangles easy if you do a poor stow or ride with the lines dangling in your hand. I expect the v2 to remedy pretty much all of this.

What each is best for:

The Pocket Rocket is the user friendly all-rounder.

The 777 Hybrid is what you choose if you want huge range.

BRM S3 is the one if blasting upwind is your goal.

Questions? Drop them in the comments and I’ll get back to you.

See you at the river,

Bryan Lee, M.S. Experiential Education.