Designer interview Dice 2021 - Ralf Grösel

Anything that operates at the top of its game takes time to develop. The DICE has been a global success since day one, bridging the gap between the Vegas and the Evo. The sport has evolved and now, the extreme, Red Bull King of the Air competition in Cape Town, South Africa, is the only crown the world’s best are chasing.
Every athlete has a career trajectory that requires navigating several barriers and facilitators of performance, so too does designing a kite fit for the job. The concept of the DICE has always been for more experienced multi-disciplinary riders, edging towards the extreme.

However, already in 2019, riders like Lasse Walker and Aaron Hadlow couldn’t find exactly what they needed for mega loops and consistency when riding in 40knts plus, which kicked off the process to completely redesign the DICE.

The 2020 DICE made huge steps and became our extreme focused kite with a commercial following. The magazine reviews mentioned slight improvements, which was true when applied to a normal range of customers - but put to the extreme and in the hands of experienced riders and World Champions, the improvements were massive.

There’s no such thing as minor design changes when working on such a high-performance kite, so the 2021 DICE remains and Ralf Grösel is here to tells us all about his boundary breaking design.

Duotone Kiteboarding designer interview Dice 2021

The 2021 Dice competes on the elite stage in both the freestyle world tour and the King of the Air. Our redesign in 2020 reimagined the DICE as the legitimate example of extreme versatility. Such progress has had an incredible impact on the 2021 Duotone product portfolio, with clear separation between the models.

The Evo; all-round high performance, and the Vegas; younger generation pushing a niche discipline of the sport, and the Dice; agile, reactive, huge jumps, powerful loops, unhooked riding.

How did you get to this point?
The Dice has always been accessible for a wider group and very commercial. But, extreme riders like Lasse and Aaron wanted something that could boost higher, achieve more depth in the loop because of the way it recovers and handle the harshest conditions in the world. The complete redesign was influenced by these riders, and the challenge was to remain loyal to the foundations of the DICE, retaining accessibility for the experienced and adventurous riders.

What was the outcome?
The Dice is totally at home on the edge of all its parameters and in control throughout. There’s no point in being the hero who can fly a crazy, unpredictable kite. You are the hero when you can fly higher and rider cleaner than your competitor. The Dice allows for that.

Can you breakdown the purpose of the main modules that make the final product?

The reduction in weight improves flying characteristics. The bridle reconfiguration and pully-less design offers precise feedback.
New materials play a huge part for 2021. Lighter in weight, its construction and processing, provides the ability for a much more solid frame construction. The combination of the two makes the DICE more responsive, super stable in gusty or high wind conditions and consistency through the wind range.

Can you put the DICE’s extreme performance into context?

You only need to watch Aaron and Lasse in action and see how their influence translates into performance. The Dice is explosive, fast and agile. Loops are full power and engaged throughout every aspect of the circumference. Its reactive response to your input and supreme drifting abilities even allows for wave sessions. There’s slack after pop and due to the stiff frame, the DICE can drive itself as you stomp your latest tricks.