Does anyone have a review input on the XC harness? I really like the leg straps on a harness, and would like to upgrade (if people review it as an upgrade) to the XC or something like it. Lets hear what you got

Great harness. Highly recommended for snowkiting. So much more comfy than my waist harness over a jacket and doesn't ride up. The waist harness makes me sweat so I'm hot and then cold.

I've got both a D-ring version (looks like they changed the new model a little) and the spreader version. I'd say that the D-ring is better unless you are unhooking. Just simpler, smaller and lighter. But get a carabiner to go with it. Otherwise you have to fiddle with the chicken loop every time you want to get in and out of it.

Its also nice to be able to throw it in the kitebag in case you have to hoof it with your gear before you set up. One less bulky thing to carry.

Never heard anything bad about that harness, only excellent reviews!

I also have this harness and have used it both in the buggy and snowkiting. Personally, I have had one gripe about using it in the buggy. The leg straps will bounce all over the darn place unless you find some way to secure them (tuck them under eachother, or something). I actually had one of the pretty red rings hook on the red-ball safety of my outlaw and release it to safety line one day. I had my hands on the bar and was rather surprised to have the kite suddenly go full power on me. Not a huge issue, just something to bear in mind for buggy riding. Works GREAT for snowkiting.

I used mine just today. I love it. It is light and open air instead of making my rear hot. I like to really tighten up the waist once I'm sitting in the buggy to keep the spreader bar close to my body, but you can't comfortably walk around like that. I want to try it in the water sometime too to see if its better there as well. I like the spreader bar for strop use and I'm not sure the D ring would be as good for what I use it for. Everytime Angus lets someone try one, he doesn't get it back, so they must be good for most everyone.

It's my harness of choice for the buggy and I have a hard time keeping them in stock. In my narrow PL Buggy seat (I have 36" waist), it's one of the few that won't bulk up and wedge me in the seat. In the hot Georgia summers it's nice to have something so light and airy but gets the job done comfortably. It has a spreader bar pad that saves the ribs when taking upwind with a lot of side-pull.

Being one-size-fits-all is an added convenience as it cuts down on guessing (and makes it easier for me to stock). It is sized to fit over snow clothes so it is hard to cinch the leg straps up tight when wearing light summer shorts, but sitting in the bug keeps them secure enough. Ragden's point about the straps flopping around has not bothered me yet but it is a good point and they can be tucked in.

When new, the straps are stiff and hard to pull through the adjustment buckles to tighten up, but they get easier with time.

The last ones shipped to me came as "SB" instead of "XC " harness. One difference (besides the bag graphics) is what looks like a handle pass strap around the back for a leash, but it turns out to be a strap to hook a leash for towing a sled in the snow or something. Maybe I'll hitch my cooler to it to drag around the beach and bring my beer with me.

Another difference on the 2010 is the leg straps attachment up front. Instead of coming to a point up behind the spreader bar pad, they now attach up front to the spreader bar itself. This helps keep the bar held down by putting the down-forces acting in it from the leg straps farther forward on the bar, and should minimize chafe behind the pad (but I never had that trouble)

Price is the same as 2009 @ $125 for the spreader bar version and $100 for the d-ring version. It's not often you see Ozone among the cheapest in class for a product category, but the harness is light and simple while still functional.

thanks for the info guys! Im really stoked to get one. Does anyone know how to tell the difference between the 2010 model and the 2009 model when shopping online? I'd like to get the leg straps over the bar option, and all of the websites I've been looking at just advertise "ozone, access XC harness" with no indication as to what model...

Just get one from Angus. I'm sure he'll hook you up.

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Originally posted by flyboy15 thanks for the info guys! Im really stoked to get one. Does anyone know how to tell the difference between the 2010 model and the 2009 model when shopping online? I'd like to get the leg straps over the bar option, and all of the websites I've been looking at just advertise "ozone, access XC harness" with no indication as to what model...

The updated 2010 version with the spreader bar is known now as the "Access SB"

The new version with the webbing loop and no spreader bar is known as the "Access Base". This replaces the XC version with center D-Loop, that I am told by Ozone US is no longer available.

The Amsteel line around the back of both is meant to be a leash attachment for handle passes or an attachment point for towing sleds.

Another improvement for both is that the front leg attachment straps are farther apart, improving ergonomics and leaving more room for "the boys"

I still have one XC with center D-ring available on close out.

Info on the new harnesses is here...
http://www.coastalwindsports.com/servlet/the-603/Access-Snow...

Updated Ozone harness do look nice. If you have a waist harness now, and a climbing harness, guys around here combine the two. Put the climbing harness on and then your waist harness over it. Then put the belay loop over your spreader bar hook. That keeps it down and from riding up. The other funtion is for huge jumping. If you tie into both harnesses if something happened to your spreader bar, you're still connected via the climbing harness.

I'm planning on making leg loops for my PL waist harness this weekend sewing them to the harness with buckles like the OR session 2 harness. Then they can be removable as well. I like the freedom of movement with a waist, but hate the waist wedgie you get especially with slippery winter clothing on.

Angus, Thanks for all the info and the web link. This looks like a great harness and I am interested in trying one out. I'll have to ask around up here to see if any one I know has one.

Good infos, ta I should have one sitting at the kite club house waiting for me to try to squeeze my ass into it ... but dunno what year it'll be.
... is it just me or does that spreader bar look REALLY short ...?

Hmmm, never thought about doubling up a waist harness and a rock climbing harness. I like the idea of redundancy, but using those two together sounds like it could get bulky. I've often wondered what the odds are of a spreader bar hook failing...obviously this would be very bad if you happen to be more than a couple feet off the snow! I don't plan on getting huge air, but i suppose it could happen one day and it would be nice to have a backup system in place for a little piece of mind. How about just another webbing loop that attaches to your harness and goes around the chickenloop that you could detach quickly?

yea I ride with a rock harness now, and I feel 100% safe on them. Some spreader bars i've seen have definitely looked a little skinny in my opinion. Does anyone have a hook failure witnessing? pulling on the hook directly out from your body doesnt bother me, thats the way it would be least likely to fail imo. But pulling up on the hook when the kite is zenithed or pulling big air seems like it would add a ton of stress to those welds.....

For me 125 for the ozone harness is a big step while i do fine with my rock harness. I would like the benefits of the harness's build, but I guess i need some convincing.....

Que the harness veterans... haha

In regards to spreader bar failures I see them fail all the time. Bear in mind we're on skis so the hook is side loaded all the time instead of the load comming off the front of the hook.

If it's a rigid hook we usually see the small cross support start to crack first after that goes the other welds start to go soon after.

On pivot bars the plate that the hook pivots in usually peels off before the hook fails.

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Originally posted by Feyd In regards to spreader bar failures I see them fail all the time.

:o:o:puzzled::puzzled::wow::wow:

Damn, I'm kinda scared about a big air crash now haha. I like to get 15+ up pretty often, so this is not good for me . I board so i suppose that helps a little.... but DAMMNNNNN im seeing a slow motion video of me digging my grave using inertia

So all this talk of spreaderbar hook failure got me thinking too. I have a pivoting bar and yeah, the little plate that the pivot is mnted to looks like it would definately be the weak point, pretty thin material actually. I wouldn't be too leery of it failing on water, but if the hook fails up above hard frozen ground or ice, it could get ugly. I still think a rock climping quickdraw ( sewn webbing with a 'biner on each end) would be a cheap and effective backup.

Maybe Ozone has beefed up their spreader hook. So my next question is, has anyone seen the Ozone spreaderbar hook fail? In the pics they look pretty stout, but i've not seen one yet in person. Do all the guys that really get big air...Chasta for example....do they double up their harnesses like rudeboy mentioned earlier?

Jack.

Chris B goes big and he wears one. Seth started wearing one last year too. If you're jumping huge over hard surfaces like the ice we tend to ride, then it makes sense. If your hook breaks, your kites gone and you crash. Rob Whittall posted on kiteforum at one time about gliding and jumping your kite off hills and this is one bit from that post:

And I am the first to hold up my hand and say that I realize just how thin a line I am walking when I fly my kite off the hill. I owe it to myself to understand the dangers and decide if I want to take the risk. I know that an equipment failure at 40ft plus could easily end in serious injury or death depending how lucky I were to be on that particular day!
If you want to be stupid like me then first remember that all your equipment should be in top condition and preferably new! Do not use old kites of any sort, foil or inflatable. Use a climbing harness and carabineer to hook into as well as your kite harness. Inspect your lines, bar and kite for any signs of ANYTHING and if you find anything wrong replace it.
Your life is hanging under something that is not designed for what you are doing so don’t expect it to always go they way you think it is going to…


For most of our lake riding, probably not needed. But it keeps a waist harness down and it adds that extra bit of protection. Try, see if you like it. If you don't, keep the jumps under 20 feet and you'll probably live!

Good advice Aaron. I don't or haven't yet gone big, maybe 4-5 ft...yeah i know thats pretty low. I've survived falls from higher, doing other stupid stuff. I don't wear a waist harness, i switch between a rock harness and a dakine storm seat harness, which is ok, and not as bulky as the fusion. I tried a waist harness (dakine tabu) and didn't like it at all. It always felt like it was working its way up around my ribs, and seemed like it was restricting my breathing. So i'm sticking with a seat harness or more than likely the Ozone access harness. If I start going bigger, i'll add something extra.

I have a question. For the older style Access XC harnesses (D ring or spreader), where are you supposed to hook a leash?

I just hook mine through the front of the harness...

Do you mean that you clip around the spreader bar? Or to one of the straps? I'm not sure what you mean.

The spreader bar is the only thing that I've found to clip to, but I'd rather not have it there.

I put it around the strap on the right hand side of the spreader bar... the strap that you gets pulled tight as you pull on it... I'll see if I can take a picture and post it for you...

I've been trying to find an SB harness for a while now, and I have a few friends on here looking for them for me. Does anyone have any leads as to why they aren't making it to the dealers on time and where they are going??

I have the one with the spreader. Its awesome for landboarding. Very comfortable and easy to hook in and out. I was wearing a rock climbing harness before I got this but the extra padding is great. Go's on over hillbilly armour shorts too!

Only complaint is the sizing. I'm 6'1" and 155lbs and its hard to get it tight round the legs. The waist is ok. As someone said I guess this is because it was designed for snow kiting and bulky winter clothes.

I havn't tried it in the snow yet but I'm doing a snowboard trip in february and I will probably take a couple of kites.

I just got the "access base" and I think it's going to be awesome for the winter and summer. I'm a big enough guy that it'll fit fine.

Got mine from Angus...

This is currently what is posted on CWS:

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NOTE: Until further notice, all Ozone products are on permanent, perpetual back-order. Wait times for delivery might be from a week or two to a month or more. We apologize for the inconvenience but this is due to US supply-chain issues with the Ozone brand and is out of our control. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.

ATB,
Sam

Cheezy got the last of the last batch and that batch took a month. They won't tell me how long for the next batch. They frequently do not even answer phone or email so it is difficult to get updates to customers.

Wow Angus, glad i got in when I did... thanks for making sure i was part of that order...:bigok::bigok: