3.5m Wipika kite

[Toby]

Wipika used to state the projected area, while naish stated the total area like today.

An 8.9 was like a 12

[Peter_Frank]

I've teached with this kite, when having a kiteschool, worked great.

And also ridden it (back then) in high winds, jumping with it on TwinTips, fun, as it was a small kite even back then.

Today this is not a small kite, after the foiling era has come where smaller kites are used often - fun to think about.

Peter

[longwhitecloud]

can you see if teh mylar is delaminated after 20 years

mine isnt - i thought it was an amazing material- better than dacron, much lighter . . should be used again - wasnt super expensive per m2.

[qba-epp11]

[Dave_5280]

It had a fixed bridle and wasn’t depowerable like the kites today. I have a set of fixed bridle foil kites from 1 to 5 meters and have land boarded with the 1 meter in strong winds, laugh and got launched by the 3 meter one day. I have them on 4 line handles - the control on handles is amazing- you can back stall the to the ground to land on trailing edge, and spin the kite in the air.

Ozone came out with a big light wind fixed bridle foil about 5 years ago, it was over 10 meters.

[Hugh2]

Thanks for that. Even though I don't understand a word of it. It looks almost as painful as windsurfing, and I did that from 1980-2005! I'm so glad these pioneers stuck with it to eventually deliver us the kites we have today.

[Dave_5280]

Thanks for that. Even though I don't understand a word of it. It looks almost as painful as windsurfing, and I did that from 1980-2005! I'm so glad these pioneers stuck with it to eventually deliver us the kites we have today.

Sorry, here’s an article on it: http://kitethoughtsfromthefield.blogspo ... ridle.html

Fixed bridle kites are more powerful the modern depowerable kites but the problem is when you get by a gust there is no give. When I took a lesson on the old Wipika kite, 2 line, big metal bar, wrist leash, I was body dragging and got hit by a gust and if lifted me out of the water and ripped the bar out of my hands breaking the wrist leash and all I could see was the kite getting smaller as it went higher and the instructor running down the beach to retrieve the kite. Since they were 2 line kites and didn’t have a fancy swivel, you had to roll your body to untwist the lines after a loop, or called “alligator roll”.

There was only one other student taking lessons on Maui that week, a guy from Iowa, and he bought the gear for I think $1,200, seemed like a waste since the gear was so primitive back then and it quickly improved.

[Hugh2]

My first body-dragging in 2005 was also a two-line kite, I believe a 7m, that a friend had bought, but with a harness connection. It certainly taught you quickly where the power zone was and in about 20 knot wind I got repeatedly launched out of the water on a several-mile solo downwinder at OBX before hitching a ride back. First and last time I flew a two-line kite!

[JakeFarley]

Wip-a-kill... Had a 11.5/8.5 projected with a 2-line Airush reride bar that I learned on. If overpowered, edge as hard as you can and hope you don't get pulled off edge. Went from that to a 21.5m Cabrinha Blacktip. I was much younger then.

[Hugh2]

I finally got this kite, without bladders, back from my boat and would happily send it to Peert, but he is not responding to email. Anyone else have a use for it?