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Hello all help with rigging wipika air blast

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RickI
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Re: Hello all help with rigging wipika air blast

Postby RickI » Tue Aug 14, 2018 9:32 pm

The AR5 was my first four line LEI in 2000. I was once lofted 175 ft. into the side of a house on one of them. Rig it in an honored place in a museum. Seriously, your health isn't worth cheaping out on a newer, better designed, more reliable kite. This comes from long and painful personal and collective experience. Ignore this advice at your peril, as atty's are fond of saying, sigh.
Webbed feet wrote:
Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:58 pm
Hi all I'm new to the site and new kitesurfing but have flown traction kites for years. I recently had a kitesurfing taster session and loved every minute.
I might get a bit of stick for this but I have acquired a wipika airblast 11.8 AR5.5 system 7. I believe it is 2002 but not confirmed. Yes it's old school but it looks in good condition. The bar will need some upgrade with quick release clips. At the minute I'm struggling to understand the rigging and any help will certainly be appreciated. There is two lines on each end of the kite with a pulley and a line on the back edge of the 2nd tube 7 tubes in total. I'm guessing I just use the end lines if so how does the pulley work and is the line on the 2nd tube just a fifth line flag out safety?
Thanks in advance

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Flyboy
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Re: Hello all help with rigging wipika air blast

Postby Flyboy » Fri Jan 01, 2021 1:01 am

Ha! Just came upon this thread by chance! Wonder if the OP ever tried to fly the Airblast? I remember my first time on an 11.8m Airblast - I thought it was amazing! After struggling with 2 line kites for a year, with the Airblast I was able instantly to go up wind "effortlessly" & start boosting. I still have the kite - might take it out of the bag next summer & see what it looks like. I learned to do everything on my Airblasts. OK - it was a lot harder than the later bridled kites, but it was still lots of fun. It just required careful attention to the wind & a combination of committed edging & depowering when the gusts came through.

I wouldn't recommend anyone start by flying a 16m C kite on land though ... not even a modern one.


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