K1 was the first boat that we built entirely from scratch as a dedicated kite platform, and its unique shape is our own design. For K1, we developed a sophisticated kitearm mechanism, which we also used on Cheyenne and on Nalani, and which we used as a basis for the K2 design. The kitearm allows us to control extremely large kites−up to 110 sqm−with a hydraulic steering wheel. For this boat, we also developed a fully adjustable rudder, which we replicated on the Kitefoiler and on K2, and a winch prototype that we have used on Cheyenne, Nalani, the Kitefoiler, and K2. We also used this platform to explore a variety of foil shapes, experimenting not only with the T-foil but also with various keelfoil (outrigger foils) and V-foil (center hull foil) designs.
