Whip
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A whip is a tapered flexible length of either a single cord or plaited (braided) leather or other material, commonly with a stiff handle. Whips are used for two purposes, either to produce a loud sharp sound, or to inflict pain.
When rapidly moved appropriately at the base this tip of a whip can exceed 340 m/s (760mph) producing a small sonic boom described as a "crack". Whips were the first manmade implements to break the sound barrier. This loud noise is commonly used to drive or direct livestock or harnessed animals.
Some similar devices with a strap are called "whips" and can be used to cause pain by striking humans or animals but cannot make a "crack". These may include riding crops, horse whips, and various flogging instruments. These devices are used as a means of control, punishment or torture.
Another far less common and more modern way to create a crackable or flogger style whip involves "weaving" metal rings together and typically welding the rings closed in various rope-like chain mail patterns. Because of the increased mass and hardness of the metal, relative to that of whips formed from soft flexible materials such as leather and nylon, it is not recommended that they be used on animals or for BDSM play.
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[edit] Stock whips (Stockwhips)
Stock whips or stockwhips are a type of single-tailed whip, used primarily by Australian stockmen. Its form originated in the English hunting whip, but it has since become a distinct type of whip. Similar to an American bullwhip in body composition, its main difference is in handle construction. Unlike a bullwhip's imbedded handle, the stock whip handle is not fitted inside the thong and is usually longer. A stock whip's handle is connected to the thong by a joint typically made of a few strands of thick leather. This allows the whip to hang across a stockman's arm when not being used. The handles are normally longer than those of a bullwhip, being between 15 and 21 inches in length. The length of the thong can range from 3 feet to 10 feet. Stock whips are also almost exclusively made from tanned kangaroo hide.
The stockwhip is only used to make a loud cracking sound to move the stock (cattle, sheep, horses, etc.), with the stock running away from the sound. Australia's John Brady is an internationally renowned exponent of the art of whipcracking (an expertise he demonstrated during the live musical production The Man From Snowy River: Arena Spectacular). The Australian stockwhip was shown internationally when lone rider Steve Jefferys reared his Australian Stock Horse and cracked the stockwhip to commence the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.
[edit] Florida stockwhip
The Florida stockwhip or Florida cowwhip used by Floridian cowboys is often known as a cracker. It is a two-piece unit like the stockwhip and is connected to the handle by threading two strands of the thong through a hollow part of a wooden handle before being tied off. The cowwhip is heavier than the Australian stockwhip. Early cowwhips were made mostly of cowhide or buckskin.
Modern cowwhips are made of flat nylon parachute cord. Most cowwhips have handles that average 16 inches, and thongs that average 12 feet. A good cowwhip can produce a loud crack by a simple push of the handle. This can make it more convenient to use than a bullwhip in a thick vegetated environment with less swinging room. The Tampa Bay Whip Enthusiasts give demonstrations of the Florida Cracker Cowboy in costume at the annual Heritage Village Civil War Days festival, located in Largo, Florida every year in May.
[edit] Signal whips
Signal whips or signalwhips are a type of single-tailed whip, originally designed to control dog teams. A signal whip usually measures between 3 and 4 feet in length. Signal whips and snake whips are similar. What distinguishes a signal whip from a snake whip is the absence of a "fall". A fall is a piece of leather attached to the end of the body of the whip. In a snake whip, the "cracker" attaches to the fall. In a signal whip, the cracker attaches directly to the body of the whip.
[edit] Snake whips
Snake whips or snakewhips are a type of single-tailed whip. The name snake whip is derived from the fact that this type of whip has no handle inside and so can be curled up into a small circle which resembles a coiled snake. They were once commonly carried in the saddlebag by cowboys of the old west. A full sized snake whip is usually at least 4 feet in length (excluding the fall and cracker at the tip of the whip) and around one inch in diameter at the butt of the whip.
A pocket snake whip can be curled up small enough to fit into a large pocket, and ranges in size from 4 feet to 6 feet in length. The pocket snake whip is primarily a whip for occasional use, such as in loading cattle. Both of these types of snake whips are made with a leather shot bag running approximately three quarters of the length of the whip.
Blacksnakes are the traditional whips used in Montana and Wyoming. The blacksnake has a heavy shot load extending from the butt well down the thong, and the whip is flexible right to the butt, ranges in size from 6 feet to 12 feet in length.
[edit] Crops and horse whips
Horse whips are artificial aids used by riders.
- Dressage whips are usually 3 feet long and are used to refine the aids of the rider, not to hurt the horse. They generally ask for more impulsion.
- Lunge whips are usually 5 feet long and are used to direct the horse as it is 'lunged' on a circle aroung the person standing in the centre. The whip is used to guide and signal direction and pace, and is not used with force against the horse. Taking the place of the rider's leg aids, the positioning of the lunge whip in relation to the horse gives the horse signals.
- Driving whips are shorter than lunge whips, although longer than dressage whips, and are used specifically for driving purposes. They have a long stock, but shorter lash than a lunge whip.
- A crop or bat is flexible and is only 2-2.5 feet in length, with a "popper" or a flap of leather at the end. It is used by taking the reins in one hand and hitting the horse with the crop behind the leg, using the other hand. It is to back up the leg aids, when the horse is not moving forward, or occasionally as a disciplinary measure (such as when a horse refuses or runs out on a jump).
- A hunting whip is about the same length as a crop, except its "stock" is not flexible. On one end of the stock it has a lash that is several feet in length, on the other end it has a hook, which is used to help the rider open and close gates while out fox hunting. The hunting whip is not intended to be used on the horse, but rather the lash is there to remind the hounds to stay away from the horse's hooves, and it can also be used as a communication device to the hounds.
[edit] Popular culture
The whip is occasionally portrayed in popular culture in various contexts, but the most well known and memorables whip users are Indiana Jones, the (fictional) archaeologist adventurer, who uses the whip for a variety of things, not the least of which is to swing over long chasms, Catwoman (Batman), Zorro, the (fictional) outlaw-vigilante cowboy swashbuckler of California, Hatcher's (played by Christopher Walken) henchmen, the Belmont clan, of Castlevania fame, and the character Whip in The King of Fighters. Whips are also a recurring weapon in the Dragon Quest series by Square Enix, where they are sought after for being able to hit a group of enemies.
Whips as weapons have appeared in many cartoons and videogames.
There also exist experts at the sport, called whipcracking. One such person is Australian John Brady.
In modern slang (rap) "whip" can also mean a car or the abilities of the car (ex: I'm about to whip out of here)
[edit] Buggy whip
This is a coach whip used for driving on horses harnessed to a buggy, or small open carriage. The buggy whip industry ceased to exist with the introduction of the automobile, and is cited in economics and marketing as an example of an industry ceasing to exist because its market niche, and the need for its product, disappears. In discussions of market regulation, it is often held that the economy would be disadvantaged as a whole if the buggy-whip industry were protected from going out of business by banning the automobile.
Buggy whips are not entirely gone. A resurgence of interest in carriage driving among aging baby-boomers now too old to ride horses has allowed a few die-hard buggy whip manufacturers to stay in business. Foremost among these is a company in Westfield, Massachusetts.
[edit] Whip-like appendages in nature
Some organisms have whip-like devices:-
- Many unicellular organisms, and spermatozoa, have one or two whip-like appendages called flagella, which they use for propulsion. "Flagellum" is Latin for "whip".
- Some large lizards (e.g. iguanas and monitor lizards) can whip with their tails. At least one veterinarian has complained that a modern hazard of his work is being "bitten, scratched, and whipped" by pet iguanas. The biological names of some lizards contain Mastigo- or -mastix, which is Greek for "whip".
- The whip snake was so called from its appearance; but the old myth that it could whip a man painfully, is false.
- There has been a theory that all or some sauropod dinosaurs could crack the ends of their tails like coachwhips as a sound signal, as in the book form of "Walking with Dinosaurs".
