SINGLETAILS Those wicked single-tail pieces. Just the sight of these will send most submissive into shivers of terror and delight. The sound of the tail cutting air, "Crack", is one of the ultimate powers of the lash. Singletails are a graceful art that includes a bit of showmanship. You may secretly enjoy feeling like Errol Flynn at times. But remember: THESE ARE WEAPONS!! We use them to enhance pleasure, but they are also extremely dangerous. The use of a bullwhip takes years of practice to perfect, and only a few people in the country are proficient enough to "crack" them when using them on a live subject. Even I, who use a bullwhip regularly do not regularly "crack" it anywhere near my slaves. I do use the technique called the "crack and wrap" in which most of the force gets expended before it touches the subject. I only use this technique with signal whips and whips I can precisely control. Some people play at an extreme level, and so have I, but I do not recommend that unless you KNOW what you are doing. Begin with your stance. I use a modified fencing stance or a Martial arts "ready" stance, depending on what piece I'm using. When throwing a short lash, you may remain in the same stance for the entire movement. When using a long whip I will start on the one leg then step into the throw. (That is what we are doing, "throwing" a whip. You are essentially "tossing" a curve or "hairpin" down a line like a baseball. The difference is a baseball does not get smaller and pick up enough speed to break the sound barrier.) Feel the heft of the whip, shorter is easier right now . Gently rotate the whip in circle over your head. Make sure you have clearance all around, then make a cross circle on each side to check for head room (like crossing your arms when you jump rope, but you only use one arm). This movement describes the inside sphere, like a bubble around you. You are safe inside that space and unless you move to intersect the surface of that bubble. Outside the sphere, everyone else should be safe. Almost all techniques involve describing this circle with the lash in one direction or another. The best way to avoid hitting yourself is to follow through the movement after the crack. Make each movement flow like water. Every whip movement is a flowing circle. You want to be in the middle of that circle at all times, each movement reaching out with speed and focus and returning to rest and control. Fast out, smooth Back. A throw from the left hand side of the body should finish with the whip at "rest" on the right and visa versa. An exception to this is the circus crack in which the whip is thrown and rested on the same side of the body. Returning the whip back in front for a quick grab ( though I do just that!!) is not a good idea for a novice, all of your valuable bits are in the front. Which is why I say return to rest behind you protect the bits you can't replace and whap your butt instead Avoid cracking the whip with an underhand motion. It's one of the easiest methods, but it has little practical use, and the movement sends that very fast tail straight at your face. The only people you're liable to impress are people with no experience and the doctors in the emergency room. The one effective underhand technique is "licking" or sending the tail out to lap in an upward movement. Licking is a slow, flowing, underhand throw that does not crack the piece. Single-Tail Technique These instructions are written for right-handed individuals. If you are left-handed, reverse the directions. The crack of the lash is Power, the fear and the fantasy. Many do not crack the whip ON anyone, but flog with a singletail cracking in the air only for psychological effect. I do crack in extremely heavy, consensual play. SIGNAL WHIPS (2 to 5 feet) Side Arm: Holding the grip in your right hand and the body of the lash lightly in the left hand. Move your right hand forward to the target area, sliding the lash through the left hand. Continue the motion in the direction of the strike, extend the arm fully, then flick the wrist. The movement of the wrist approximates a fishing cast after the arm is extended. After the crack follow the movement to rest at your right side. A good rule of thumb is that you should think of lightly touching your right hip. William Tell: This is largely the same movement of " sidearm" but is more accurate. Hold the whip tail or last four inches of the lash in your off hand, close to your face, as you would hold a drawn arrow. Bend the elbow of your whip hand slightly and aim at your target. Draw your arm toward your target, then snap your wrist in a downward movement like a fishing cast. Try this slowly at first, taking care you roll the whip straight through the "hairpin." Off the Shoulder: This is a very popular technique because it has accuracy and flair, however it requires practice so you don't hit yourself in the ear. Resting the body of the lash in the depression between the neck and the shoulder, slide the whip straight forward . Extending the arm straight toward your target and flick your wrist. You can then watch as the whip rolls through the hairpin. A lot of these techniques will work with longer whips, as described later. However, with each foot of whip you rapidly lose accuracy, by as much as 2 to 3 inches a foot for any lash longer than 5 feet. Circus Crack: I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO TRY THIS but I know you want to. The reason the circus crack is popular is that it creates the most noise. Do NOT use this on a human being: it cuts, it's inaccurate, and it's dangerous - and you'll hit yourself a lot at first. Make a circle on the right-hand side of the body, holding the about a foot away from your body. This describes the circle for the whip that you cannot intersect. Holding the whip at rest in front of you toss it back past your shoulder. Before the lash completes its rearward movement, begin bringing the grip back towards the front, causing the hairpin movement to start in the whip almost in your grip hand. In effect, you are "throwing" the whip twice (first backward, then forward) and continuing the circle on the first throw. Since the tail is already moving when you throw it the second time, you increase the speed from a Point where the tail is moving very fast. This vastly increases the speed and report of even a Small whip. Wrapping: This technique involves throwing the whip out over a persons outstretched arm or around a leg or waist. This technique is very effective for mind play, because you are able to crack the whip, while not expending the force of the throw against actual flesh. You are cracking the tail PAST the subject, allowing the body of the whip to gradually release its energy by wrapping around subject's anatomy. For example, you aim for the point a few inches beyond the wrist, crack it there, then allow the tail to drop and wrap. The longer the whip the more force you will have to expend. The whip rolls on an axis in a hairpin, and at the end of this trip the tail rolls out at amazing speed and cracks. The majority of the force thus dissipated, the tail drops and the remaining momentum causes it to wrap. This is a fairly easy technique to learn by throwing the whip then letting your arm drop to the floor. The hard part to master is throwing in a straight line and hitting the same 2 inch square. Popping someone in the ear or the nipple will not get you applause - but it might get you a lawsuit. Drop Flogging: This is a common, relatively easy technique where the lash is used to "drop" a blow down the area to be struck, taking care not to flick' the whip. You can also spin the whip in a gentle circle and slowly move the spinning lash into the subject. To lessen the centrifugal force and provide greater control, you can also "choke up" on the tail, essentially making a shorter whip. Notes on Cracking 1. Popping the tail on the skin is extremely painful and can break the skin. one way of easing the blow is to make sure the string or tail is unraveled to a longer length and more diffused blow to soften the sensation. 2. Crack using just the unraveled end to brush the body. This takes great control, as you are trying to only touch with 2 inches of tail. When you miss -- and you are GOING to miss - you will create red stripes and welts. A good practice technique, "brushing" powder from a mirror, Knotting will create Lines not brushmarks. 3. "Knotting": Using the last knot on the tail and snapping an area, which will cause welts and some striping, but the focus is to minimize stripes and weeping. 4. Crack the first 4 inches on the shoulder blades of the back or buttocks , again control, you want a Lateral Movement Down the back. It is My OPINION that this crack happens AFTER the tail has exited its path down the back and cracks then. But essentually you are throwing the tail with force. Only for very Highend Couples. Causes Stripes, Welts Not unlike a cane, Hard strikes can Bring Blood welts. Some weeping/ Bleeding. Bullwhip The last Singletail piece I wish to talk about is the bullwhip . This is one of my favorite pieces, and also the most dangerous. They come in Lengths of 6, 8, and 12 feet. I have even seen 14 , 16 and 20 foot whips. Most bullwhips are braided and the quality of the whip depends on the number of strands (or plaits) used in the braid. A good whip is actually 3 or 4 whips one braided on top of the other. Such as a 20 plait over a 10 plait over a 4 plait. Most American bullwhips are crafted out of cow hide, with a 4, 6 or a 8 plait braid over a braided leather or rope core. The very best single tails are made from kangaroo hide, a very supple and durable material. Kangaroo whips generally have a tighter braid made from many narrow leather thongs ranging from a 6 to 36 plait. One of the easiest forms to use with a bull whip is a full wrap. [Note: Wrapping with a bullwhip is a good thing, as opposed to wrapping with other kinds of whips.] In a Full wrap always remember that it is the speed of the "backdraw" or pulling back on the lash that increases the speed of the strike. I don't crack the whip on a full wrap, but toss it to wrap softly. Bullwhip "experts" may perform crack wrapping -- with practice it is like an embrace from a deadly snake. Flicking or "licking" as described above is also done lightly, increasing the speed of the wrist flip to increase sensation. This is high end sensation, and should only be used on a person after months and years of practice! But with care you may dabble in it, if you remember that even a light strike is very painful. Full Wrap: Lightly toss the whip forward horizontally,in a side arm movement, and wrap the tail around the body, so that the end (striker) hits behind the subject. The wrapping of the whip expends a lot of the force, but be sure to do this slowly. With practice, you can vary the power of the strike by pulling back lightly before the striker hits. You will feel the increase in power as you pull back. The trick is to roll the whip forward slowly, allow it to wrap, and then draw back, letting the whip caress the subject. Most importantly with a bull whip, you should practice quite a bit before using it on your partner. trees work well for practice, and they seldom sue. The only other technique I will explain here may be my own invention, as I have seen no one else use it. It involves rolling the whip along the floor so the striker leaps up to strike from the bottom. The technique is very simple. Just lay the whip flat, and roll it much as you would roll out a blanket to make your bed. With practice you can become quite accurate with This. A variation of this technique is to roll the whip in a circular motion causing the piece to "spiral" to your subject.  Setting the Scene Remember, harder in sensation play is not necessarily better! Longer is better. Some of you may never have reached subspace, and some Dom/mes have never been able to get their partners there, and I am about to tell you why. In a preliminary or a punishment scene, time varies, as long or short as you like as it does not matter. A personal hypothesis is that strikes on large muscle groups and the tensing of same causes an effect not unlike exercise.this may produce the same effect some describe as "subspace" and I tend to equate with "runners high". But this is in no way the only path to obtain the mindset, nor only the physical path. When the whip lands, the body jerks slightly towards the sensation, the Major muscle groups tense and the muscle groups around the spine vibrate and transmit a message to the spine. The spine sends a message to the brain to produce endorphins (a naturally occurring enzyme like an opiate such as heroin). Since proper schools of thought believe endorphins are the byproduct of any stimuli (pain) and exercise only, the only way to explain the subspace I and others I know have experienced. is that the state is produced by the bodies response to sensation play Much the same as if the subject had run a marathon. Since the sensation is not traumatic, there must be another component. I believe it's rhythmic vibration and exertion related to exercise. So Any sensation session should be treated as a workout, Liquids will be needed, Over heating must be watched. as well as heart rate. You should have towels ,septic pencils, Antibiotic creams and so forth. A first aid Kit as well as a CPR course are very good ideas. Most importantly , Practice with your toys before playing with your partner will improve your accuracy and strokes to avoid mis-hits to this area. great care must be taken to build sensation in this area rather than hitting hard. The results can be realized by taking your time building the sensation. Sub/Bottom space is a dreamy warm place for me. akin to meditative states. Religious groups have attained " exalted" states for centuries by self-flagellation. Sensation play, good sensation play (like when you have to walk your slave to the couch and tell them their name) takes time. Most sensation sessions I do take from 2 to 4 hours, often more. Yes I am darn tired when I am done, but it is well worth it. Another little hint is showmanship - yes, a modicum of acting. You are creating a fantasy, not fixing a toaster. Big movements, acting , whispering in their ear. You are creating a world. Fill it with fantasy. If the text at times sounds like I am preaching. I am. Most people will act responsibly, but some do not. One reason for this text is that I would hope you take this Single source of information and see it as a starting place, with the intention of practicing and learning more. I have seen too many flail away in a public dungeon or private party and cause harm to a wonderful sub, just because they didn't take the time to learn proper ways to use their toys. It damages all of our reputations when something like that happens. Your submissive is looking to YOU to heighten his/her pleasure. This is the role you have assumed. And the whip is a tool, albeit a dangerous one, for accomplishing that. Before you consider using any of these tools on the one you love, Seek information. Find someone to teach you technique. And above all spend time with each Piece. Remember with all these techniques, PRACTICE, this includes taking the time to know how each piece you will be using will react, it is more important to know how to make the softest strike with each, then how to strike the hardest. knowing how to strike softly will give you control. And control is what we Dominants are supposed to have right? I have written this piece from my experience only. Opinions will vary, and as with all subjects involving this lifestyle, I recommend you get a wide variety of opinions.