By Ambassador Alasdair McAlley
All week we’ve been celebrating Pip’s legacy through showcasing some of his Kona collection. In today’s final feature, we’re focusing on one of Pip’s Hei Hei King Kahuna’s. Yes, Pip owned more than one! What made this specific bike so special is the paintjob but more on that later.
The Hei Hei first appeared in 1991, and by 1996 the design had been refined to reflect the iconic sloping top-tube. The blend of strength, absorption and light weight meant the standard Hei Hei frame was used by the Kona XC racing team. With courses becoming more dynamic and technical, frames needed to be even stronger. So, in 1996, the first Hei Hei King Kahuna (or Race Wizard) was created, with ovalised tubing and extra gusseting. The tubes were Sandvik and fabricated by Titanium Sports in Kennewick to Kona specifications.
It quickly became the ultimate XC machine, available to purchase as a full bike with all the absolute best components, or frame only, always finished in the buffed, raw titanium finish. However, the XC team frames were painted, which led to some controversy I talked about previously.
What is for sure is the XC team never rode in the iconic “stars and bars” livery, so how did this frame end up in that colour scheme?
Pip was a master of research and looking for facts, and he did a stellar job as he acquired this frame. First, the serial number starts with K, indicating a 1997 King Kahuna (KK was used for 1998 onwards). It has top tube routing indicating a later season production run, also backed up by the serial number. After corresponding with the ever-helpful Kona tech team, they confirmed that this livery was only available to Kona employees – what a perk! As with all custom paint jobs at this time, they were done by Velographics in Bellingham, and the paint was Sikkens polyurethane, the same used on Kus and Hots.
Pip rode this bike a lot, and with the specification, he landed on, and the frames pedigree, you can see why.
He would comment on how well it handled, and for me, with its incredible aesthetics, it’s right up there with the absolute best Kona bike ever made. As Pip’s health deteriorated, he would keep this and yesterday’s 2010 Kilauea in line of sight at his home, to keep his spirits high.
We always joked that had this been an inch bigger, I’d have made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. Instead, it’s in Martin’s capable hands, who has further refined the build and kindly provided these latest pictures.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this week’s Dream Builds. I miss Pip tremendously with his unconditional love and wit. But I also know he’s having a whale of a time hanging out with the greats, shredding a Kona, doing what he did best. His funeral was a joyous, uplifting affair, a true celebration of the man. Ride on Pip!
