00, the Wrights built the first in a series of full-size gliders to test their wing warping theories. They used Otto Lilienthal's tables of lift to determine the curvature of the wings. Previous experimenters had discovered that an airplane wing must be curved on top in order to produce lift. And Lilienthal's tables of lift were considered the most accurate guide in defining precisely what shape a wing should have and the amount of lift it would produce. The Brothers followed Lilienthal's tables almost to the letter, making only a slight change so they could get more lift at lower speeds.
Wright 1900 glider being flown as a kiteThey planned to test the glider as a kite, and then to spend many hours gliding on the winds at Kitty Hawk while tethered to a post. This, they reasoned, would give them the gliding time necessary to learn the tricks of the air. In a letter to Octave Chanute, Wilbur offered his thoughts about the importance of skill to human flight: It is possible to fly without motors, but not without knowledge and skill. This I conceive to be fortunate, for man, by reason of his greater intellect, can more reasonably hope to equal birds in knowledge, than to equal nature in the perfection of her machinery.
Unfortunately, the Wright Brothers would not gain the skill they had envisioned. The glider performed well as a kite, and their wing warping system worked. But the glider's lifting power fell far short of predictions made by Lilienthal's tables. The glider could lift a pilot only in very strong winds, which made it difficult to control and dangerous to fly. So the Wright Brothers returned to Dayton determined to build an improved glider and go back to Kitty Hawk the following year.