Today I took my homemade boat to the canal again, not to test it this time but just to cruise. I had a tiny crowd of onlookers as I launched and forgot to start the GPS based app. Strava straight away. In total I covered around 2 miles and the mile and a half IContinue reading “Cruising!”
Category Archives: boat
I promise you this my young friend………..
In The Wind In The Willows Ratty says to Mole “I promise you this my young friend, there’s nothing, absolutely nothing, half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” I’ve long held that it would be more true a statement if the term “in boats” was substituted with “on mountain bikes”. DespiteContinue reading “I promise you this my young friend………..”
Less climbing.
My recent rides have involved a lot of climbing. In a week of 3 rides I climbed a total of 6,104 feet according to the app. Strava. I have a plan to do a big ride as a challenge for this year which should push me to the limit of my fitness and ability. HavingContinue reading “Less climbing.”
More boat testing.
My home made boat used a flapping foil (fishtail) for propulsion and although it did propel the boat forwards it had too many difficulties which I considered insurmountable. It didn’t move me nearly quickly enough and caused the boat to bob up and down. I decided to completely change the way in which the boatContinue reading “More boat testing.”
Testing the boat again.
I’ll admit I haven’t been too thrilled with the performance of my homemade boat. On a positive note it doesn’t leak any water and it’s stable, especially when you consider it’s small size at just 2.1 meters at the waterline. Today I’d adjusted the angle at which the fishtail which propels the boat pushes onContinue reading “Testing the boat again.”
Third homemade boat test.
After my last test I thought I was on the right track with the boat. My problems had been that it wasn’t nearly fast enough and that it bobbed up and down as it went along. There was a danger that water could have spilled over the side but also that I want to moveContinue reading “Third homemade boat test.”
The full Great Hill experience.
Great Hill might seem like a misnomer for a mound rising to just 1,250 feet above sea level but from some viewpoints it looks quite big. Also I was beginning my mountain bike ride from home at under 300 feet, dropping lower early in the ride. I’ve replaced the front mech. cable on the TrekContinue reading “The full Great Hill experience.”
Second test of my homemade boat.
I tested my human powered boat 6 days ago. It’s powered by treadles oscillating a fishtail. Well, why be conventional? It was dismally slow but on a positive note it didn’t leak at all. As a Consequence of this I’ve done some modifications. I increased the size of the fishtail by about 350% to getContinue reading “Second test of my homemade boat.”
Launching my home made boat.
I’ve mentioned before that I have been building a boat. As a mountain biker I wanted it to be pedal powered so I designed a treadle system to transfer leg power to the water. Treadles seemed better than rotating pedals in a boat because my legs would stay lower, aiding stability. Yesterday I finished workingContinue reading “Launching my home made boat.”
The mathematics of a boat.
Did you leave school and think you’d never need mathematics again? I didn’t. I’ve been doing various engineering projects over the years including 5 self designed, self built sportscars, one of which was battery powered. I built a suspension fork for my Proflex mountain bike around 18 months ago. I built a timber framed extensionContinue reading “The mathematics of a boat.”
Mountainbiker 