Now, This is a Kayak

Photo by Tobin, via flickr....

Amphibious Kayaking

Tired of wheeling your kayak down to the launching point and dealing with your kayak wheels? Some kayaks, like my Delta 18.5, have plenty of cargo space to pack away wheels, but not all kayaks do. Wouldn't it be great if you could just leave your wheels on the boat when you hit the water?
Randy Ridings came up with the perfect solution, what he calls a "quayak", a pedal-powered amphibious kayak. Check out the clip below:


Of course, he's not the only person to try something like this. In 2008, engineering students from the University of Southampton build an amphibious bicycle:


Here's another style":


Then there's this thing which appears to be a combination surf board bicycle:


The WaveBike! Combination bicycle and surfski:

The Most Comfortable Kayak Ever

Happy Hallowe'en!

Because you haven't paddled until you've paddled in a pumpkin.
Check out the video below:

Next Time, Consider a Kayak

Long-distance runner Reza Baluchi, who has in the past run around the Unites States and bicycled across nearly 60 countries, attempted a new long-distance endeavour last week by attempting to walk the almost 1700 km from Florida to Bermuda. He was going to walk across the ocean in a homemade "hydro pod," propelling it by running and pushing it with his arms. Think of it as a human hamster wheel.
Last Wednesday after only travelling about 130 km, the US Coast Guard checked on him, but let him continue, but by this past Saturday, he had made little further progess and activated his rescue beacon. He was rescued by the Coast Guard, exhausted but apparently otherwise uninjured.
Here's a video of the hydro pod in action:

Here's part of the Coast Guard rescue video:

The Newest Trend in Paddling Sports

Combining sit-on-top kayaking and stand-up-paddling, presenting the newest trend in paddle sports, Sit Down Stand Up Paddling!

Ready to Launch

Check out the video of this seal launch off a causeway embedded below. It goes unexpectedly sideways, but all's well that ends well. A good reminder to expect the unexpected.

Print Your Own Kayak

Here's something exploding across the interwebs in the last couple of days (I first spotted it at Paddling Headquarters). Jim Smith at Grassroots Engineering has made what he believes to be the world's first 3D printed kayak. It cost about $500 to make, and is composed of 28 printed 3D sections, plus some screws and caulking, and weighs in at about 65 pounds.
Check out the video embedded below:

DIY Pickle Barrel Boat

Okay, so I like making boats. So Bernie's made boats. But we're not the oddest boat makers around. Here's the work of the guy who I nominate for the oddest boat maker award: the do-it-yourself Pickle Barrel Boat.



Note that the fella has carefully donned his life jacket before launching! He's also willing to wear sun protection. This is one safe boater, even in a home-made assemblage that doesn't quite float at the surface. May all experimental boaters take at least as much care testing their creations!

I admit freely that when I come across various plastic containers the thought does cross my mind "How well would this float? Could I make some kind of boat or raft out of this?" But that thought never came to mind when looking at pickle barrels.
Check out the video of his upgrade with the tiny trolling motor attached...

Motorised Submersible Canoes

Ever wanted to fly your kayak underwater? British Special Ops in World War II did just that using Motorised Submersible Canoes, or MSCs. Nicknamed the Sleeping Beauty, it could dive about 15 metres, had a cruising speed of about 3 knots, and a range around 65 km. Although difficult to control, during the war it was used by British, Australian and New Zealand forces, and one was was tested by the US.

Sure It's Big, But Is It Rudder or Skeg?

What floats, is over 400 feet long, and seats 100? The world's longest kayak. Put together with over 100 modular parts from Point 65N kayaks, it was paddled to celebrate L.L.Beans 100th anniversary. Surprisingly, it's quite manoeuvrable and spins on a dime...as long as the dime is the size of a football field. Check out the video below:

Who Needs a Paddle Anyway?

So you want to go kayaking but just aren't interested in all that annoying, you know, paddling? Have we got the kayak for you!
Meet the Jetbuster Jetrider XT, capable of splitting the waves at 40kmh (and denting your wallet at $3000). Jetbuster used to be Surfango -- check out their new website.

Rolling a Triple Kayak

According to the info on youtube, "Agustin, Macana y Maxi (yo), roleando un triple en Tigre, Argentina." In other words, three guys from Argentina roll a triple kayak. A cool little clip:

Bringing New Meaning to the Term "Sit On Top"

Stand-Up Paddleboard...with a Jet Engine

In the past, we've brought you a few stories about jet-power kayaks, but how about a jet-propelled surf board?
Surfango Powerboard, a Quebec company, offers a range of jet-powered kayaks from 2.6 to 3.4 metres in length (and from about $3600 to over $4000).

In addition, they also offer a jet-powered surf board that's totally rad. And so's the price at $3700.
Check out their video here.

The Truth Revealed

Forget all that stuff you've read about how kayaks were originally developed by indigenous Arctic peoples. According to the June 1934 issue of Modern Mechanix, the kayak can trace its ancestry back to pre-war German motorcycle side cars.
I just hope they detached the motorcycle before they tried doing a roll.

Pulsejet Kayak

Until about 24 minutes ago, I'd never heard of a pulsejet. Or ever thought of putting one on a kayak. Fortunately, New Zealand has crazy people who can think of insane things like this all on their own so that I don't have to -- all I need to do is just sit back and watch all the fun on YouTube.
It was built by Bruce Simpson, who also built his own home-made Cruise missile.
The video is embedded below in two parts. In Part Two, the pulsejet kayak races against an Olympic kayaker.

Clear Thinking

Aqua Xtreme has come out with what they are calling the Full Stealth Kayak. It's a folding kayak 4.5m long that weighs only 15kg. And it's the first transparent folding kayak in the world.
The website says:

The “Full Stealth Sea Kayak” is supported by a high-tech, durable 6061-T6 aluminum/magnesium alloy the same material used in the aircraft industry and has been black anodized for corrosion resistance. Its ribs of Polycarbonate (the same material used for the production of bullet proof glass and jet fighter canopies) and the PU/PVC reinforced skin keeps the weight at a minimum while not compromising strength.

This looks like it would be a blast to try, especially in clear water.

V-Con Weather

It's V-Con weekend, which usually means no paddling since most of us would be in Vancouver ensconced in a hotel and partying. But while Paula is at V-Con launchng her latest book, her first novel, Louise and I decided to give V-Con a miss this year and hoped to paddle today.
But V-Con weekend also means crappy weather weekend, as by coincedence or otherwise, we generally have had severe rain showers and high winds over the last few years when V-Con has been held. And sure enough, this year is no exception as wind warnings and heavy showers were frequent visitors this weekend. The fronts seem to be passing on through today, so maybe we'll get on the water tomorrow.
In the meantime, I'll leave you with this. It's amazing what you find you enter "bad idea" and "kayak" into YouTube....