(no subject)

Hi Michael and All,

> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net
> [mailto:owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net]On Behalf Of Michael Daly


> From: "Larry Bliven" <foxhill_at_shore.intercom.net>
>
> > i wondered why a fine boat needed a skeg
>
> While I can't claim to be up to date on the topic, twenty
> years ago, when I was an aerospace engineer, variable
> shapes in aircraft was a hot research topic.  Wings were
> being experimented with that could change camber
> and such without resorting to leading edge devices,
> flaps etc.  The entire wing section was flexible so that
> actuators could reshape the wing on the fly, just like
> a bird can do.
>
> It seems to me that a variable-shape kayak would be a fine
> thing.  To be able to change from a long fast cruiser to a
> rockered playboat as conditions change would be great.
> A skeg is just, IMNSHO, a step in that direction.  Skeg
> up - take advantage of the rocker.  Skeg down - get better
> tracking.




I believe Bill Masters played with this idea some. I think he even patented
a design.  I never saw the craft or it's mechanism though.

Cheers,

--
Rob Cookson
"I like a little rebellion now and then. It is like a storm in the
Atmosphere." Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Abigail Adams, February 22,
1787.

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