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. Speaking of variable shapes... Mark Rogers of Superior Kayaks had mentioned at the Great Lakes Sea Kayaking Symposium his theory that the baidarkas with the bifid bows were sufficiently flexible as to provide steering. He cited the construction of the bow with its ivory bearing plates in the hull frame members etc as providing a means to allow the kayaker to push on the frame with his feet and cause the lower part of the bow to bend and act as a bow rudder. He says that the modern replicas have skins that are too stiff to allow such action today. He has never constructed a kayak with such materials as to test the theory. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 8/10/00 7:08:05 PM Pacific Daylight Time, michaeldaly_at_home.com writes: << Mark Rogers of Superior Kayaks had mentioned at the Great Lakes Sea Kayaking Symposium his theory that the baidarkas with the bifid bows were sufficiently flexible as to provide steering. He cited the construction of the bow with its ivory bearing plates in the hull frame members etc as providing a means to allow the kayaker to push on the frame with his feet and cause the lower part of the bow to bend and act as a bow rudder. >> Duane Strosaker says, Great! Now we are discussing both of the great myth kayaks, the Nordkapp and the baidarka. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 10:03 PM 8/10/00 -0400, Michael Daly wrote: > >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. How about a boat that bends in the middle, intentionally, and needs a mechanical stiffener? Throw a lever, and a long, straight boat gets six inches or a foot of rocker to help make a sharp turn. Throw it back, and it becomes a serious tracker again. I did a back of the envelope design for such a boat one time -- actually a raft, for a fun raft race that had a single sharp turn. -- Wes *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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