Rethinking the smallest boat circumnavigation
 

Hello,

Some of you may know me as the crazy australian pirate with a death wish and want no part in my small boat madness so feel free to stop reading here :)

I have wracked my brain trying to come up with a boat that can circumnavigate at 10 foot. A boat that can carry enough fresh water, food, supplies, keep me sheltered etc etc but there is problem after problem.

I want too much out of a small boat and think i have come up with a compromise.

First up, accomodation.

Realistically, the cabin is the size of a coffin which suffers from humidity problems causing skin rashes as serge testa found out on his little yacht, ventilation problems, getting enough fresh air so you dont overdose on carbon monoxide, visibity problems, small hatches give limited view and sleeping in a cabin with fogged up windows with no watch is dangerous. So i figured, no cabin. Why have accomodation? Just live on deck and use modern clothing to keep me warm/cool/dry/wind proof/sun sheltered etc etc.

This simplifies the interior greatly, by having a strong monocoque hull, i can design the interior for storage only making seperate water tight compartments to keep me afloat if hull is breached and no longer have to worry about swamping.

Secondly, rigging.

I have played around with the marconi rig, finding that without boomkins and bowsprits balancing these sails is a pain in the ass. Other rigs also pose their own problems. Also, sails get in the way of visibility and take up the limited deck space i have. On top of that, if living on deck, sails create too much heeling meaning i have to live on a small slope.

Solution? Kite.

Kites create upward lift causing me to heel less, they are more powerful and access higher winds. No longer have to worry about capsizing and being dismasted.

So yeah, its a floating kite chair with supplies below.

Yay or nay??

:)

Have you looked through the Acme catalogue?
Some rocket-powered skis might be a goer.

nah, been done too many times



Seen a guy cross atalntic on hobie cat, 2 frenchman did it in a homemade proa.

My kite seat is the future.

In this PC save the environment age it would be far simpler to gain mere fame by doing something positive for the planet.

Sailing for a year or two in a beer can would prove/help nothing.

Perhaps if you started a contest ,
to see how little enviromentally sound fuel can be used to self immolate ,
the planet will be better with fewer eaters , and a better gene pool?

FF

http://wtfhub.com/wp-content/uploads...monk-photo.jpg (image of burning monk may be offensive to some members; view at your own discretion)

vs



kite chair wins

Oh damn.

Sven Yrvind's latest project is to build a 10 foot boat and sail around the world. Not only that, he has sponsorship and they are making a documentary about it.

His route will be a non stop sail east about, south of the great capes, Cape Horn, Cape of Good Hoop, etc.

Can that be considered a circumnavigation?

I wont accept it as beating serges record.

He keeps going on and on about his "record breaking attempt" but his route doesnt even qualify.

He has this to say on his blog

Basically, he cant beat the record so he just changes the definition and calls it smart and ruthless.

Sorry Sven but its not smart, and you're adventure is no record.

I have no doubt that he is a smart man, a great sailor, great designer and builder, but i dont care how great you are, you cant redefine words to suit you.

I'm going to set the record for fastest circumnavigation by foot by walking around the south pole in under 5 seconds :rolleyes:

I'm sorry, but Serges epic adventure and record deserve more credit than this.

Sven might be semi famous, but still, he is doing himself a great diservice by disrespecting Serges 500 days at sea by getting crafty with words.

If he pulls this off, Serge still holds the record in my book.

Also consider supplies for your smallest boat.

Food and water obviously deserve consideration , plus in your case the addition REEFER volume that will be needed for a long passage.

Also remember storage for matches...would be a shame to be out there in your micro, thousand of miles from nowhere, surrounded by sharks, outta food and water ,with 25kg of good reefer on board..... and no matches...

Bad, real bad.

Pirate; You had it right in the original post........"crazy Australian with a death wish". What on gods green earth would cause you to address such a madcap scheme? Fast Fred has the best suggestion. Substitute the incredibly ill concieved ego trip for something more useful to yourself and to civilizion in general.

Why would i take matches?

Modern pirates use lighters.

As for the critisism.

I guess Sven is getting the same responses. On his blog he has to justify a 10 foot circumnavigation.

People are calling him mad, crazy, suicidal etc etc but he has some decent responses.

I wont try to justify the psychology of my decision.

Perhaps it is crazy.

But as for decicion for deck living compared to cabin.

If i had a choice of being in a nice comfy chair, harnessed down tight with 360 views vs laying down in a hot, sweaty, damp, salty, coffin sized cabin with small windows, i would choose the former.

I contacted Serges and asked him what he thought of Svens trip and he replied with this:

If Serge accepts it as a valid circumnavigation, then so do I.

I guess braving the roaring forties, icebergs, whales and the cold for a full year at the age of 72 is a big task in and of itself. He probably wont even survive but just incase he does, i will make my boat 30cm shorter.

And for the record, is my kite chair idea even that crazy or that original?

For one, I just read the story of the guy who did the first solo open boat circumnavigation. Open boats can achieve a lot. Then there is that woman who kayaked around australia. Is a cabin neccasary? No

When you think about it, my kite chair is just like a sit on top kayak powered by a kite. I own a sit on top kayak with a sail and it is capable of carry 300kg including my body weight and goes pretty quick to in a strong wind.

All i am talking about is making a full displacement kayak with higher load carrying ability and anti capsize ballast. With a kite and a solid kayak loaded with stores, i see no reason why it wouldnt work.

Stonedpirate- I was taking your posts quazi serious until you came up with this new sceme. To get a small idea of what it would be like to travel some 30,000 miles on a deck whose square area is compariable to a 4x8 sheet of ply --Do a 100 mile motorcycle trip in the rain wearing the best sailing wet gear you can buy say at 60 deg. F. You'll soon re evaluate that proposal---

A yacht is not defined by the vessel but by the care and love of her owner---

Why would i be wearing wet gear 24/7?

If its 60 deg F outside, it will be even more inside a small cabin.

In reality, this is a sit on top kayak.

Kayaks have been paddled from germany to australia, around australia, crossed the bass straight etc etc.

With a kite i can maintain 3 knots in most weather conditions.

Biggest danger of the whole idea is capsizing.

I will be harnessed to my chair so will go under during capsize.

If i get stuck under water or continually rolled, the emergeny eject lever will be pulled, the seat will detach and float to the surface. There is no reason i cant have a life raft, epirb and flares attached to the seat.

If a lot of thought went into this kayak, it will probaly be faster, lighter and safer than most of the small floating, easily swamped coffin designs out there.

As for your motorcycle analogy, many years ago i was a postman and delivered mail from a motorbike mid summer and mid winter.

I would ride in severe wind and rain. Dressed in the australia post wet weather gear, i was always dry and warm. Summer is the killer, with sweat. You have to by law wear the safety gear which is hot and sweaty.

In tropical conditions i would want to be wearing a pair of shorts and nothing else.

I would make a little shade that attaches to the seat.

If the weather gets rough, i get wet. Big deal. I'll dry of when the weather calms down

Stonedpirate, I cannot imagine anything worse than knowing you are about to die through sheer foolhardiness. My advice is consult a psychologist to get a little better understanding of the underpinnings of your obsession.