While I work on the newer version of the skin on frame river touring kayak, I thought I’d throw up another edit of GoPro clips from our test on the Clackamas River a few weeks ago. This is really the sort of water this boat is designed for. It has to be capable of...
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On YouTube: Experimental Skin-on-Frame River Touring Kayak, in Detail
To celebrate the super detailed video we just put up on our YouTube channel talking about the new skin on frame river kayak design I thought I would throw up some GoPro footage I took from the test paddle that isn’t quite good enough for YouTube. Here’s what those peaceful whitewater videos actually look...
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On YouTube: Whitewater testing the river kayak prototype
Turn the sound on! Here’s a short clip from the video we just uploaded to YouTube showing the latest skin on frame river touring prototype in class I to III whitewater. (Full video below!) I’ll be making a video later this week where I talk about the design and detail and the next steps...
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Video: Some cut footage from our whitewater testing of the river kayak prototype
Turn the sound on! Among the many challenges of making good video is the ruthless selection process which inevitably results in some pretty nice footage not making the final cut. Here’s a short montage of reject clips that from the YouTube video I’m making right now about our trip down to Clackamas River in...
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Video: Paddling the river kayak prototype and an F1
Tom and I took an F1 and the new river boat down to the water today for more testing. The tugboat waves were way too small to surf but that didn’t stop us from trying! Note: I added GPS speed data to some of these clips and left the sound on so you can...
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Video: First test paddle in the river kayak prototype
Turn the sound on! I build a LOT of prototype kayaks but it’s very rare for me to land on a candidate for further development. This is one of them. To recap: I’ve been working for about 10 years on a kayak for self-support trips on rivers that have a lot of flat water...
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North Alaska Replica Kayak Frames, on the water
I couldn’t resist the opportunity to find out what such a rarely built type of kayak feels like on the water, so today we carefully wrapped the north Alaskan replica frames in plastic wrap and tied them onto the car for a quick trip down to the water: The 16’ long kayak is surprisingly...
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Kayaks for larger and smaller people
Whether you’re a really large person or a really small person it can be hard to find kayaks that truly fit you well. The cool thing about working in skin on frame where I can change any variable in the boat is that it’s pretty easy to adjust sizing for unique users. My F1...
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Video: A short video of the new tandem canoe
A short video of the new tandem canoe on the water with two adults and one child. Total payload 400lbs. Video shot and edited on an iPhone 7. I use LumaFusion for in phone video editing and am pretty happy with it....
Notes on the tandem canoe
Got the tandem canoe on the water for the second time today. My friend Don and his son joined the mission, thus helping me get a visual on what the canoe loaded with gear would look and feel like. (All pics show a total weight of 400 lbs) This canoe is 15’9” long, 36...
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Video: Just a few clips from the solo canoe launch
Just a few clips from the solo canoe launch yesterday. Photos and video of the tandem coming tomorrow. FYI , I am a novice canoeist so these strokes are likely less than graceful!...
Notes on the solo canoe
Got a chance to try the new canoes today. I’ll post my thoughts about the solo canoe today and the tandem tomorrow. The solo boat is 30 inches wide 12 1/4 inches deep and 13’9” long, it weighs 30 pounds and it’s probably about as durable as a well-made Kevlar canoe. 14’9” is probably...
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Skin-on-frame row/sail canoe version 2, impressions
Skin-on-frame row/sail canoe version 2, impressions:. For those who haven’t been following along this project was an attempt to make a small row/sailboat using my super easy canoe building system. I was curious how far a free bent system would scale up and how the shaping formula would perform at larger scales. The boat...
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Video: Capsize recovery in the sailing canoe
The first thing I do with any new boat is work out a capsize recovery plan. Little sailers are always sketchy with all the strings involved and that’s a strong reason to have as few as possible. Stowed oars, a sprit rig, and a daggerboard would eliminate all the tangles but the sheet, although...
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Video: Day 21, Skin-on-frame rower-sailer
Day 21, Skin-on-frame rower-sailer. Test sail. Took the boat down to a variably breezy and cold Columbia river today for a quick shakedown sail. Stability is nice, it sits on a narrow waterline but hardens up considerably as you approach capsize. The fullness of the hull towards the ends makes it fairly insensitive to...
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