OK...before the anti-speed thought police here form a mob, let me
offer a different view. Nobody with a clue likes reckless operation,
so it's good to show concern there. I'm equally sure though, that
nobody has warm-fuzzy views of getting caught pants-down in
situations where sustained real power would be an asset. The "desire
for speed" folks are the guys who'll sort this out for you to bring
electric on a real par with piston power.
100 years ago electrics were a match for IC because the piston engine
was cave-man crude, unreliable and fed from a fairly
dangerous...Ummmm, "battery". Over the past century IC has gone
through numerous development cycles culminating in the modern
computer-managed operating systems and secure fuel systems that allow
current operators to use them without a care.
On the other hand, development of electric power totally stalled out,
until just recently when fossil fuel worries finally started to be
taken seriously and markets for alternatives began to appear. The
huge breakthrough in battery tech is just the start, they haven't
even begun with motor design yet. Think L-Ion is a big deal?...How
about this?
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/mit-harnesses-molecule-
power/
18 years ago when I started electric boat racing there were no
reliable heavy-duty motor controllers and no light-weight, power-
dense batteries. By 1995 we were seeing 70 mph speeds on car
batteries and big ugly knife switches...Switch-on, Hang-on like a
closet kamikaze pilot. We started to see the first experimental high
amp controllers, but still had to deal with the enormous weight and
short performance life of lead./acid.
NEDRA's advent produced and developed Otmar's huge-amp "Zilla", the
toughest, most reliable controller going and introduced big-scale L-
Ion power. Applied to a racing hydroplane those have produced a 100
mph boat that can run huge distances on a single charge. It takes
solid reliable power to run a kilo, and over time all the things we
learn from that will benefit the average day-cruiser with the ability
to run a greater distance or summon sustained serious power when it's
needed.
I once had a pretty lengthy talk with a former Seattle Times sports
editor who defended a put-down of racing with this remark: "there
hasn't been an applied tech benefit from racing since the adaptation
of the rear-view mirror from Ray Harroun's Indy-winning Marmon Wasp
in 1911". When I learned he was a D-Day veteran I asked if he was
aware that the Rolls Merlins powering the Mustangs and Spitfires that
air-covered him from the Normandy beaches through to Bavaria were
developed in a racing seaplane series he admitted he never knew, but
was pleased with the info and grateful for racing's contribution.
Nobody's forcing any of you plane your canoes or trimarans, but
performance oriented electric boaters experiments have and will
continue to enhance electric power's future, whether you aware of it
or not
John
On Aug 10, 2010, at 11:23 AM, Capt. Mike wrote:
>
> Well said Eric and Ron. I'm amazed at the speed of some boats
> (including sailboaters) heading out of the harbor. I find since I
> installed Electric Propulsion I now often raise sail in the harbor
> and sail out or cruise at a leisurely 1 or 2 knots chatting with
> people on the docks on occasion as I do so. It's all part of the EP
> experience. IMO.
>
> Capt. Mike
>
> Sent from on board BIANKA
> http://biankablog.blogspot.com
>
> From: "Ron" <rlgravel@swbell.net>
> Sender: electricboats@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 18:01:05 +0000
> To: <electricboats@yahoogroups.com>
> ReplyTo: electricboats@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [Electric Boats] Re: Torqeedo travel 1003
>
>
> Hi Eric,
> That last paragraph says it all and is exactly why combustion fuel
> is still king, the desire for speed is a habit that most people
> can't break (even when they have no need to be in a rush).
>
> Ron
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