A human powered ocean crossing is a fairly expensive proposition, but not without some pretty attractive benefits to a potential sponsor.
I estimated total PR value of my HPV 24 hour record attempt adventure to be in excess of 8 to 10 million viewers. That includes Popular Science Magazine with a total circulation of about 7 million, local news coverage which included both TV, newspapers and magazines as well as international press and TV plus dozens of web sites. The long term count could reach as high as 15 to 20 million with mention of the world record in books now being published, more web sites linking to the AOG site, continued growth of the AOG web site and longer term 'feature story' type of public relations efforts.
The human powered Atlantic crossing is a much larger project than the HPV record, and as such, should generate much more world-wide, national and local attention. I will be focusing on national and international press coverage, both long before the actual ocean crossing, and during the expedition.
A major sponsor of this project will take advantage of preferential logo placement on the human powered ocean boat, the name of the boat, logos featured on the AOG web site, and branded clothing worn by me during photo shoots and TV interviews.
If you are interested in becoming involved with this ambitious and exciting project, then please contact me!
I have a list of equipment and supplies that I require. If your company can offer assistance in any way (like donating equipment or supplies), here is what I can offer you in return:
1. A series of high res photographs and video clips of your product being used in the 'extreme' ocean environment while on the expedition which the sponsor could use as content for various advertising and promotional campaigns.
2. A testimonial from me regarding the applicability of your product and it's use during the expedition.
3. I managed to get quite a bit of press coverage for the 24 hour HPV record including the cover of Popular Science magazine, and I plan to aggressively seek as much publicity as possible for the Atlantic Expedition. A major sponsor would definitely benefit from that kind of PR exposure. Imagine your logo on the side of Critical Power HPV in Popular Science Magazine that is distributed to over 7 million people!
4. Web site advertising content like the image shown above that the sponsor can take advantage of now, rather than waiting until I do the crossing.
Here are my current partners:
Nimbus Kayaks is providing a Hyak Tandem Kayak that will be used as a base for the prototype human powered boat.
Trimble is providing a Recon rugged PDA. These PDA hand held computers are absolutely incredible! Water proof and shock proof - perfect for an ocean crossing. I will be using the PDA to run a GPS with navigation software, and to BLOG text, photos and video web updates to the web site via a satellite phone. Trimble is sponsoring the expedition with TWO PDA's a primary and a backup.
Fugawi Marine is providing GPS marine navigation software that will work with the GPS and Recon PDA computer.
Rugged Technologies is providing three of their top of the line water proof Cool series keyboards. The keyboard will plug directly into the USB port of the Recon.
TCR Sport Lab offers a comprehensive range of services provided by highly trained and well informed coaches to support both the high performance elite and recreational athlete. I am looking forward to working with Cory Fagan on both testing and training to get ready for the Atlantic record attempt.
Amazing Voice's mission is to provide an excellent voice over recording service, delivering outstanding quality exceptionally fast & conveniently. They benefit from a large pool of professional voice talent that is prepared to assist enhancing any organization's image. Amazing voice provided the voice talent for the Pedal The Ocean Expedition video.
RaceRecon will be providing expedition support and expertice. I choose RaceRecon because they have some experience with expeditions of this type (see Crossing The Ditch.com , around Austraila paddle expedition , circumnavigating Peurtico by kayak and one more very large expedition around Greenland which has not been announced yet), but mostly because Pat is a guy I can really relate to. He is a sub 10 hour Ironman triathlete and is a total geek like me. He digs watts and spreadsheets and aerodynamics and is a pretty decent web designer. He also 'gets' it when it comes to what we need to do to provide value to a sponsor and how adventure expeditions can be run like a business.
Labels: expedition
"Anything I've ever done that ultimately was worthwhile initially scared me to death". - Betty Bender
This is insane, but I feel really, really inspired. Ever since following Mick Bird's around the world rowing expedition, I have felt that this was something that I wanted to do someday. 3000 solo miles across the Atlantic ocean by pedal boat should take from 40 to 100 days. It will be by far, the most difficult challenge I have ever considered.
Why? When I designed, built and powered my Critical Power human powered vehicle 650 miles in 24 hours setting a new world record, my message to the world was to raise awareness of the serious health issues afflicting modern society caused by our sedentary lifestyle. Simply put - To stem the obesity epidemic, we need to become more active!
When was the last time you drove your car 650 miles in one day? On July 19th, 2006, I covered that unfathomable distance on a bicycle! - my way of showing the world that a human powered vehicle is a valid, efficient and fun way to travel.
Now, I plan to do the same thing by crossing the Atlantic ocean in a human powered boat. A small, solo sail boat can take between 30 to 60 days to cross the Atlantic, and my goal is to accomplish the crossing in 40 to 50 days proving again that human power can compete head to head with conventional forms of transportation.
To read more about why I am so passionate about human power, click here.
To read more about why human power is so important to the world, click here.
This is the promotional video for the expedition.
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Within - the human powered boat
I am building a test boat which will be based on an existing sea kayak donated by Nimbus Kayaks. The pedal boat will be called "Within" and will look like the computer rendering below.
Construction of Within has begun in earnest. Pool testing is scheduled for sometime this winter (Winter 2007), and sea trials will commence in the Spring.
I will use Within to gain some badly needed ocean experience by touring around the nearest ocean (10 hour drive to the west coast), starting with the Glenmore reservoir here in Calgary and branching out from there. (baby steps).
Photo courtesy of Roz Savage on her 103 day solo rowing E-W Atlantic crossing
Click here for current status on construction of Within, and Within-24 - the HPB 24 hour record boat.
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Assessing the risk:
According to The Ocean Rowing Society, a total of 275 attempts to cross an ocean by rowing resulted in 6 deaths due to lost at sea and 99 failed attempts.
For comparison purposes, I converted the ocean rowing fatality data to fatalities per million hours of exposure and was able to find a list of other activities and the risks of death from Failure Analysis Associates, Inc. more details on that analysis here.
Fatalities per Million Exposure Hours:
| Skydiving | 128.71 |
| General Flying | 15.58 |
| Ocean rowing | 10.02 |
| Motorcycling | 8.80 |
| Scuba Diving | 1.98 |
| Living | 1.53 |
| Swimming | 1.07 |
| Snowmobiling | .88 |
| Motoring | .47 |
| Water skiing | .28 |
| Bicycling | .26 |
| Airline Flying | .15 |
| Hunting | .08 |
Ocean rowing is slightly more dangerous than motorcycling and safer than general flying or skydiving.
Only 2 other expeditions in history have pedaled across the Atlantic ocean with a human powered boat. Stevie Smith and Jason Lewis with expedition360 on their circumnavigation of the earth expedition, and Dwight Collins who solo pedaled his human powered boat West to East across the northern Atlantic.
If I were to succeed, it would be the first solo East-West Atlantic ocean pedal boat crossing. The fastest human powered East-West Atlantic ocean crossing is 42 days, 17 hours by Emmanuel Coindre from France who rowed from Spain to Barbados . If we consider 'pure' human powered crossings, we would have to include rowing because it is purely human powered. So, I would have to beat 42 days, 17 hours to set a new 'human powered' trans Atlantic record.
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ABOUT THE BOAT
Click here for current status on construction of Within, and Within-24 - the HPB 24 hour record boat.
The design of the human powered ocean boat "Within" is a collaboration between myself, Rick Willoughby, Stevie Smith and Leven Brown
Rick Willoughby had been designing and building human powered boats in Australia for over 10 years. He is an enthusiastic contributor and known authority with the online human powered boats community.
Stevie Smith has pedaled Moksha - a two-person pedal boat across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. As part of Expedition360, Stevie brings a valued and very specific expertise to this project!
Leven Brown recently completely a trans Atlantic rowing expedition on his boat Columbus Run.
"Within" is a very narrow, self-righting single passenger human powered ocean boat. The hull is based on a sea kayak hull with slightly higher side walls, and a rounded top. To accomplish stability in rough sea conditions, weight is distributed very low in the vessel, and additional ballast in a keel will be suspended below the prop on the drive leg.
Water tight forward and rear compartments will ensure that the boat cannot sink, and the low center of gravity will ensure that it up-rights immediately upon a capsize.
A transparent dome is fitted on the retractable canopy top. The canopy top should be closed and sealed if the ocean conditions are rough which will allow the pedaling compartment to be mostly water tight and dry with adequate ventilation This should further increase safety in the event of a capsize, and will allow continued operation in rough seas. If ocean conditions are calm, then Within can be operated with the canopy in the retracted position. Scuppers with plugs or bilge pumps can be used to keep the pedaling compartment dry if it is being used with the canopy top retracted.
Steering is accomplished by standard kayak rudders and cables (not shown). Control of the rudder via access to the rudder cables is available from both the pedal station and from inside the sleeping compartment.
The drive leg will consist of standard cranks and pedals with two right-angle gear boxes connected by a shaft which will drive a two-bladed prop. The drive leg will be shrouded with a water-tight fairing.
This image shows one option for compartments. The rear compartment is water-tight when the door between the rear compartment and the pedaling station is closed. This could be used for some equipment and supplies storage as well as sleeping. A disadvantage of using this configuration to sleep, is the inconvenience of having to
open the hatch to look out for ships through the bubble.
The pedaling station would be water tight with the canopy top closed, and could have drain holes for allowing water to run out when operating with the canopy top open. If the boat is being operated with the canopy top open, it would be important to make sure that both hatches to the forward and rear compartments are closed and sealed, in the event of a capsize.
The forward compartment is water-tight and accessible through a hatch door. This would be where most of the food and equipment would be stored.
3 or 4 solar panels are fastened along the rounded top at the bow and stern which will provide electricity to charge batteries which will power the electronics and desalinator
Estimated weight of Within is between 1000 to 1500 pounds including supplies and ballast. I based this on some other ocean rowing expeditions:
Leven Browns supplies weighed 595 pounds (150 days).
Tinys boat + supplies weighed 2000 pounds (100 days)
Around-n-overs boat weighed 550 pounds with 770 pounds supplies and 330 pounds of ballast
Fedor Konyukhov’s boat weighed 771 pounds and 1100 pounds for supplies (this may include water ballast?) (4 months)
Zeeman Challenger boat weighs 880 pounds and 1325 pounds of supplies (9 months)
Speed estimate based on 150W of power and an overall efficiency of 80% is about 5 knots (9 kph).
Construction photos and computer renderings:
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Equipment list:
| Electronics | Other | Safety | Emergency grab bag |
| lap top (Panasonic Tough book) | freeze dried food for 75 days | lifejacket | EPIRB |
| backup computer (hand held device like pocket PC) | tookkit + small spare parts | safety harness & line | strobe flashing light |
| Satellite Telephone (voice and data) | spare drive unit | EPIRB | signalling mirror |
| VHF radio | water maker | medical kit | whistle |
| backup VHF radio | back-up watermaker | liferaft | foil blanket |
| batteries | sea anchor | emergency water | 2 flares |
| solar panels | compass | flares | 6 light sticks |
| solar panel controller | sponges | oars | knife |
| Sea Me Radar Transponder | clothing | fire extinguisher | small compass |
| fixed GPS | navigation lights | fire blanket | flashlight |
| backup GPS (hand held) | water containers | throwing line | 2 bottles water |
| backup GPS (2nd hand held) | eating containers and utensils | signalling mirror | chocolate |
| battery monitor | cooking gas (propane) | mini first aid kit | |
| video camera | navigation charts | emergency fishing kit | |
| still camera | mask and flippers | ||
| iPod | extra foam padding | ||
| spare iPod | seat and sleeping harness | ||
| satellite radio | camelback/water bags | ||
| amp and speakers | epoxy and fiberglass repair | ||
| spare headphones, earbuds | knife | ||
| Argos beacon | small hand axe | ||
| Radar reflector (activ-echo) | flashlight | ||
| fishing kit | |||
| books | |||
| DVDs | |||
| wine | |||
| cooking stove | |||
| back-up cooking stove | |||
| sleeping bag - blankets | |||
| matches, lighter | |||
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ABOUT THE ROUTE:
2700 miles from Canary Islands to Barbados
I will start at the Canary Islands off of the West African coast. The Canary current is a southwestward flow that will take me onto the North Equatorial current which is a broad westward flow. It is fed by the Canary current and its waters eventually end up in the Gulf Stream system, via the Antilles current which should deliver me to one of the islands near Barbados.
The average distance that various ocean rowers covered over this route is 2700 to 3000 miles. Rowing times from the Canary islands to Barbados range from a record of 43 days by Emmanuel Coindre to over 100 days.
Labels: expedition
anti-capsizing, wave isolating, energy generating human powered boat.
Here are some video views from the front, and the rear
It is driven by a prop and pedals and rides on two catamaran outriggers. Ocean swells and waves from the side are absorbed by the pivoting outriggers keeping the cabin and prop level. If ocean conditions are severe, and the vessel capsizes, the outriggers simply rotate around the cabin and swap positions with the lower set of hulls. The constant rocking action can turn an electric generator to store power for radios, water maker, and other misc electronics.
An alternate version of this concept is to use three triangulated hulls rather than four:
A higher resolution version of this animation is here
And a third version of this concept is to eliminate the third hull and in the event of a capsize, one hull section can be manually rotated back into the water. A serious technical problem to this approach is that once the hull has been rotated back onto the water, it would need to be rotated further to lift the heavy cabin up and then locked into place to match the original geometry. I'm not sure how the operator would lever his power to lift the entire boat up 2 or 3 feet. This animation shows a capsize, but does not show how the lifted hull would rotate back into the water.
Possible Advantages:
1. Narrower catamaran hulls may be more efficient than a single mono-hull featured on traditional ocean rowing vessels due to far less displacement. According to a study by The International HISWA Symposium on Yacht Design and Yacht Construction, they found that the most efficient hull design for a long distance water bikes is a catamaran or a slender mono-hull. The traditional ocean rowing boat is a mono-hull, but most probably not a "slender mono-hull".
Further evidence that multi-hulls are more efficient than single hulls is the fact that all longer distance human powered boat speed records have been set with multi-hulled boats.
2. Because the catamaran hulls rotate around the main cabin, the cabin will never capsize.
3. Because the cabin won't capsize, this design does not require a heavy, draggy keel or center board thereby improving efficiency.
4. Vastly increased comfort for the operator due to some of the rocking motion being reduced by the pivoting cabin.
5. The electric power generation from the rocking motion of the catamaran hulls around the main cabin could eliminate the need for wind and/or solar generators.
Possible Disadvantages:
1. If the constant movement of the pivots combined with the harsh sea water environment were to corrode or damage the pivots, then the main cabin could flip over with a capsize, and power generation would stop. This could be resolved by ensuring that there is a over-ride mechanism to turn the cabin manually in the case of a pivot malfunction. There should also be some form of power generation back-up like a solar panel or wind generator.
2. The force of the hulls hitting the surface of the water upon a capsize could damage the hulls, struts or cabin - especially in the case of the quad hull version.
3. The aerodynamic drag of this design would be greater than a traditional mono-hull because there is more surface area exposed to the air. However, at typical speeds of a few knots, aerodynamic drag is a very small factor unless powering into a stiff head-wind. Because the cabin and one or two catamaran hulls are up in the air, the wind could catch it and blow it over causing unwanted hull rotations. This risk is greater with the tri version than the quad version.
4. The weight of this design would probably be greater than a traditional mono-hull and could be slower and less efficient because of this.
5. It is possible that with the drag of the prop and strut, an ocean swell would rotate the main cabin section almost as much as the catamaran hulls are being rotated thereby negating much of the wave isolating pivot effect. The side profile of the prop strut should be as hydrodynamic as possible to allow it to slip sideways through the water.
COMMENTS:
Rick Willoughby wties:
Greg
I will make sure I give you dimensions in British units. 600mm is
only 2 feet. A narrow hull. Just wide enough to get the shoulders
into. The boats I build are just over 1 foot wide at the waterline
but they are only intended to displace 200lb or so.
The stability is a matter of getting the weight low enough and having
buoyancy up high. A sphere with a small weight on the surface will
float with the weight down. The boat I am thinking of would have an
offset ellipse X-section at the cockpit. A rounded bottom coming up
to a beam of 2 feet at the waterline, a little bit wider above the
waterline to give shoulder room and then narrow above the shoulders
to take in the head.
When you are in the ocean the water is rarely level so a boat that
relies on gravity for stability rather than hull form is often
better. You could set your drive leg up to get weight down low to
help with stability. You may even add some ballast below the prop.
It would also be handy if you can lift the drive leg out of its well
to inspect and work on. Something like Warren B has done with his
Necky Kayak.
You would need to strap into the seat in rough weather so that if it
rolls you stay in the right place. For sleeping you collapse the
back of the seat. You are then even more stable because the weight
is lower. Again strap in so the boat can do a complete roll without
you smashing the canopy.
I am not sure if you are aware but sailing monohulls are normally
designed to have a positive righting moment throughout a 360 degree
roll (apart from the 180 position). Some modern ones with flat decks
are stable upside down and this is a safety issue. The small boats
in the Sydney to Hobart ocean race might roll through 360 degrees up
to 4 times in a race. The bigger boats often destroy masts if they
suffer a complete 360 but they usually get upright and stay afloat.
I am certain that if you continue with this adventure you will be
thanking me that I talked about righting moment and it is a design
feature of your boat when you are facing 5m cresting waves in the
middle of the night 1000km from anything. You need a very large
multihull to feel secure in such conditions.
The boat would be built for speed and is not intended for lounging
around. It is intended to work well IN water and not designed for
sitting ON the water.
Another advantage with pedal power is that you do not need to operate
a paddle over the deckline. In fact you can site below the deck. If
the deckline of kayaks was made higher then you would start to
improve stability. It becomes more like a Canadian canoe with high
sides.
I have attached a sketch of this concept. The proportions are not
correct but you should get the idea.
Draw it up and seek comment from people on the IHPVA boat site. I
think it will look fast. The hull needs to be about 500mm wide at
the crank so you have clearance for the pedals and heels.
Rick
Stevie writes:
Greg
A word about your designs. Lovely ideas. Having pedalled 6,500 miles on the ocean I look at the idea of remaining so beautifully stable with great envy!! I'm no design expert, so Alan Boswell or another marine architect's opinion is more valuable than mine, but my two pence-worth of advice is to keep it simple. Build a nice sleek, strong monohull, enclose yourself inside a cockpit you can seal but also give you plenty ventilation when you want it. Pedal power beats rowing power every time - I'm sure you'll be able to beat any rowing record over the same route. Use bearings and solid shafts to transfer power from feet to prop - not chains. Build a stainless steel version of the MicroMarine units we used, so you can easily replace and repair. Monohulls are horribly tippy and uncomfortable, but a self-righting monohull desgn is safest bet for you. I assume you want to do the northern route from Newfoundland, 2,000 miles. The North Atlantic is cold and the weather can be bad, even in summer. Have a very supportive custom-built pedal seat with racing driver seat belt, and a place to wedge your neck and limbs in tightly to sleep.
The ocean is a terrifyingly powerful place, you can't stop, you can't get off if things go wrong. When I look at your design I see a lot of windage to slow you down and make it hard to steer, I see complicated engineering, three right-angled changes in direction of power to get to the prop, and a lot of elements that could snap or seize up and be extremely difficult to repair at sea. Also I see your prop being out of the water as much in it.
In essence: minimize windage, keep your design low in the water, round heavy hull and light tapering deck and stores stowed low for ballast - all this will ensure self-righting safety. Monohull, enclosed cockpit, all-in-one pedal replaceable units to fit into a central well - thus power delivered midway along hull.
Cheers, Steve
And rich writes:
The ladybird is a nice design. I would say the hull has been
optimised for the speed the rower can sustain in good conditions- say
5mph. It would be difficult to maintain that sort of speed once it
gets a bit rough. The average speed will depend a lot on the chosen
route to take advantage of wind and currents. AND some luck that the
weather is kind.
The concept I have sketched should be possible of sustaining maybe
5.5mph but I would need to check this based on the actual
displacement you think you will need. However the proposed design
should not be bothered by sea conditions as much as ladybird so you
can sustain a higher average. The concept would move very fast in a
following sea with very little effort.
Greg
I had anticipated question 1. See previous email.
Regarding question 2. The boat needs to be able to stay afloat and
upright if swamped. It could be made to be self-bailing for the most
part through the open well for the drive leg. It is also a good idea
to have a closed well low down in the hull that collects condensation
and can be pumped out. The whole hull needs to have clear drainage
to the low point. You get a lot of condensation at night after a warm
day so things get wet and uncomfortable if they do not drain.
The 22" width is at the waterline so you can go wider than this above
the waterline. It would be borderline to have it stable enough to
walk around on. I think the idea of an outrigger that deploys from
one side would make life a lot better. It could actually be part of
the bow or stern fairing when folded away. It could have some
netting so you can sit on for washing and calls of nature.
It is surprising how little clearance you need above the waterline in
the centre of a boat to avoid having water come in. I expect you
could operate with the cockpit open for maybe 80% of the time
depending on the chosen route. You would need to have good weather
forecasting to leave the cockpit open while sleeping.
Your body weight will be part of the ballast. The ends of concept 1
get narrow very quickly and you do not want to widen above the
waterline in the ends to allow for sleeping. I would be thinking
Labels: boatbuilding