Solar boat

[MetroMPG]

This guy's traveling in my neck of the woods this week with his family on a newer version of his solar-electric boat that's fully equipped for "weekend cruising" (not the one shown above). He built it himself and started a company selling them:

Family travelling Rideau system in their solar-powered electric boat

RIDEAU FERRY -- For centuries before gas-powered motors took them farther and got them there faster, sailors relied on the wind to explore all corners of the world.

This week, Monte Gisborne and his family are turning back the clock to those days - only it's not the wind in their sails taking them along the Rideau Canal, it's the sun on their roof.


http://newsfeed.recorder.ca/cgi-bin/LiveIQue.acgi$rec=19028


(Here's another Toronto Star article on them: http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Con...acodalogin=yes

Last spring (2005), a number of gaskets failed in my sailboat's inboard 2-cyl 2-stroke engine. I pulled it out, took it apart, replaced all the seals & gaskets, and put it back in again. At the time, someone suggested converting to electric, but I didn't really know enough about it. If I had to do it over again, I would likely go electric. I don't like firing up the smoke machine just to get in and out of the harbour.

[ketel0ne]

I am moving to solar chargers for my deep cycle battery for my trolling motor. It will make the return trips up the river a bit quicker.