Hydrocycle - Bicycle Powered Watercraft
MechanicalPete
Posts: 3
Hello Everyone!
I am a mechanical engineering student and a keen cyclist. I have started to design and build a bicycle powered watercraft. The idea is a float and propulsion system that attaches to a regular bicycle allowing it to be ridden on water. Some of these exist already but this one will be specifically for touring. This way a tour could be done involving a land rout, but the bike could then be converted and also ridden across bodies of water.
Before I really get down into designing it, I wanted to get an idea from experienced cycle tourists what’s most important. I would really appreciate it if could fill in this quick survey. It should take less than 2 minutes.
https://goo.gl/forms/wws0g6wwBpV1cYJ73
Or alternatively leave a comment with your thoughts.
Thanks!
Peter
I am a mechanical engineering student and a keen cyclist. I have started to design and build a bicycle powered watercraft. The idea is a float and propulsion system that attaches to a regular bicycle allowing it to be ridden on water. Some of these exist already but this one will be specifically for touring. This way a tour could be done involving a land rout, but the bike could then be converted and also ridden across bodies of water.
Before I really get down into designing it, I wanted to get an idea from experienced cycle tourists what’s most important. I would really appreciate it if could fill in this quick survey. It should take less than 2 minutes.
https://goo.gl/forms/wws0g6wwBpV1cYJ73
Or alternatively leave a comment with your thoughts.
Thanks!
Peter
0
Comments
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Weight and aero
If I am touring I don't want to spent 9/10ths of my journey having to lug around a bulky 50kg of floats and metal drive train to attach to my bike for relatively small part of my journey0 -
Depends on the tour really. Though I can't imagine any cycle tour where a body of water provides a barrier. People have been building bridges and ferries for ages now.0
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Take a look at packrafts, probably a more practical solution. The problem with it being pedal powered and assuming you are using the standard cycling position is stability, top heavy meaning you need more buoyancy over a wider area therefore adding even more weight.0
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Thanks for the input! I'll look into those ideas.0
