Years ago, growing up on the beach we had access to row boats. They used the traditional oars and we used for fishing. I know how efficient and powerful oars are and have surfed rowing a fiberglass dinghy, and also in a 14’ aluminum Sears row boat. My cousin Matt Mattson and I had so much fun surfing in that dinghy. Every now and then we’d capsize but we were in reasonably shallow water.
I’m thinking about building something that would be able to ride waves, but paddle with oars. I’m panning on using twin hulls, so it will be a cat, but I’m not sure if I should go with like surfboard like “ski” hulls, which would be flatter, or traditional cat boat hulls, which would be thinner and taller. I think this thing will be between 8 and 12 feet depending on whether I want to make it for 1 or 2 people. The paddling position would be like being in a row boat or shell with your back to the front. I’m also thinking this vehicle should be able to have a surfboard attached to each side, to be used as a way of getting to off the shore breaks. Thinking that my brother and I could row out to outer reefs to surf, or I could row around for exercise and occasionally catch a small wave or 2.
So I’m wondering if anyone out there would have suggestions for hull shapes. For 2 ski like hulls, I’d do 2 narrow but long board like shapes with a traditional surfing paddle board bottom and rockers. The cat hulls are something I’m not sure about, I’m not a boat person, but the original Hobie cat style hulls appeal to me. I just don’t know if they would be right for a rowing surfing craft.
cut a blank in half down the center
deck to deck
adjust the hull/rail halves
at varying distances
toed in toed out
sliding seat fore and aft to set the trim
,adjustable Iakos attatchments…
make a model to push in flat water
a cast off short board would be a great place to start…
the cat row craft has been a pet reverie
for years, great for adapting to
the outer reefs of ewa tis time of year…
wrap arround from the west dreams
of long long rides all the way to pearl harbor…
kinda like waipouli
wrapping 2’ waves from giantsurf on the n an w…
small waves are a new frontier
long gliding whitewaters…
drag a hook with much less drag
than an eskimo design kayak…
flying like a water strider.
and stand paddling to spot fish to hand spear…
adapting to an ocean environ is culture…
…ambrose…
culture is somethin grown in a petri dish.
every beach
and every condition
is a special petri dish…
the fish blank from clark
would be a great place
to start re cut in 1/2#
in styrofoam… !3’1’’
with paddleboard rocker…
I’ve been checking out some ‘Standamaran’ designs for awhile. Larry Allison - famous fin guy - was posted on Facebook recently with one by Mark Raaphorst in Maui. Ron House who shaped the original Laird Surftech SUP has made them as well as Bill Stewart but the original design goes way back…
I think catamaran/sea kayak style hulls will be more about tracking than planing.
With flattter, surfboard style hulls, you might want a dagger board in the center for rowing in windy conditions. Placement of the daggerboard relative to nose and tail will be important. Pull the daggerboard up for riding waves.
Just my $0.02.
Greg, my plan was to sit with my back facing forward and use oars. This is based on experience from 40+ years ago rowing with oars. I think the power you get using oars is greater than using a kayak paddle or a long outrigger canoe style stand up paddle. I have 2 goals in mind with this, one is to get maximum efficiency and power from the paddling. I want to be able to power out through lulls in sets to get past the inside breaks and head out to waves a mile offshore, or surf waves far from the location where you would normally paddle out from. The other thing is to have a controllable craft that could ride a wave if needed to get back to shore. On the south shore where we grew up there are outer reefs that only break when it’s really big. They don’t get surfed except by a few crazies, and the tow in guys. There are also breaks way outside Waikiki like Castles that only break when it’s really big. Those spots can have 20’ faces, but they are not scary like other really big waves. Paddling out there on a board takes a lot of time and energy, so this would open up a lot of alternatives. Guys ride that spot with a 3 or 4 man canoe and they can get 1/2 mile long rides.
On small days which is more than half the year for me, I could use this to paddle around and maybe ride 1’ high surf. I’m also seeing more wave skis in the water these days. Bernie and I saw a guy riding a Bahne ski today in 1’ surf and having a great time. Thinking of alternatives that will help keep the stoke, provide good exercise and still be riding waves. When we were young, we rode waves on all kinds of things, surfboards, boats, canoes, inner tubes from airplane tires, and flat pieces of wood. It didn’t matter what it was, because it was all so much fun. I think my dad got us started when he would catch waves in to the beach on a row boat after crabbing. Dad was really good at controlling the row boat in the waves. We started riding waves in a little fiberglass dinghy, and that was a blast. Dad bought us a 2 man canoe, and we had a blast on that until one of the iakos (outriggers) broke.
Whatever I make has to be very light and easy to transport. The canoe we had used quick release clamps that held the outriggers and ama together. It was light enough for one person to drag in and out of the water and it could be setup or taken apart in minutes. One problem was steering it. Outriggers need to be setup perfectly for surfing, or they will pull to one side, causing it to flip over. You need a good steersman to counter the pull. They also have a tendency to pearl on steep waves because they ride in the water and not on top of the water.
Yeah, I thought that was what you were talking about (facing back and rowing). I love your plan. Sounds like true waterman fun.
My wife is a rower and has talked me into trying it. We are going up to Maine to the Wooden Boat School to build a simple two man open water, light weight row boat called the Annapolis Wherry. I’ll post a picture of it. You can buy plans and buy kits or go to Maine and build it, which Kathy and I will do. The Wherry is suitable for open water with an uplifted bow.
But something like this seems to be what you are describing. It is built using the stitch and glue (epoxy) method making it really light (about 60 pounds) and really strong.
Aloha Greg,
A MUST READ for you, is ‘‘The Dory Book’’ by John Gardner. I was turned on to this book, in the early 1980’s, by Alan Nelson. Alan had built several sizes of rowing Dories, that he used for fishing/camping, in The Sea of Cortez, in Mexico. This book was his guide and inspiration. Alan used 1/2 inch thick slabs of Clark Foam, as the core, glassed with Epoxy. Way ahead of his time, as was usual with him. It is a worthwhile read, for the history alone. Check it out.
Wow. Thanks, Bill. Just what i needed But didn’t know it. I’m in between books and looking for something interesting. And I’m well traveled in Baja so this should be particularly interesting.
@ shorkcountry
Maybe you could connect your surfboard hulls to a rowing platform with something like Tuttle boxes or cylindrical inserts.
Three main boat pieces that could be easily carried and assembled at the water’s edge.
I don’t think you would be able to control that on a wave. Dat bugga going huli ova fasta den you can say “Oh shit!”.
I think looking at Uncle Teds boat, It might be possible to take the bottom 6" of the that hull shape and make 2 small versions for the hulls. Maybe make them 12" wide and have generous rocker going into a flat with a nice belly or vee in the nose to cut through. The hard part will be designing a strong but light frame holding the 2 hulls together. I think the inserts used for straps on windsurfers or what they use to hold the masts in would be easier to work with. I also all the red X stuff Charlie gave me. That would also be easy to work with. Make it like our old canoe with easy to assemble parts.
Remember how dad could control that boat and keep it running straight in? He never wiped out ever, even on that big day that uncle Bill and Reno came out to get us before he charged in with Aunty Mable and John.
