NEW ICE SPEED RECORD 39.3MPH!
STATISTICS:
Date: 3-26-06
Location: Squam Lake, NH
Boat: SK-1 Skeeter, Custom built Ice boat
IRCSSA Class: III
Skipper: Jeff Brown US 206
Maximum GPS recorded speed: 39.3MPH
Session time: 2hrs 37 min
Total logged distance: 28.9 miles
WEATHER:
Mostly cloudy
Temp: 42.5 deg
Winds: N 10-15+
Ice Conditions: Hard spring ice, textured with wet film,
considered “grippy”, but fast and many square miles of it.
THE STORY:
I thought the year was quite over, after the prior week sailing just
south at Lake Wentworth, with very slushy and rutted ice from a long
season of hard use by traffic, snowmobilers, fishing derbys, ect.
Total ice breakup was soon expected as well.
My first experience sailing the SK1 was less than ideal on those
rough conditions and I thought I would need to wait for next season
to race across new black ice to realize the RC boats true potential.
But somehow I managed another trip north on a whim that I might just
find a better surface on a more remotely used lake.
My first stops were by several off-the beaten path locations around
Lake Winnipesaukee, but this lake has now gone to waste with the
slabs breaking up in many locations, open water leads everywhere, I
feared I would loose my boat into an open lead forever. I would
rather not even try to sail if this was all the ice I would find
today.
I then moved more northward to Squam Lake, where I knew there would
be no remnant tracks from snowmobiles, as these are not allowed on
this rather remote gem of a lake.
I went to a location I had once ice sailed before on a Freeskate more
than 20 years ago. As I passed along the lake side drive I noticed
the ice was indeed in good shape, snug tightly to the shoreline and
the surface gleemed as if it were January ice quality.
Once I parked and investigated the surface, I knew I was in for a
great day. The ice had not even begun to slush out in the warm temps.
In fact it was the best ice I have ever seen in March! It was a
quality, firm, hard surface with a slight sheen of wetness, but the
ice grain was evident to also provide excellent lateral resistance.
What more could I ask?
How about the most beautiful vista of the White Mountains sloping
right down to lake’s edge? No wonder the site was chosen for the
movie On Golden Pond.
How about a light side /onshore wind of 10 mph and building!
The day itself was a gem to just be there.
I quickly rigged the boat, set the GPS and zeroed register, then I
took a photo of the GPS reading for documentation.
New for this session was a crudely made bendy mast, “hey why not try
something quick and easy”, were my thoughts when I came across the
bendy fiberglass rod found in a local hardware store at home.
At first I thought this was too bendy as the leech was sure to
collapse with the slightest bend fore and aft. Still I thought I
would try the simple device and learn.
Then she was off!
Right away I saw the advantage of the bendy mast working in my favor.
The boat accelerated, squatted low and stuck to the ice with such
efficiency and no hiking!
It was really ripping around with amazing control, from bursts of
speed to radical tight turns. The mast was bending out just about
perfect as compared to my full size DN experiences, this was indeed
good!
The wind began to steady and I became more confident that I would not
send the boat miles out of range, so I began to really push it.
Soon enough I was posting 30’s, then 32’s 33’s with my curiosity ever
increasing that I could really get some decent speeds.
Then the perfect wind filled in to a steady 15mph and I paced the
boat over several peeling speed runs in each direction, a few I knew
were more than enough to be the best yet, then she sailed far off out
of radio range, thankfully I managed to round it up and stall into
the wind, more than a half mile away! The potential was there to send
it at least 10 miles away had I not taken precautions. It’s a BIG
lake!
I had a long walk for that pick-up, but when I checked the GPS it was
true, a new record of 39.3MPH was displayed and I knew that last run
had been the ticket! I took a photo of the reading while the GPS was
mounted. (See SK1 folder at Yahoo site below)
How about some more! The wind was building to 15mph and greater as
the clouds were clearing. I sent the boat into more pegging bursts of
speed, but by now the wind was really distorting the rig, way beyond
practical limits of this mast/sail combo. However the boat still
refused to hike, instead the mast just kept on bending to nearly
2/3’s its normal height and bowed out to the leeward runner!
Yes, at this point I thought a bit too much for bend. I did not have
a smaller sail and the boat was clearly out of control bouncing all
around, skidding, sail inverted. It was survival in winds gusting to
20mph.
Then it finally took the overdue and expected crash, skidding and
toppling to break both rear runners and possibly the steering
servo?..all in a good days work, I say!
I packed it up and went on my way home, thinking about the next steps
in design; the next mast, the new runners, the new sail design of
which I have so much to do, and learn, and then next year we shoot
for the 40 barrier! Ohhh, so close.:crazy:
But one thing is certain in my observations now more than ever.
The bendy mast concept is now a proven performance winner for control
in RC models as it is with the big boats! I would never have had the
same control of the boat with a rigid/stiff mast which would have had
the boat hiking and skidding as my experiences from weeks prior with
the model showed. In fact, I had this RC boat performing so close to
the full sized boats in every way that an untrained onlooker may not
even know the difference!
Today was groundbreaking proof to me that bendy masts are here to
stay!:spin:
And there is so much more to do.
Sail fast, take risks…:batman:
Jeff Brown
US 206
PS: Pictures posted in SK1 folder.