Description

microBottlegger

microBottlegger lines

In 1924, George Crouch designed a ground-breaking speedboat named "Baby Bootlegger." Baby Bootlegger was an innovation in its time, introducing the “rolled sheer” where the deck blends smoothly into the side. With the long stream-lined stern, it was the prototype of the mahogany runabouts that became popular in the 1920's. While this may be an unexpected starting point for a kayak, the graceful, efficient shape struck Nick's fancy.

In the 1880's J. Henry Rushton was at the forefront of an explosion in the popularity of canoeing. His canoes were not what we currently think of as a "canoe," instead, they were generally a boat where the paddler sat down in the bottom of the boat and used a paddle with blades at both ends. Often his boats had long decks with a cockpit where the paddler sat. In other words, what most people might think of as a kayak, are typically called "double paddle canoes.".

Taking the idea of a Rushton-style double paddle canoe and the great looking shape of the the Baby Bootlegger, I developed the µBootlegger (micro Bootlegger) as a roomy, efficient tandem kayak for cruising a lake or exploring a bay. While more sedate than her namesake, she moves easily through the water and, should a gale blow in, will handle rough water with aplomb.

Drawn up with a long cockpit big enough for two, it may also be paddled solo. For the more adventurous, it could also be rigged up with a rudder, lee boards, or a small sail much like the Ruston canoes were. The Mill Creek rig would be very appropriate.

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Aleutesque

Aleutesque lines

This design grew out of intense modification of the baidarka (an Aleut kayak) drawn by David Zimmerly and featured in his book "Qajak: Kayaks of Siberia and Alaska." Baidarkas are legendary for their speed and seaworthiness. However they were traditionally built using the skin-on-frame method. Much of the performance attributed to baidarkas may have been due to their flexible frame. In converting to the "strip-built" method the performance characteristics are inevitably going to change.

Since performance differences were inevitable, Nick decided it made sense to modify the traditional "iqyax" or single baidarka shape to take advantage of the possibilities of the strip-planking method. The result is this Aleut-like or Aleut "esque" design. Much has been written about the "bifid" or split bow of the traditional baidarka. There has been speculation that it acts like a bulbous bow as seen on supertankers, or it is a totem symbolizing a salmon jaw. The theory that was most interesting to me was that it served to create a clean entry at water level, but provided reserve buoyancy above the waterline to help ride over waves. (In a skin-on-frame boat it is hard to pull the fabric into a hollow shape. The easiest way is to sew through the skin, and the best way to make this sewing water tight is to cut down the seam and sew the two sides completely together.) Since strip building does not have the waterproofing issue Nick did not think the difficulty to make open jaws was necessary. So, he merged the upper and lower jaw into one continuous piece.

Baidarkas also have a very interesting stern shape. There has been a lot of speculation about the purpose of this shape as well. One of the interesting theories was that it acted like a transom which improved surfing characteristics and overall speed. However, in Nick's opinion, the shape did not really make a transom. I decided to see what would happen if the boat had a real transom, however I wanted to create something that was still reminiscent of the traditional baidarka stern.

The result is a low-volume, fast boat that will attract a lot of attention. Due to the relatively low volume of the boat, this is probably not the best boat for a lot of rough water use, but it is a fast surfing boat that responds easily to steering strokes. With a small permanent external skeg it is well balanced in cross winds where its narrow width lets it ride over side waves with good control. The fit in this boat is tight, the low deck (less than 11" at the front of the cockpit) does not leave a lot of room for feet, but size 10 feet have enough space. The boat rolls very nicely with the low back deck making lay-back style rolls comfortable.

This boat is not for novice boatbuilders. It is a tricky boat to build, and it takes practice to get the most out of it on the water. Its narrow waterline width makes it quite twitchy especially during entry and exit. Once seated the stability increases substantially. There are several difficult steps in the building of this kayak. We do not recommend this as a first kayak project unless you are confident in your woodworking skills. While the boat is not easy to build or paddle, the effort will be rewarded with a beautiful kayak that comes alive on the water.

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Specifications for all our kayaks

Mystery

Mystery lines

This kayak has been optimized to be as efficient as possible at race pace, while fitting within the rules for a "Sea Kayak Touring Class" as defined by the United States Canoe Association: 20ft max length, with a 4" water line beam of at least 18". To that end it is 20ft long overall with a 19' - 11 1/8" waterline length. While the design is 18" wide at the 4" waterline, with a 200 lbs paddler the boat will draw 3 1/4" and the waterline beam will be 17 3/8". The hull is computer optimized to have a very low wetted surface area and extremely low wave-making shape for the minimum possible drag. The overall maximum beam flares out 20" to conform to the minimum requirements of the Blackburn Challenge Sea Kayak class. The flare also provides additional secondary stability and excellent downwind surfing performance.

The foredeck is high to provide a clean, dry and fast ride going into heavy chop on open water. The deck ahead of the cockpit is cut away to allow efficient, close-to-the-hull paddle strokes without hitting the boat. The cockpit is long enough for paddlers to sit with their knees up, free to move, allowing full leg extension and torso rotation.

This design is strip built with 1/8" thick strips on the deck and 3/16" strip on the hull. With a lightweight racing layup the kayak can be built with a bare-boat weight of 26 lbs and fully equipped at 31 lbs or less.

This design will perform best when equipped with a rudder. It tracks very straight and is barely effected by wind, but efficient steering at a race pace is best provided by an efficient rudder. It is a stiff turning boat, not suitable for races with a lot of sharp turns, but runs fast on a straight away. Due to the narrow waterline beam of this design, it is not particularly stable, however a low seat will make it comfortable for most experienced paddlers. A higher seat placement will allow better leverage for those comfortable with the stability.

Because of the non-stock strip specification, this kit is a special order.

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Guillemot is the common name for several marine bird species of the Alcidae family. The name comes from Guillaume (William), as it appears to have been usual in the past to give first names to bird species (the Martinet for instance)

The three species of Cepphus commonly designated as "Guillemot" in Northern America make up a sub-group, the Cepphini. They are smaller than the rest of the species Uria, and have a black belly and red feet (nice!)