Flight of the Kona Sailing Canoe - Video

Colin

On the weekend myself and paddlers of the Mandurah Outrigger Canoe Club had a fantastic adventure. “Kona” the 1st Hawaiian Sailing Canoe to sail in the Indian Ocean took flight off Mandurah in Western Australia in a perfect 20 knots of Freo Doctor wind. We’d towed the canoe down the inside of the estuary from Mandurah, then put the rig up and sailed it out through The Cut and into the ocean then pointed it north and hung on!
White water was flying everywhere as we were dropping down the front of swells and burying the canoe before leaping out and taking off again. After a while we started to take a bit of water so started bailing, whoops first bailer gets dropped, okay we’re fine and keep going. Okay need to have a bail again taking on more water, start bailing with the call “don’t drop this bailer or we’re stuffed”, yep second bailer goes swimming! We had a small electric bilge pump but it wasn’t coping. It was then just a matter of time before we were swamped!
Always good having a support boat when learning how to play with these babies. Lessons for next time, better fitting covers, venturi in the hull and more wind please!!!!
So here is a quick video shot of our adventure from the support boat.
Enjoy (we did!)
Barts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o3cAwGs3TE

Submitted by Colin on Tue, 10/26/2010 - 3:33pm

Kanu37

Great job. Check out the sailing canoe videos on our website www.oceanpaddler.tv
I personally sail canoes and love seeing them starting to be built in other places of the world!!
Terry
Ps: my family started the hawaiian sailing canoe association here's the website www.h
sca.biz
Terry

#1 Tue, 10/26/2010 - 7:44pm

Kanu37

We put self bailers in our sailing canoes for that reason. I have 2 in mine now. One near seat 2 and one near seat 5. They are two way values. You need to be going about 5 knots for the speed to suck out the water but they are life savers. We also use hand pumbs. Email me and I will send you photos in case I am not using the right words. Also, your spray covers need to be thinker then ones used on paddling canoes. We have been clocked at 20 knots!!! So stoked for you guys!
Terry
[email protected]

#2 Tue, 10/26/2010 - 8:21pm

Colin

Thanks for the advice Terry, everything helps. Myself and a friend came over to Hawaii a few years ago and did a sailing canoe race with Mike Kincaid who was a great help when we built this rig down here. Say hi to him for me! I sailed it around the Whitsundays Islands near Hamilton Island for many years before relocating over here to Mandurah and just got it out of storage. And yes checked a lot of the videos on your site to make sure I was rigging it okay! I'd love to see some photos of your self bailers, don't want to go thru that again! My email is [email protected]
Cheers
Barts
PS You'll have to come down and have a race here!!! Its the best sailing canoe conditions!!!

#3 Tue, 10/26/2010 - 11:56pm

Kanu37

I love my Uncle Mike..He is still charging out there and we all are having a blast! I will take some photos for you this weekend..If you cant find the two way valves (self bailers) we use there. I will buy you a couple and send them to you. Honestly it will make your sailing canoe adventures so much better! In the wind you had the canoe would have stayed dry with the self bailers.. Heres a photo of my baby! If you want some advise..I would rig the safety side out a little more. It is too close and why it was hard for the sheet guy to keep the big ama down.
xoxo
Terry

#4 Thu, 10/28/2010 - 5:51pm