Two Person AI

There is now a video of Pelican and Egret launching their double AI:
http://www.watertribe.com/ChallengeView ... ntent.aspx
Surprisingly Egret who is blind and has one leg sits in the back!
The dodgers tend to hide the decks so not much more is revealed but it looks to me as if the ama are narrower as well as being longer. It's a shame the video isn't shot with a tripod as it is very jerky especially the telephoto shot of the sail unfurling. From what I can make out the sail does look larger in area though.
Keith -thanks for posting that pic. The deck layout of the double is now a bit clearer. The x-bars look round on the ends and there are two sets of cleats possibly?
Regarding the materials, I suspect prototypes may be made out of fibreglass so that mods can be made before settling on a final design. I seem to recall a post from way back where someone was trying to sell a fibreglass Quest I think?
The two-tone colour gave that away!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg1OsQ8szD4

Direct link to video of Pelican and Egret launching the tandem AI

That sail appears to have 3 battens, and looks almost square. Lots of power in that huge roach.

Thanks to Ocean Diva's latest video clips (she is travelling in the two-tone AI double) a lot more is revealed of the prototype.
-the sail does have 3 battens (well spotted Tom!)
-boat length 18' 7" (as stated by penguinman in 'fastmoving double' clip)
-daggerboard pivots in its own full length slot inside hull:



-the protype is fibreglass.

Collection of Diva videos:

http://www.youtube.com/user/WaterTribeAdventures

(Why did they bother posting that 6 second clip of a solo AI?)

Ray,

I suspect that OceanDiva and PenquinMan, from California, are associated w/ Hobie, so the 6 sec clip of the AI was a requirement.

Keith

_________________
2015 AI 2, 2014 Tandem

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

"Less is more" Anon

I guess that's possible, Keith, but there are already hours of good AI videos on youtube, so I'm not sure why they would want 6 seconds of lousy, shaky video.

Oh well, don't want to dwell on the negative. I liked her other videos.

A suggestion for Hobie:

If you produce that boat with that daggerboard, a flexible plastic fairing to close the daggerboard slot when the board is down should be investigated. An empty daggerboard slot is like dragging a bucket along under the hull, really messing up water flow and causing drag.

To have pictures of an AI in the WaterTribe Everglades Challenge is great advertising.

Keith

_________________
2015 AI 2, 2014 Tandem

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

"Less is more" Anon

Personally, I also find it interesting to see that they use a jib and stays. This can be seen in "Sailing 1" and in the "Slide Show". That could be just them. But couldn't that also mean that hobie plays with the idea to provide a jib(set) as an accessory?

Anyhow, I would love to see how they have installed that jib!

_________________
skua

I grabbed a couple of video frames from 'Leg2 Ocean Diva 7' youtube
video. The jib forestay doesn't appear to have a furling drum and the
side stays (shrouds) seem to be simply attached on the outer end of the forward akas.
No shots of the mast top, but to have furling for the mainsail, there must
be some kind of swivel at the mast top to attach the fore and side stays.

If Hobie has the capability to mass produce the mast stop swivel...I want one for my single AI jib I have installed. It would really stiffen up the
mast when the wind increases and would allow use of my jib at higher
wind speeds. But I wonder about downward forces at the mast base, I think that Hobie must have increased the mast base to strength the hull at that point.

The mast top connection doesn't work well. Jib / forestay loads cause the mast to invert and the main sail to distort ruining performance. That would be why there are some stays to support the top better.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

Looks like there is another innovation in the tandem AI.
This quote is from the recent rudder up/down post by dgtaylor who competed in an AI in the 09 Watertribe Challenge:

"And by the way, the tandem AI looks really good. Both seats have rudder control. You can use it solo from the rear seat and keep the waves out of your lap."

AI2 is 18' 7" long huh...

Drat Measured my kayak barn - it is only 18' 4" long.

Bigger barn or maybe put the boat in diagonally.

Not thrilled about the idea of side stays.

I don't remember seeing side stays on the Ketterman video, so maybe only the fiberglass requires the stays. Or only when using the jib sail.

Here's hoping that Hobie balances the need for speed & performance with the need to keep it simple.

That is what made the Island so special.

The side stays were only used in conjunction with the jib, and are only needed then, I think. So, for what it's worth, I do not think we have to worry about that.
It is loooong though. So it will be heavy. But in the movies I saw about it, it moved so gentle and "ship-like". The struggle with the weight on land, might very well be worth it...

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skua