Hobie Forums :: View topic - hobie hydrofoil

If I owned a Trifoiler, the very first thing I would do with it would be to cut a hole in the bottom, and add a mirage drive well in the cockpit. Plenty of retrofits have been done on sit inside kayaks, where they just build up 4 walls on the outside of the well (so water doesn't fill the hull), then snap the mirage drive in there. When not using the Mirage drive, the box can be covered with a lid.. It would solve all the Trifoilers problems with getting out of the harbors, and getting around when the wind dies, and it's upwind difficulties.
Once the hull is out of the water (on foils), there is no drag penalty, just park the fins against the underside of the hull.
Once this is done, then it's a very simple matter to just add an Evolve system, just plug it in to the mirage drive pocket. Again once your up on the foils, the evolve system is completely out of the water. Adding 15 lbs weight into the mix is not going to be a show stopper on a 350 lb boat.
The way I figure it, if I had ten grand to spend on a Trifoiler, I could easily come up with another $2500 to add an evolve system with dual batteries, and a couple optional solar panels. The panels would be rigged behind the spars (plenty of room for them).

Another less expensive option would be to hang a Honda 2.3 motor on the Trifoiler (Dan Ketterman had I think a 5hp on his for a while).
I have a Honda 2.3 on my TI, and boy what a difference it makes. When the wind is not cooperating, I just fire the motor up and powersail. I can go out all day powersailing for about a dollar or two in gas.
Of course once you get far enough offshore so you can foil, you just shut the motor off. Again adding 30 lbs into the mix is not going to be a show stopper on a 350 lb trifoiler. I've seen several videos of Trifoilers out with 2-3 people on board so adding the motor, or Mirage drive/Evolve system would be a no brainer for me.
Actually I would probably do both.

The second thing I would do is get rid of the old 15-20 yr old sail design and update the Trifoiler with more modern wing sails like the latest moths and the windsurfers have. With wing sails you would open up the boats capabilities beyond even what I can imagine. Things like foiling upwind at 2x windspeed, and downwind 3x windspeed would be easily accomplished (just like the AC 72's). Now I'm not talking about the big solid jointed wings like on the AC 72's, when anyone mentions wing sails, that is what everyone pictures in their minds and wants nothing to do with them. I'm talking about double walled semi rigid sails that from a distance look no different from standard sails, the jibs on the AC 72's are this type, and that type of sail is what I have on my TI, and boy what a difference it makes, they work completely different from normal sails, so you have to throw away all your old books and learn a different way of sailing.
With the above mentioned system, I pretty sure I could get into the high 40's on a regular basis, and in a lot more conditions. I'm thinking your speed limit would be when the foils begin to cavitate, or you start getting scared (whichever comes first).
The Trifoiler design like I've said before was 15-20 yrs ahead of it's time, but even to todays standards, the foil system is one of the best out there thanks to Greg Kettermans genious. But keep in mind this was a long time ago, and the world has progressed quite a bit. The Trifoiler started out as a High school project and was designed around current 'for the time' knowledge. If he had thought up the Mirage drive first, I'm sure it would have been incorporated into the mix, but that didn't come till much later.
I just wish I had one so I could soup it up, but that's never going to happen, I just don't have that kind of money to play around with.
Bob

Author:	NOHUHU [ Mon Oct 14, 2013 5:00 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
Sad to say that the MothWorlds event is shaping up to be a bust. We're in a rare, unstable wind state (no trade winds) that's worse than any I have seen. They can't even muster the 6 knot minimum breeze. This may last all week. So 80 world-class extreme sailors are stuck in low-rider mode. So am I,..

Author:	ronholm [ Mon Oct 14, 2013 10:18 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
http://www.vagueo.com/blog/windsurf-foil-video/

Author:	NOHUHU [ Tue Oct 15, 2013 12:23 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
Those are cool, but I think I just found the ultimate ride. Old school.

Author:	ronholm [ Tue Oct 15, 2013 4:02 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?

Author:	CelticKnight [ Thu Oct 17, 2013 7:07 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
Looks cool as HELL. But with a very congested river, I couldn't run the risk of that speed. Scary enough dodging boats & buoys as it is

Hobie Forums http://www.hobie.com/forums/

hobie hydrofoil - possible? http://www.hobie.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=49427	Page 3 of 4

Author:	Creative [ Sun Oct 20, 2013 5:51 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?

Author:	AngelBerry [ Wed Nov 06, 2013 8:26 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
fusioneng wrote: If I owned a Trifoiler, the very first thing I would do with it would be to cut a hole in the bottom, and add a mirage drive well in the cockpit. Plenty of retrofits have been done on sit inside kayaks, where they just build up 4 walls on the outside of the well (so water doesn't fill the hull), then snap the mirage drive in there. When not using the Mirage drive, the box can be covered with a lid.. It would solve all the Trifoilers problems with getting out of the harbors, and getting around when the wind dies, and it's upwind difficulties. Once the hull is out of the water (on foils), there is no drag penalty, just park the fins against the underside of the hull. Once this is done, then it's a very simple matter to just add an Evolve system, just plug it in to the mirage drive pocket. Again once your up on the foils, the evolve system is completely out of the water. Adding 15 lbs weight into the mix is not going to be a show stopper on a 350 lb boat. The way I figure it, if I had ten grand to spend on a Trifoiler, I could easily come up with another $2500 to add an evolve system with dual batteries, and a couple optional solar panels. The panels would be rigged behind the spars (plenty of room for them). Another less expensive option would be to hang a Honda 2.3 motor on the Trifoiler (Dan Ketterman had I think a 5hp on his for a while). I have a Honda 2.3 on my TI, and boy what a difference it makes. When the wind is not cooperating, I just fire the motor up and powersail. I can go out all day powersailing for about a dollar or two in gas. Of course once you get far enough offshore so you can foil, you just shut the motor off. Again adding 30 lbs into the mix is not going to be a show stopper on a 350 lb trifoiler. I've seen several videos of Trifoilers out with 2-3 people on board so adding the motor, or Mirage drive/Evolve system would be a no brainer for me. Actually I would probably do both. The second thing I would do is get rid of the old 15-20 yr old sail design and update the Trifoiler with more modern wing sails like the latest moths and the windsurfers have. With wing sails you would open up the boats capabilities beyond even what I can imagine. Things like foiling upwind at 2x windspeed, and downwind 3x windspeed would be easily accomplished (just like the AC 72's). Now I'm not talking about the big solid jointed wings like on the AC 72's, when anyone mentions wing sails, that is what everyone pictures in their minds and wants nothing to do with them. I'm talking about double walled semi rigid sails that from a distance look no different from standard sails, the jibs on the AC 72's are this type, and that type of sail is what I have on my TI, and boy what a difference it makes, they work completely different from normal sails, so you have to throw away all your old books and learn a different way of sailing. With the above mentioned system, I pretty sure I could get into the high 40's on a regular basis, and in a lot more conditions. I'm thinking your speed limit would be when the foils begin to cavitate, or you start getting scared (whichever comes first). The Trifoiler design like I've said before was 15-20 yrs ahead of it's time, but even to todays standards, the foil system is one of the best out there thanks to Greg Kettermans genious. But keep in mind this was a long time ago, and the world has progressed quite a bit. The Trifoiler started out as a High school project and was designed around current 'for the time' knowledge. If he had thought up the Mirage drive first, I'm sure it would have been incorporated into the mix, but that didn't come till much later. I just wish I had one so I could soup it up, but that's never going to happen, I just don't have that kind of money to play around with. Bob Hello friend can you share some pics of your Trifoiler? I am looking to do some modifications in my Trifoiler so need your guidance.. Please post some pics..

Author:	fusioneng [ Wed Nov 06, 2013 10:15 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
AngelBerry : Unfortunately I don't own a Trifoiler (though I wish I could afford one), my current boat is a Hobie Tandem Island. Tom Kirkman does own a Trifoiler, and is one of the sharpest most experienced guys on this forum, if you post (in the Trifoiler area) your questions and concerns I'm sure someone who is really familiar with Trifoilers will help. The Trifoiler guys might not be following this particular thread. I was only speculating on if I owned a Trifoiler, what I would be doing with it. Bob

Author:	Tom Kirkman [ Wed Nov 06, 2013 3:07 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
You can't easily put a Mirage Drive in a TriFoiler because of the foot pedal steering assembly. The two would conflict with one another. Here's a photo for you (but probably not what you were after!)

Author:	Creative [ Sun Dec 08, 2013 10:45 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
From the (American Sailing Association) Facebook Page: The CAT'S out of the bag! As announced today in Paris, ASA is partnering with Hobie Cat Company and Oracle to produce this catamaran modeled on the America's Cup winners. Stay tuned for more details! https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

Author:	Creative [ Thu Oct 23, 2014 9:58 am ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
I want a flying zebra boat!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHHxjPJ05Eo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySCt1ZRed60

Author:	tpdavis473 [ Thu Oct 23, 2014 1:49 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
How about a slightly different question? Is it possible to build a planing multihull? Seems like you might have the same issue about how often you get into the planing "zone". Once you start heeling the plane is oriented wrong. We've all seen planing monohull powerboats. They go from displacing 1500 pounds to displacing only 500 or so and their wake changes from 3 foot deep to 3"-which, in my estimation, is the best determination of whether a boat is planing or not--does the wake get signficantly smaller. I think a Weta main hull might plane, with two on board the boat stays flat both going to weather and downwind most of the time, but I haven't noticed any huge difference in wake nor any obvious increase in speed to determine that planing is occurring. Obviously the floats aren't planing on a Weta (no planing surface).

Author:	mmiller [ Thu Oct 23, 2014 2:34 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
I think performance cats like F18s / Wild Cat plane to an extent. They are not displacement hulls. But for speed and smooth ride, you need foils.

Author:	tpdavis473 [ Thu Oct 23, 2014 6:11 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
Hey Matt, I think I understand what you mean, but just because a boat isn't limited by wave reinforcement drag doesn't mean that is isn't a displacement hull. The F18s seem to have some rocker, but I think the hulls might be too "thin" to have the planing surface needed to be called planing hulls and achieve hydrodyamic lift to lift the boat out of the water and thereby decrease wave resistance. The key for me is to watch the wakes. If they suddenly decrease in size, they plane. There's a local F18 in the fleet and I've watched him...I haven't noticed any decrease in wave size (at least while he's in sight). It is a fast boat while he's upright.

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Author:	Creative [ Tue Oct 28, 2014 12:14 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: hobie hydrofoil - possible?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAs6DtmIrnA#t=106