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'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

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Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#51

Post by gklitz »

uncertainrhymes wrote: post #35

I swim because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get somewhere fast. This seems awkward and I bet you have to use your arms just to counterbalance the twist you'd get on each 'stroke' of the leg. So even though I think it's goofy, I bet I'd like whoever came up with this. Someone who put a ton of effort into building something they thought would be interesting despite a thousand people telling them it's goofy. Go…

> I swim because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get somewhere fast.

I run because I enjoy it, not because I’m trying to get somewhere fast. But I also bike because I enjoy it, not because I’m trying to get somewhere fast.

You seem to assume that because this thing is faster, it must automatically be less enjoyable. That’s not the case for bikes, why should it be the case here? In my opinion it sounds fun, and would probably be enjoyable.

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#52

Post by xmonkee »

bluefirebrand wrote: post #44
vitiral wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really, why? Because you might drown? Try holding your breath and just floating, arms at your side and legs not moving. You will bob to the surface. Then quickly release your breath and snap your neck back to take a new one. Repeat. That's all it takes to not drown. You could almost do it as a quadriplegic (though I'm not 100% on "water balance" in that case).

This is not true if your feet are clipped to an object heavy enough to keep you under the water though

This device is buoyant, according to the article

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#53

Post by whamlastxmas »

404mm wrote: post #49
uncertainrhymes wrote: post #35

I swim because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get somewhere fast. This seems awkward and I bet you have to use your arms just to counterbalance the twist you'd get on each 'stroke' of the leg. So even though I think it's goofy, I bet I'd like whoever came up with this. Someone who put a ton of effort into building something they thought would be interesting despite a thousand people telling them it's goofy. Go…

Balancing this device must have been a good problem to solve! All I can think of is “where does the other end that stick go?”

Your blow hole, clearly

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#54

Post by ramesh31 »

The real question here is about efficiency, not speed. If this does in fact propel divers more efficiently than traditional fins, it could be something useful in extending dive times without the battery limitations of a sea scooter. Otherwise it's just a gimmick.

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#57

Post by giardini »

Rinzler89 wrote: post #38
tokai wrote: post #8

"Seabike says the prop turns slowly enough that you can safely use it at the local pool" Felt a bit iffy about this claim. But looking at the research it seems cadence lowers normally when cycling under water.[0] Fun device. I wonder which pedals would be best for barefoot riding(?). Maybe those strapped ones fix riders like to use. [0] https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/23706

Yeah I wouldn't want to get hit in the face by those props at the pool. Accidents can always happen.

Flip turns would be clumsy at best.

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#58

Post by Milner08 »

Vox_Leone wrote: post #6

Cool. More like an underwater 'monocycle', though. Make it into a full body struct in Y shape acting as kind of both 'guidon' and secondary propulsion axis -- more blades, an underwater tricycle. :)

Is a Monocycle something different to a Unicycle?

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#59

Post by [deleted] »

uncertainrhymes wrote: post #35

I swim because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get somewhere fast. This seems awkward and I bet you have to use your arms just to counterbalance the twist you'd get on each 'stroke' of the leg. So even though I think it's goofy, I bet I'd like whoever came up with this. Someone who put a ton of effort into building something they thought would be interesting despite a thousand people telling them it's goofy. Go…

[deleted]

Re: 'Underwater bicycle' propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed

#60

Post by a_c »

404mm wrote: post #49
uncertainrhymes wrote: post #35

I swim because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get somewhere fast. This seems awkward and I bet you have to use your arms just to counterbalance the twist you'd get on each 'stroke' of the leg. So even though I think it's goofy, I bet I'd like whoever came up with this. Someone who put a ton of effort into building something they thought would be interesting despite a thousand people telling them it's goofy. Go…

Balancing this device must have been a good problem to solve! All I can think of is “where does the other end that stick go?”

Two propellers spin in different directions might solve it I guess
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