91–100 of 285 posts
> The nominal mode enables motion through the water at 3.6 km/h, and for speed-seekers, the SEABIKE can reach a maximum of 7.9 km/h – much faster than normal swimming speeds or even flipper-assisted swimming. https://www.nauticexpo.com/prod/seabike/product-68606-564117... Pretty fast, but "superhuman"? For short distances Michael Phelps can swim faster :)
Michael Phelps is an alien..
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?
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=1700041
> There are two main types of single-wheeled vehicles. In a unicycle, the rider sits above the wheel. These vehicles are recognizable by most people. Less well known is the monocycle, where the rider sits inside the wheel.
It’s obscure but there was such a contraption trialled by the seals and cia in the 1950s http://www.hisutton.com/CIA_Water-Air_1958.html Here’s a pedal powered smuggling submarine from the 1940s http://www.hisutton.com/Swiss-Pedal-Powered-Smuggling-Submar...
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?”
What's the advantage of this over foot fins?
I live near a fairly dangerous ocean in SF where I’ve gone bodyboarding with a wetsuit and fins. I’m concerned that, if caught in a current, fins are not enough to propel me out of it.
This would. The extra power and ease of propulsion could make all the difference.
Seems prime for attaching to a surfboard
Another interesting use case would be just tossing one of these into a boat that you own, or a kayak or whatever. Basically extra insurance to get you back in case your motor dies or you get swept out, similar use case as the surfboard