sailcar speed record

Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

fantastic!
bagger

On Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:55:29 +0100, bagmaker wrote:

Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a
glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

It looks more like a more-or-less complete giant RC glider to me - just
remove the fin and one wingtip and bolt her on.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

On Mar 31, 3:14*pm, Martin Gregorie
wrote:
On Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:55:29 +0100, bagmaker wrote:
Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a
glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

It looks more like a more-or-less complete giant RC glider to me - just
remove the fin and one wingtip and bolt her on.

--
martin@ * | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org * * * |

Did you guys notice the amout of sideways skidding that was going on
during the run? Boy if they could improve lateral resistance somehow
with better traction, they could go plenty faster. There must have
been a substantial amount of drag going on with the vehicle sliding
sideways the entire time. Very cool project though.

On Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:34:33 -0700, dlhoppe wrote:

On Mar 31, 3:14Â*pm, Martin Gregorie
wrote:
On Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:55:29 +0100, bagmaker wrote:
Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a
glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

It looks more like a more-or-less complete giant RC glider to me - just
remove the fin and one wingtip and bolt her on.

--
martin@ Â* | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org Â* Â* Â* |

Did you guys notice the amout of sideways skidding that was going on
during the run? Boy if they could improve lateral resistance somehow
with better traction, they could go plenty faster. There must have been
a substantial amount of drag going on with the vehicle sliding sideways
the entire time. Very cool project though.

My first reaction is "more down-force and wider tyres", but the amount of
dust being kicked up suggests that the surface may be loose enough for
those remedies to make the additional rolling resistance more speed
limiting than the side slip.

What is the surface like where they set the record?

It seems to me that the sailcar setup is likely to be a huge compromise.
Did you notice that the 'wing' and 'tail' and outrigger all have more or
less symmetrical sections? That doesn't make sense if a record can be set
with a single run in one direction. However, if it has to make two runs
in opposite directions then the sections have to be symmetric or one of
the runs would be much slower.

In gliding terms that would be like requiring half a task to be flown
inverted: if that was a rule we'd all be racing gliders with symmetrical
or near-symmetrical wing sections.

Before you all bust out laughing at this I'd point out that F3B (a multi-
task RC racing class) uses a flapped semi-symmetrical wing section and,
in the speed task which is four passes between twp pylons 150m apart,
usually the 2nd and 4th passes are flown inverted because a half bunt at
each end is faster than a vertically banked turn of the same radius.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

"Martin Gregorie" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:34:33 -0700, dlhoppe wrote:

On Mar 31, 3:14 pm, Martin Gregorie
wrote:
On Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:55:29 +0100, bagmaker wrote:
Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a
glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

It looks more like a more-or-less complete giant RC glider to me - just
remove the fin and one wingtip and bolt her on.

--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

Did you guys notice the amout of sideways skidding that was going on
during the run? Boy if they could improve lateral resistance somehow
with better traction, they could go plenty faster. There must have been
a substantial amount of drag going on with the vehicle sliding sideways
the entire time. Very cool project though.

My first reaction is "more down-force and wider tyres", but the amount of
dust being kicked up suggests that the surface may be loose enough for
those remedies to make the additional rolling resistance more speed
limiting than the side slip.

What is the surface like where they set the record?

The Ivanpah Dry Lake is just south of here, and just south of were we fly
gliders.
The surface is loose packed "fine sand", it's a dry lake bed that a month
earlier was wet, so as it dried with no wind it became rather smooth, but
easily kicked up. the surface is not as hard as the salt flats in the north
part of the state where the land speed car and motorcycle records have been
set.

The winds that day were 30G40 and higher, our sail planes were "flying in
the tie downs".

There are 3 dry lakes in the Ivanpah Valley, Ivanpah, Roach and Jean Dry
Lakes. We use the east part of Roach for safari and auto tow launches twice
a year. Check them out on Google Earth. Go to Jean or Primm NV and then
north and south.
BT

On Mar 31, 9:53*pm, "BT" wrote:
"Martin Gregorie" wrote in message

...



On Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:34:33 -0700, dlhoppe wrote:

On Mar 31, 3:14 pm, Martin Gregorie
wrote:
On Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:55:29 +0100, bagmaker wrote:
Not really gliding, but it looks as though the poms have mounted a
glider wing on a speed car here!

http://www.gizmag.com/wind-powered-c...-record/11346/

It looks more like a more-or-less complete giant RC glider to me - just
remove the fin and one wingtip and bolt her on.

--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

Did you guys notice the amout of sideways skidding that was going on
during the run? Boy if they could improve lateral resistance somehow
with better traction, they could go plenty faster. There must have been
a substantial amount of drag going on with the vehicle sliding sideways
the entire time. Very cool project though.

My first reaction is "more down-force and wider tyres", but the amount of
dust being kicked up suggests that the surface may be loose enough for
those remedies to make the additional rolling resistance more speed
limiting than the side slip.

What is the surface like where they set the record?

The Ivanpah Dry Lake is just south of here, and just south of were we fly
gliders.
The surface is loose packed "fine sand", it's a dry lake bed that a month
earlier was wet, so as it dried with no wind it became rather smooth, but
easily kicked up. the surface is not as hard as the salt flats in the north
part of the state where the land speed car and motorcycle records have been
set.

The winds that day were 30G40 and higher, our sail planes were "flying in
the tie downs".

There are 3 dry lakes in the Ivanpah Valley, Ivanpah, Roach and Jean Dry
Lakes. We use the east part of Roach for safari and auto tow launches twice
a year. Check them out on Google Earth. Go to Jean or Primm NV and then
north and south.
BT

Wingmasts are very common sites on landyachts. Some even use flaps.

If you want more traction, you add lead. The boats are heavy: 1600
pounds plus for the Iron Duck. Large iceboatsexceed twice that.

Contrary to the article, iceboats have gone faster using modern
instruments. But the Brits have simply written off the generally
accepted record of 143 mph which was set in the 40's.

/Adam

On Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:53:10 -0700, BT wrote:

There are 3 dry lakes in the Ivanpah Valley, Ivanpah, Roach and Jean Dry
Lakes. We use the east part of Roach for safari and auto tow launches
twice a year. Check them out on Google Earth. Go to Jean or Primm NV and
then north and south.

I hadn't realized where Ivanpah was in NV and hadn't looked it up on a
map, but I know where Jean Dry Lake is, though I haven't been there.

Thanks for both location and surface data.

At a guess on that sort of surface more down force and wider tyres would
both tend to reduce the speed.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |