Ahh, she was just a wee lass . . . .

[DGentry]

I've run class III in her before, but one moment of inattention and . . .

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w117/alias1719/WeeLassiedemise4-11b.jpg

It's always surprising to feel the power of even a small river.
No regrets though, it was fun while it lasted!

I still have the memories . . . .
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w117/alias1719/WeeLassielaunched036.jpg

[Nicholas Carey]

Ouch! Sorry about that.

[Ian McColgin]

Oops.

Good to see you're fine and ready to try again.

By the way, what is that transparent skin?

[David G]

Sorry for your loss.

Doesn't this thread title belong over in the Limerick thread? <G>

"Ahhhh but she was just a wee lass,"

[Peerie Maa]

I hope that you suffered no more than dented pride to go with the ducking.

[wardd]

duct tape and a tube of epoxy

home depot

[thedutchtouch]

any excuse to build another i see.

[Canoez]

Dang! Sorry to see that, but I think thedutchtouch has that about right. We need to slow you down so the rest of us can keep up. Mebbe you need a few kids around to slow you down....

[Wooden Boat Fittings]

Dave, I understand the stringers, but is that a run-out fracture in the hog?

Mike

[Rich Jones]

What a heart-breaker! Perhaps the breasthooks and some ribs can be salvaged for the new boat. At least a replacement SOF can be built a lot quicker than any planked boat.

[Paul Pless]

It's always surprising to feel the power of even a small river.was it a long swim, wade, walk home?

[Don Z.]

It'll buff out...

[htom]

Ouch. Good you're OK. Two dozen scarfs, a new skin, she's back on the water.

[McMike]

Ouch . . . Like they say, any crash you can walk away from.

[Chip-skiff]

Class III in that wee gossamer thing?

Y'r a feckless bugger and deserve a good thrashing, I reckon. Shame about the poor boat. But you've got yer PFD buckled up, so your judgement isn't completely askew.

I'd throw in an observation about pride, etc., but I reckon you've suffered enough.

[PaulC]

Dave,
It is a shame to see but glad you are ok! My boat is still is not done... But I hope you shall give a recommendation of where not to go/what conditions caused the failure.
Thanks

[DGentry]

Thanks, ya'll! Here's my write-up of the event:

(Overly) confident in my skills and what the river was doing, I was being a bit blase' about things. Mainly, though, I was trying to help out another boater when I looked back and realized that "hmm, I am definitely going to hit that tree (an upright log/stob)." I knew right away that it was not going to work out OK for the boat . . . .
The boat didn't even slow down as it went around both sides of the tree, it just shattered instantly. I have no idea what happened to the gunwales. I was laughing pretty hard/trying to breathe.
No injuries except for some good abrasions and a two inch long "splinter" I pulled out of my leg. My ego is fine, which is the most important thing. Whew!

The 2.5 mile jog back to the car, in wet sandals, resulted in some bonus blisters.

What happened? The water was up pretty high after a rain - higher than we thought, and two of us had done this run a couple of days before.The fact is that the river was easily doable for me, even in that boat in those conditions. It was not technically difficult water, just running faster and harder than we thought - but barely class 3, and that only in a few places. But, all it takes is to get distracted for a moment and the situation can change. Had I been in a plastic kayak, it would have ended up fine, but using a - yes, gossamer (and I built her with minimal scantlings) - flat water SOF canoe resulted in that pic.

There were a few bad decisions on my part, that main one being in mis-judging the river as being OK for the newbie boater we were with.
I'm not bummed about the boat, it was fun while it lasted, and I've still got lots of pics of her in one piece. But, now I'll have to figure out a new way to decorate the living room . . . the breasthook will make a good start!

[Chip-skiff]

It sounds like you had what rafters call a wrap. That is the boat hit an obstruction and the power of the current wrapped it around the stub. With an inflatable, you can sometimes deflate it and rope it off. But a rigid boat will snap.

There's a whitewater run below our house with some sharp rocks, and every couple years someone hits one sideways, flips upstream, and wraps. There've been a couple plastic Coleman canoes broken in half, and one touring kayak. No people lost, thank heavens.

Pretty craft— shame to lose it that way.

[Three Cedars]

Glad you are ok ! Wet human skin and splintered wood can be nasty.

Such a pretty canoe too . Not surprised it got destroyed , the force on it was immense ... I'm too lazy to calculate it but here is the formula -

The equation for calculating kinetic energy is K = 1/2M(v^2) where K is the kinetic energy, M is the mass, and V^2 is the square of the velocity. For example, if you want to calculate the K for a mass of 5 kilograms moving at 10 meters per second you multiply 5 kilograms times one-half times the square of 10 meters per second (the answer is 250 Newtons).

Read more: How to Calculate Theoretical Kinetic Energy | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4516060_calculate-theoretical-kinetic-energy.html#ixzz1KfHf8hWw

[shade of knucklehead]

That right there is an awesome looking little craft. The transparent skin must make it the talk of the town. Are there any threads detailing the construction of one?

[PaulC]

Thanks, you have laid out the 'chain of events' so it is easy to look at the combination that led to the failure. We appreciate your sharing.

[DGentry]

Yup, Chip, she wrapped like a taco. I've seen it done with a few canoes - mine was the cheapest, at least!


That right there is an awesome looking little craft. The transparent skin must make it the talk of the town. Are there any threads detailing the construction of one?

Thanks! There are threads with pics, on the forum . . . and you can see more pics on my website. But, for construction, here's an article I wrote up, for Duckworks magazine, about my transparent IGO: http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/10/projects/rushton/index.htm