Video of the First Float!

Noëlle actually took the first step onto the boat, then she filmed me. Sorry about the video being sideways.

Video of the First Float!

This video shows one of the planing runs. The boat has a nice, smooth, light feeling ride.

Test Float Part 1 200% Success!

Here it is, March 18th 2008 and we put the boat that I built into the water for the very first time! The whole process went as smooth as it possibly could. The car and the boat and trailer all seem to be good match for each other on the road. It's easy to tow. This first picture shows me preparing the boat at the Fall's Lake launching ramp.

Here I am removing the lights from the trailer before putting them in the water. I wired them a little bit different from the norm so I don't think submerging them would be a good idea.

It's going in!

Getting ready to push the boat off the trailer.

Test Float Part 2

The boat floated higher on the water than I had hoped for!

The first person to ever set foot aboard the floating boat is Noëlle. This photo captures the moment she made history.

The boat is stable, roomy, and fun to walk around on.

It handled perfectly. It turned very tight radius turns, went in reverse in complete control, and got up on a plane with the engine at only half throttle. Amazing! The prop would cavitate during turns at high speed, but it's a catamaran, so it's gonna do that.

Test Float Part 3

Noëlle bringing the boat back to the dock.
Everything worked perfectly!

Running easy at 15 - 20 knots with very little wake.

Noëlle!

Test Float Part 4

Here are some pictures of Noëlle holding the boat at the dock. We really need to come up with a name for it so I don't have to keep calling it "the boat". There is also a picture of me beside it just after pulling it out of the water. Finally, a pic of the boat put away for the night.

-Cory

Outer Banks Vacation - Part One

Wow. We took a vacation to the outer banks of North Carolina at a place called The Inn at Corolla Light. It was better than our wildest expectations and fantasies. The staff recognized our name upon arrival, and was so personable and friendly that we truly felt welcome and comfortable from the very first akward moments of arrival. The environment was relaxed, and stress free. The town of Corolla is the last town you can reach as you head North on the outer banks. Less than a mile beyond the hotel the road literally ends and to go any farther north you need a 4 wheel drive to cruise the beach. Our room included a gigantic whirpool tub and a gas fireplace. Yay! We also had views of the sound, spectacular sunsets, and access to a deck shared by only a few other exclusive rooms. There were awesome restaurants nearby, and altogether including hotel, eating out, gas, and all expenses, the vacation only cost us right around $500. I can't imagine taking a better vacation for even three times the price!

Outer Banks Vacation - Part Two

Our outer banks vacation was simply awesome. I hope these pictures capture some of the fun that we had. The hotel is built directly on the water and has a long pier that was fun to walk out on. There were geese, ducks and swans all around. After working at Overton's this winter and selling waterfowl hunting gear and ammunition, I am having serious moral quandaries about ever selling that stuff again. Anyway, the hotel included free bicycles and we used them to ride to the end of the road, and then walked the beach and climbed the dunes. The weather was mild and the whole vacation was just as relaxing as we needed it to be. I feel that this hotel is one of the places that I would be happy coming back to year after year. I would never get tired of it.

End of Vacation - Wright Brothers Memorial

On the last day of our vacation to the outer banks we stopped at the Wright Brothers memorial at Kill Devil Hills on the outer banks. Oh my god. It was amazing to stand on the very spot that mankind first flew barely a hundred years ago. We stood next to the rail that launched their airplane. We climbed the hill that they used to fly their gliders in the years preceding the historic first flights of a powered heavier than air craft. I was nearly overwhelmed with the significance of the achievement. Just down the road was Jockey's Ridge, which is nothing but some tall sand dunes that they still teach hang gliding at. After completing nearly fifty short hang gliding flights in California I really wished that I could have experienced some longer flights on these dunes, but there wasn't any time, money, or opportunity during this trip. Some day, though... I will be a competent hang glider pilot! The photos here include the historic hill, monument, the first - flight location is in the background of my picture, and there is a pic of the Flyer replica.