Land Yacht Kickstarter

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/60667987/the-land-yacht
Please donate today to help make this a reality!

The Land Yacht is a 40 foot sailing vessel, designed to roll gracefully across the desert.

Built on a 1962 Dodge 2-ton truck, it has a ketch rig placed on a flat wooden deck, supported by an extended 40' steel chassis. The ketch rig consists of a taller main mast supporting the head sails and a main sail just back of the front axle, and the smaller mizzen mast supporting the mizzen sail just forward of the rear axle. This lowers the center of mass while maintaing a high amount of sail area, reducing the righting moment and increasing power and maneuverability.

Wings made of steel and netting, supported by the two masts, allow crew to move their weight out-board while assisting a hydraulic ballast system, to help counter the lack of a keel. They also provide a comfortable hammock-like seat to view the desert rush beneath you.

Time permitting the cab will be split and the passenger compartment, along with all cables and linkages, will be moved behind the mizzen mast.

The entirety of the standing and running rigging is taken from a single similarly sized sailboat. Reducing cost rather than building a new system and simultaneously ensuring sync throughout the rig.

We believe that with roller furling headsails along with the vehicles existing brakes and two-speed rear transmission, our Land Yacht will be able to stop and maneuver under limited sail in ways a traditional sailboat has never been able to.

In addition, by retaining the original 400hp diesel, which could be converted to vegetable oil, The Land Yacht will have robust electrical capabilities for lights, sound, and the hydraulic ballast system, as well as the ability to motor under its own power.

The vessel is designed to be trailerable so we may easily move it from Nimby in Oakland, California where it is being built, to the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada home of an expansive playa and constant winds.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Land Yacht
• Cleveland Motley
• IOD
• Sailing
• SF
• Burning Man

[ianjstuart]

You are going to keep the engine in the truck, right? Way too heavy to sail on it's own. Build a Cat instead?

[clevelandmotley]

@ianjstuart a custom chasis might be the way to go, but i don't imagine the engine weighs much more than a few people. I think a balance between rig size and weight can be reached. Plus using the engine to get over the static friction and increase the apparent wind might help. A custom chassis will cost a lot more than an old truck as well, we are just having fun at this point

[clevelandmotley]

Please visit the Kickstarter and donate today to make this a reality!

[6bettyboo9]

yeah awesome! cant wait to see it!

[Xanthoran]

Sweet idea, can't wait to see it in action.