Human-powered watercraft - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Human-powered watercraft are watercraft

Watercraft

A watercraft is a vessel or craft designed to move across or through water. The name is derived from the term "craft" which was used to describe all types of water going vessels...

propelled by human power. The three main methods of collecting human power are directly from the hands or feet, through the hands with oar

Oar

An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end. Oarsmen grasp the oar at the other end. The difference between oars and paddles are that paddles are held by the paddler, and are not connected with the vessel. Oars generally are connected to the vessel by...

s, paddle

Paddle

A paddle is a tool used for pushing against liquids, either as a form of propulsion in a boat or as an implement for mixing.-Materials and designs:...

s, or poles or through the feet with pedals

Bicycle pedal

A bicycle pedal is the part of a bicycle that the rider pushes with their foot to propel the bicycle. It provides the connection between the cyclist's foot or shoe and the crank allowing the leg to turn the bottom bracket spindle and propel the bicycle's wheels...

and a crank

Crankset

The crankset or chainset , is the component of a bicycle drivetrain that converts the reciprocating motion of the rider's legs into rotational motion used to drive the chain, which in turn drives the rear wheel...

or treadle

Treadle

A treadle [from OE tredan = to tread] is a part of a machine which is operated by the foot to produce reciprocating or rotary motion in a machine such as a weaving loom or grinder...

. While most human-powered watercraft use buoyancy

Buoyancy

In physics, buoyancy is a force exerted by a fluid that opposes an object's weight. In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus a column of fluid, or an object submerged in the fluid, experiences greater pressure at the bottom of the...

to maintain their position relative to the surface of the water, a few, such as human-powered hydrofoil

Human-powered hydrofoil

thumb|Starting an AquaSkipper on the river [[Spree]] in [[Berlin]]A human-powered hydrofoil is a small hydrofoil watercraft propelled entirely by the muscle power of its operator. Human-powered hydrofoils may be driven by pedals, as in a hydrocycle, by paddles, as in a Flyak, or by bouncing, as in...

s and human-powered submarines use hydrofoil

Hydrofoil

A hydrofoil is a foil which operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to airfoils.Hydrofoils can be artificial, such as the rudder or keel on a boat, the diving planes on a submarine, a surfboard fin, or occur naturally, as with fish fins, the flippers of aquatic mammals, the...

s, either alone or in addition to buoyancy.

Oared craft

Oars are held at one end, have a blade on the other end, and pivot

Fulcrum

Fulcrum is the support about which a lever pivots. It may also refer to:* Fulcrum , part of a percussionist's grip* MiG-29 Fulcrum, a Soviet fighter aircraftIn fiction:...

in between in oarlocks. Oared craft include:

Racing shell
Racing shell
In watercraft, a racing shell is an extremely narrow, and often disproportionately long, rowing boat specifically designed for racing or exercise. It is outfitted with long oars, outriggers to hold the oarlocks away from the boat, and sliding seats...

If the oars are used in pairs with one hand on each oar, it is called sculling

Sculling

Sculling generally refers to a method of using oars to propel watercraft in which the oar or oars touch the water on both the port and starboard sides of the craft, or over the stern...

, and the oars may also be called sculls. Sculled craft include:

Adirondack guideboat
Adirondack guideboat
Adirondack guideboats were built since the early 19th century and evolved from a hunting skiff to today's highly refined design, virtually unchanged since the late 19th century...
Banks dory
Banks dory
The Banks dory, also known as the Grand Banks dory, is the most common variation of the family of boats known as dories. They were used as traditional fishing boats from the 1850s on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. The Banks dory is a small, open, narrow, flat-bottomed and slab-sided boat with a...

, Gloucester dory
Gloucester dory
The Gloucester dory is a variant of the Banks dory, a type of narrow-bottomed, slab-sided boat, common in the North Eastern United States. It is characteristically smaller and lighter, with less overhang, both bow and stern, and less freeboard. It retains the Banks dory's slab sides...

, and McKenzie River dory
McKenzie River dory
The McKenzie dory or Rogue River dory also called by many a Drift Boat is an evolution of the open-water dory, converted for use in rivers. The design is characterized by a wide, flat bottom, flared sides, a narrow, flat bow, and a pointed stern. The sole identifying characteristic of the McKenzie...
Dinghy
Dinghy
A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed for use as a ship's boat by a larger vessel. It is a loanword from either Bengali or Urdu. The term can also refer to small racing yachts or recreational open sailing boats. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor,...
Scull, Single scull
Single scull
A single scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for a single person who propels the boat with two oars, one in each hand....

, Double scull
Double scull
A double scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two persons who propel the boat by sculling with two oars, one in each hand....

, Quad scull
Quad scull
A quad scull, or quadruple scull in full, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat by sculling with two oars, one in each hand....

, and Octuple scull
Octuple scull
An octuple scull is a racing shell or a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. The octuple is directed by a coxswain and propelled by eight rowers who move the boat by sculling with two oars, one in each hand...
Skiff
Skiff
The term skiff is used for a number of essentially unrelated styles of small boat. The word is related to ship and has a complicated etymology: "skiff" comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of...
Row boat
Whitehall Rowboat
Whitehall Rowboats are considered one of the most refined rowboats of the 19th century. The basic design is much older and of European ancestry. It strongly resembles a sailing ship's gig or a Thames river wherry used by watermen as a taxi service. They were first made in the U.S...

If the oars are used individually with both hands on a single oar, it is called sweep or sweep-oar rowing

Sweep (rowing)

Sweep or sweep-oar rowing is a type of rowing when a rower has one oar, usually held with both hands. As each rower has only one oar, the rowers have to be paired so that there is an oar on each side of the boat. This is in contrast to sculling when a rower has two oars, one in each hand. In the...

. In this case the rowers are usually paird so that there is an oar on each side of the boat. Sweep-oared craft include:

Coxless pair
Coxless pair
A Coxless pair is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars.The crew consists of a pair of rowers, each having one oar, one on the stroke side and one on the bow side...

, Coxed pair
Coxed pair
A coxed pair is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a coxswain....

, Coxless four
Coxless four
A coxless four is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars.The crew consists of four rowers, each having one oar. There are two rowers on the stroke side and two on the bow side...

, Coxed four
Coxed four
A coxed four is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a cox....

, and Eight
Eight (rowing)
An Eight is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for eight rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars, and is steered by a coxswain, or cox....
Galley, Dromon
Dromon
The dromon was a type of galley and the most important warship of the Byzantine navy from the 6th to 12th centuries AD...

, and Trireme
Trireme
A trireme was a type of galley, a Hellenistic-era warship that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans.The trireme derives its name from its three rows of oars on each side, manned with one man per oar...

If a single, stern-mounted oar is moved from side to side while changing the angle of the blade so as to generate forward thrust on both strokes, it is called single-oar sculling. Single-oar sculled craft include:

Gondola
Gondola
The gondola is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian Lagoon. For centuries gondolas were the chief means of transportation and most common watercraft within Venice. In modern times the iconic boats still have a role in public transport in...
Sampan
Sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat bottomed Chinese wooden boat from long. Some sampans include a small shelter on board, and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. Sampans are generally used for transportation in coastal areas or rivers, and are often used as traditional fishing boats...
Sandolo
Sandolo
The sandolo is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat designed for the generally shallow waters of the Venetian Lagoon. The plural is sandoli.A sandolo is of a much simpler build than a gondola, but has a pointed, decorated metal nose...

Paddled craft

Paddles are held with both hands and can have blades on one or both ends. Paddled craft include:

Canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...

, Outrigger canoe
Outrigger canoe
The outrigger canoe is a type of canoe featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull...

, Umiak
Umiak
The umiak, umialak, umiaq, umiac, oomiac or oomiak is a type of boat used by Eskimo people, both Yupik and Inuit, and was originally found in all coastal areas from Siberia to Greenland. First arising in Thule times, it has traditionally been used in summer to move people and possessions to...

, Waka
Waka (canoe)
Waka are Māori watercraft, usually canoes ranging in size from small, unornamented canoes used for fishing and river travel, to large decorated war canoes up to long...

, Pirogue
Pirogue
A pirogue is a small, flat-bottomed boat of a design associated particularly with the Cajuns of the Louisiana marsh. In West Africa they were used as traditional fishing boats. These boats are not usually intended for overnight travel but are light and small enough to be easily taken onto land...

, Shikara, Dragon boat
Dragon boat
A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft traditionally made, in the Pearl River delta region of southern China - Guangdong Province, of teak wood to various designs and sizes. In other parts of China different woods are used to build these traditional watercraft...

, and Dugout
Dugout (boat)
A dugout or dugout canoe is a boat made from a hollowed tree trunk. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. Monoxylon is Greek -- mono- + ξύλον xylon -- and is mostly used in classic Greek texts. In Germany they are called einbaum )...
Kayak
Kayak
A kayak is a small, relatively narrow, human-powered boat primarily designed to be manually propelled by means of a double blade paddle.The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler...

, Sea kayak
Sea kayak
A sea kayak or touring kayak is a kayak developed for the sport of paddling on open waters of lakes, bays, and the ocean. Sea kayaks are seaworthy small boats with a covered deck and the ability to incorporate a spraydeck...

, Flyak
Flyak
The Flyak is a hydrofoil adaptation to the conventional kayak. It uses twin hydrofoils designed to raise the hull out of the water to increase the speed. Speeds of up to 27.2 km/h can be achieved on calm water....

, and Baidarka
Baidarka
Baidarka is the Russian name used for Aleutian style sea kayak. The ancient Unangan name is Iqyax. The word has its origins from early Russian settlers in Alaska. Iqya-x builders who kept the tradition of building skin-on-skeleton boats alive in the 20th century include Sergie Sovoroff.A prominent...
Coracle
Coracle
The coracle is a small, lightweight boat of the sort traditionally used in Wales but also in parts of Western and South Western England, Ireland , and Scotland ; the word is also used of similar boats found in India, Vietnam, Iraq and Tibet...
Surfboard
Surfboard
A surfboard is an elongated platform used in the sport of surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding a breaking wave...

Poled craft

Poles are held with both hands and used to push against the bottom. Poled craft include:

Punt
Punt (boat)
A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole...
Raft
Raft
A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull...
Makoro
Makoro
A makoro is a type of canoe commonly used in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. It is propelled through the shallow waters of the delta by standing in the stern and pushing with a pole, in the same manner as punting....

Pedaled craft

Pedals are attached to a crank and propelled in circles, or to a treadle

Treadle

A treadle [from OE tredan = to tread] is a part of a machine which is operated by the foot to produce reciprocating or rotary motion in a machine such as a weaving loom or grinder...

and recipricated

Reciprocating motion

Reciprocating motion, also called reciprocation, is a repetitive up-and-down or back-and-forth motion. It is found in a wide range of mechanisms, including reciprocating engines and pumps. The two opposite motions that comprise a single reciprocation cycle are called strokes...

, with the feet. The collected power is then transferred to the water with a paddle wheel

Paddle wheel

A paddle wheel is a waterwheel in which a number of scoops are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several usages.* Very low lift water pumping, such as flooding paddy fields at no more than about height above the water source....

, flippers

Flipper (anatomy)

A flipper is a typically flat limb evolved for movement through water. Various creatures have evolved flippers, for example penguins , cetaceans A flipper is a typically flat limb evolved for movement through water. Various creatures have evolved flippers, for example penguins (also called...

or to the air or water with a propeller

Propeller

A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...

. Pedaled craft include:

Pedalo
Pedalo
A paddle boat or "pedalo" is a form of waterborne transport, primarily for recreational use, powered through the use of pedals....
Pedal kayak
Hydrocycle
Hydrocycle
A hydrocycle is bicycle-like watercraft. Power is collected from the rider via a crank with pedals, as on a bicycle, and delivered to the water or the air via a propeller. Seating may be upright or recumbent, and multiple riders may be accommodated in tandem or side-by-side...
Submarine
Omer (submarine)
Omer is the name of a series of human-powered submarines. The submarines were built by students of the École de technologie supérieure in Montreal, Quebec, for the International Submarine Races. , Omer teams hold the human-powered submarine world speed records for one-seater, two-seater, and...

Other

Other, less common methods of collecting human power to propel watercraft include:

Hand-operated cable ferry
Cable ferry
A cable ferry is guided and in many cases propelled across a river or other larger body of water by cables connected to both shores. They are also called chain ferries, floating bridges, or punts....
Hand-cranked submarine
Turtle (submarine)
The Turtle was the world's first submersible with a documented record of use in combat. It was built in Old Saybrook, Connecticut in 1775 by American Patriot David Bushnell as a means of attaching explosive charges to ships in a harbor...

and hand-cranked submarine
Nautilus (1800 submarine)
Nautilus, first tested in 1800, is often considered the first practical submarine, though preceded by Cornelius Drebbel's of 1620.-Background:...
Paddleboarding
Paddleboarding
Paddleboarding is a surface water sport in which the participant is propelled by a swimming motion usually on a long surfboard close to the shore. A derivative of paddleboarding is stand up paddle surfing.-History:...
Trampofoil, propelled by bouncing up and down
Float tube
Float tube
A float tube, also known as a belly boat or kick boat, is a flotation device which anglers use to fish from. They were originally doughnut-shaped boats with an underwater seat in the "hole", but modern designs include a V-shape with pontoons on either side and the seat raised above the water...

Oared craft

Paddled craft

Poled craft

Pedaled craft

Other

See also