Ocean Rider Drive Train Design

Don Magie is an ultra marathon cyclist from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Figure 1.  He has a goal of crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a boat that uses pedal power and setting the world record for fastest crossing of the Atlantic. Don’s plans include building the boat in 2010, and performing a trial length-wise crossing of Lake Ontario in the summer of 2011.  The Ocean crossing is planned for the spring of 2012, crossing from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada to the United Kingdom, or alternatively crossing from the Azores to the Caribbean.

While there are a number of commercially available pedal-powered boats, there are only a few designed specifically for ocean crossing and equipped with living quarters and navigation equipment.  Two existing craft are the WiTHiN boat by Greg Kolodziejzyk and a design by Mr. Kenichi Horie of Japan.

Don approached the University of Waterloo for help with his boat design, including the design of the power train connecting the pedals and propeller.

Figure 1 – Don Magie riding across the US on the PACTour Elite Tour