Dynamics of the racing iceboat
design . analysis . optimization . tuning . race strategy . rules . ice . clubs . venues
Background:
- site focuses on the technical and design issues of the racing iceboat
- description and tag lines above say it all!
- over the years I've written various computer programs that simulate steady state iceboat racing performance through computer analysis
- this blog is a mechanism for publishing the basics of the computer programs
- the algorithms are now being modified include many dynamic operations
- hopefully interested parties can adapt the information for their own use
Caveat Number 1:
- the premier iceboating website is: Iceboat.org
- Deb Whitehorse is the webmaster for the Four Lakes Ice Yacht Club located in Madison, WI
- hands down, there is no more popular, nor continuously updated, nor more informative iceboating site anywhere
- she is dedicated to her craft, and travels the whole world to tell the fascinating tale of iceboating
- go there, right now, to explore current happenings and all aspects of these fast machines
- IceboatDynamics has a very narrow technical focus and will never compete with the "big daddy" of iceboat sites!
Caveat Number 2:
- the ideas or thought processes here only come from within, and are not a product of the author's meager racing results
- talking the talk - walking the talk
- I've always been a person to talk the talk, but am not good at walking the talk -- I'm just too lazy and talk is cheap anyways
- others such as Ron Sherry do it all: teaching, preparation, and racing results!
Caveat Number 3:
- the author has only raced Renegades
- discussion on this site is developed from the perspective of a Renegade skipper, however the mathematical model works for any of the other classes
- thoughts and ideas here should not be construed as a Renegade way of things
- for example; anyone comparing the wing aspects of a DN vs. a Renegade quickly realizes that the DN is far more dynamic
- the model must truly reflect such differences
Caveat Number 4:
- the stern steer has initially been left out of most modeling and discussion on the site
- the dynamics and torques are different than a front steer design and the model needs to modified accordingly
- as the site becomes more mature, I'll address the stern steer boat, and give it its due
Posting style:
- writing style is non punctuated and non capitalized outlining; which allows easy re-visioning as the content evolves
- many images are utilized in each post to emphasize the topic
- often the images are too broad, or too narrow, however in total they make the site more visually appealing in an muddy complex of technical jargon
Thought Experiments:
- a thought experiment involves thinking about a hypothetical situation which has a tangential relationship to iceboating
- by thinking about the situation you gain valuable insight into a technical matter
- the link below goes through a typical thought experiment which examines the effect of runner length on lateral resistance
- thought experiment on lateral resistance vs. runner length
Work in progress:
- this site is very definitely a work in progress
- it will evolve in a progressive manner as time permits
- many posts are only partial completed and in outline form
- this method of posting allows the details to be filled in later
- time span for adding a reasonable amount of content is at least a year
Computer model vs. 2d or 3d computer design:
- the computer model presented in this site predicts iceboat performance given initial conditions and static or dynamic operations
- it is not a computer design program which tells how to construct a physical component: such as runners, or fuselage
- computer design programs would be
- Solid Works
- Solid Edge
- AutoCad and AutoCad Inventor
Errata:
- surely there are areas or thoughts here that are completely wrong
- I will man up to to stuff that does not pass muster
- please let me know via the email address below, I'll correct accordingly
Smart phones and mobile devices:
- the template for the web site is designed around a full size computer screen
- it should work the smaller screens of mobile devices, but the scrolling may be intolerable
- Blogspot is operated by Google and has a simple, yet effective HTML structure
- address includes ".blogspot." in the URL
- various restrictions prevent infections
- reliably hosted by Google
- Green Lake Ice Yacht Club uses BlogSpot as their host
- Google "IceboatDynamics", or just "iceboat" and "dynamics" to find site
Contact:
- email: archcall (at) gmail (dot) com
- email to the above address with errata, or other things you would like discussed
- Thanks and best regards...Archie Call
