I agree very strongly with the paragraph below. I suggested an aluminum kayak, and the only response was to point me to plans for concrete canoes. I like the idea of trying something new. I appreciated the concrete canoe tip, but it has been done already, and the whole purpose of the concrete canoe is an excercise in the seemingly impossible.

Unlike concrete, I think aluminum has potential for extremely lightweight boatbuilding. I have used it in aviation, and I know that aluminum is used in high performance sailboats sometimes. Aluminum is pleasant to work with, and doesn't have some of the hazards associated with high tech composites. I would like to see someone like George Roberts, who has a great deal of knowledge, especially in analytical solutions, look at the possibility of unusual materials.

I enjoy George's thought processes, especially when I don't agree completely. He has, in some cases, caused me to think from a different perspective.

For some people, the elegance of the project is in the care that went into planing and sanding the wood to a fine shape and finish befor the finish coats were ever applied. To others, the elegance is in the simplicity of design, ease of construction, and quickness with which a fine boat can be built. Neither one is wrong, nor better. In theory, one boat may paddle faster, or be more stable than another. That doesn't mean that that should be your favorite one.

If all I wanted was the best boat at the lowest cost with the least work, I'd go to a sporting goods store.

I have not yet built a kayak, and this BBS may be the closest I ever get, but I have vicariously bilt boats with many of you, whether you know it or not. Probably, you have all caused me to be stricken with a yearning (the bug) that will require me to build a boat. When I do, I'll be sure to share it with all of you.

> Once upon a time experts said that man would never fly. Then
> other experts said that man would never leave the confines of mother
> earth. More recently other experts said that organ transplants would
> always be rejected and therefore never save one human life.