Building a Sail Rig for an Inflatable

Advice
#1

Hello y’all -



I have an old inflatable kayak and an abundance of pvc, aluminum, and some old sails…and I’d like to build a little sail rig for her.



I was thinking of building a small frame to sit around and forward of the cockpit, to which the mast would be mounted. I realize that kayaks are not sailing vessels so, would I be better off sticking with a downwind rig?



The specs on the inflatable kayak are:

Length: 8’4”

Width: 34”

Weight: 19 lbs (8.6 kg)

MaxWt.: 250 lbs (113.4 kg)



Any ideas?

#2

2003 Michigan Challenge…
Here’s a link to a cool story about Matt Layden using a Stearns inflatable kayak he modified with sail to compete in Watertribe’s 2003 Michigan Challenge. I think he came in second place.



http://www.watertribe.com/Magazine/Y2003/M08/MattLayden.aspx