MIT are using Pungo 100s, pungo 120s, pungo 140s, pungo Classics, pamlico 100s, pamlico 120s, and Pamlico 140s and making them into robotic Marine Rescue vehicles. Most of their fleet are pungo 100s, but I saw a pamlico 120 in a picture. I saw this in Canoe&kayak, and I came online to do reaserch. I just Freaked out when I think that Pamlico 140s will be used. I think almost all Entry Toruing kayaks from WS are going to be in the fleet. These touring kayaks will be outfitted with computers costing up to 10,000 dollars. These kayaks are remote controlled from land, and can sense oil spells in the water, and are made to go into dangerous locations like hurricane areas and stuff.
Yes…and no… Yes, this does look like what P_140 was referencing, but no, it’s not, as P_140 stated, to be used as a “marine rescue vehicle”, nor is it meant to operate in anything more lively than Sea State 3 conditions (no “hurricanes and stuff” duty). It is also not for detecting oil spills (or even oil “spells”, for that matter!).
It is really just a data relay station for relaying data in real time from an underwater ocean survey vessel below it. I’m quite sure that in “hurricanes and stuff” conditions, it would be rendered quite useless (just as many larger and even more seaworthy vessels might be…only sooner).
So far, it hasn’t been tested in real Sea State 3 conditions, so they tried to simulate it on the Charles River with a small boat wake (not a very convincing simulation, methinks). Since Sea State 3 is still relatively mild though, this boat (Pungo 120) seems to have been chosen mostly for its initial stability and its large, easy access cockpit for the data relay equipment.
Varying opinions are always OK. Every now and then, razzing a 14yr old kid (who is passionate about his yak) can be fun if it doesn’t get out too far of hand.
What isn’t OK is the use of profanty used in the above threads by our Northern California and Vancouver posters. A little light “off-color” humor now and then is OK but the crude language used was totally unnecessary and can do nothing but ruin a good site such a P-Net.
I have no idea whether or not you are trolls trying to mess up a good site or if you just have little or no class. One thing is for sure…an apology for your crude behavior is in order to young Mr. P-140 and to every other user of this site.
I’m with you on that one! I certainly wouldn’t mind floating around on the sea, listening on my hydrophone to the survey vessel below, then relaying what I’ve heard back to the research ship over a megaphone.
Hmmm…but would they let me paddle something other than a pungo 120?
That was a cheap shot I took above. It was intended as humor of course, though I forgot to include a ;-).
I don't feel my boat would actually sink. But then, I do keep a sponge on board...mostly to keep the water out of the cockpit that seeps down through the spray skirt tunnel. Dang those defective spray skirts! Maybe a bead of 5200 to seal it around my belly. (glad when I get my drysuit with an overskirt)
