Because electric vehicles are all the rage these days, a group of students and staff at Princeton recently set a new speed record for an all-electric boat, hitting 114.20 MPH in ‘Big Bird’, which definitely looks more like a tiger than a big bird. They should have painted it like a duck.
The boat weighs 975 pounds and is powered by a 400-volt battery pack, generating more than 200 horsepower from its electric motor. The record-breaking attempt took place on Lake Townsend near Greensboro, North Carolina, with the boat piloted by John Peeters. John is “a 60-time world and national record-holder.” Admittedly, it’s probably smart they went with him instead of me because I would have steered that thing right at the nearest ski jump to see how much air I could get.
Student and Team Big Bird member Edric Zhang says that electric boat racing is a quickly emerging sport, and there will be numerous boats capable of 100+ MPH by the end of next year. That’s cool. At least if you’re into electric boat racing. I’m more of a rubber duck race guy myself, but I like to keep things leisurely.
[via TechEBlog]
