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Pedaling Underwater

Pedaling Underwater

A new ocean toy was launched at the recent Nauticales boat show in La Ciotat on the French Mediterranean. The pedal-powered Seabike water scooter consists of a shaft with handles at one end and a twin-bladed propeller at the other. The pedals are just forward of the propeller.

Prone in the water, the rider grasps the handles at hip level and straddles the shaft. The propeller rotates nearly four times as fast as the pedals, pushing the rider at a meter per second at cruising speed. Top speed is claimed to be over twice as fast—eight kilometers an hour.

Propulsion is more efficient than with fins because the leg muscles are used in place of the dorsals and abdominals. Seabike weighs 3.5 kilos and comes disassembled in a small bag. Assembly requires no tools and takes less than a minute. The telescopic shaft adjusts to different user heights.

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