In this year's R2AK, Team “Fix Oder Nix” raced in a “stretched” (24'6" LOA, rather than 19') Sailing RowCruiser. Their extension included a second smaller cabin for an additional crew member in the aft end of the boat. Links for the curious: blog, Facebook, R2AK profile, Die Yacht article, Soundings article.
I'm about to get started on a SRC build, and while I don't have a whole lot of interest in a second cabin, I can't help but feel intrigued by the idea of a slightly stretched version of the SRC. Adding just one or two more feet in length at widest part of the hull, and then moving the aft storage compartment bulkhead forward a bit, you might be able to fit a full-sized bicycle with 700c wheels. Plus, the waterline length would be increased (good?), and the rower's position would be brought a little bit closer to center (also good?). The only drawback I can think of is the additional weight, which can't be much.
I'm very curious about other people's thoughts on this modification.
Hi Jay - There would be some benefits to stretching the RowCruiser, and Fix Oder Nix is a great example of a nicely-done stretch job. Overall, it comes down to what your specific needs are. Since boat building is all about compromise, will the benefits outweigh the cons. The cons are more weight, slower speed while rowing (the extra waterline lenght will only come into benefit with the higher horsepower of sailing), a longer more expensive trailer required, a little tougher to maneuver and park on land, and more challenging for one or two people to drag above the high tide line when camping ashore. The biggest con is it requires a fair bit of redesign and carries the risk of a fundamental design flaw (affecting either performance, construction or strenght).
On the other hand, you may go a little faster under sail (you would need to increase the size of the rig, though, and you would have more storage space. It can also be fun redesigning a boat to fit your specific needs. As far as being able to fit in a bicycle - I think you may be able to do that with the current design if you store it in the main cabin. You can squeeze a small bicycle into the Expedition, and the storage area of the RowCruiser is much greater (and the entrance is very large. You would need to put it into the cockpit at night if you wanted to sleep in the cabin.
I think stretching the RowCruiser to allow two people to row/sleep seems like a good idea. I'm not sure if doing it to increase your cargo capacity would really be worth it. It's already the truck of all rowboats:-)
The pic above is the current version of the RowCruiser getting close to full cargo capacity with two queen sized beds, four kitchen chairs, a solid fir table, a chainsaw, assorted tools and assorted construction supplies. I rowed this two nautical miles across Stuart channel at about 3.5 knots.
Colin, thanks for the informative reply as always. And that pic! It's amazing what the boat can handle for its size.
@Colin Angus That image made me chuckle...🤣
