A lot of motorcycle riders like water sports along with motorcycling and warm weather can bring up a tough question, should I go riding or out on my boat? Well, James Garlitz had the same problem and decided to do something about it, he put together a waterbike. Starting with a 1985 Yamaha Virago, he built three aluminum floats filled with urethane foam. He mounted a 9.9hp Nissan outboard motor for power and added some hydrofoils for lift. At only around 5 mph the whole setup rises a bit for a smooth and quiet ride.
Popular Mechanics features this waterbike in their 2007 DIY Rally and you can see it in the July issue. There’s a video on their web site and it looks really, really neat. So if you’ve been wondering what to do with that old bike in the garage with a blown engine, you have your answer.
Link: Popular Mechanics
{ 4 comments… add yours below ... }
Okay, kind of goofy, but puts a smile on my face. You gotta respect guys James Garlitz!
Trey
This would be way cooler if he’d powered it with the motorcycle’s engine.
–mark
Jim is my dad. Future waterbikes will try utilizing a motorcycle engine.
The Waterbike actually reaches speeds around 35mph. It becomes foil-borne at around 5-7mph.
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