Pedalo

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Water bike on Lake St. Clair (Michigan) Waterbike on Lake St. Clair (1963).jpg
Water bike on Lake St. Clair (Michigan)
Pedalo at the Stockholm Exhibition of 1930. Trampbat - Nordiska museet - NMA.0096869.jpg
Pedalo at the Stockholm Exhibition of 1930.
A paddle boat on Geneva Lake (Wisconsin). Pedalo IMG 2877.JPG
A paddle boat on Geneva Lake (Wisconsin).
Boats in Japan celebrating spring with a swan pedalo accidentally running into a row boat, 2022
Pedalos in Brazil (called pedalinhos) Pedalinho.JPG
Pedalos in Brazil (called pedalinhos)
Human-powered watercraft, aqua-cycle water trikes in the Pacific Ocean with Diamond Head, Hawaii in the background. Aqua-Cycle Water Trike.jpg
Human-powered watercraft, aqua-cycle water trikes in the Pacific Ocean with Diamond Head, Hawaii in the background.

A pedalo (British English), pedal boat (U.S. English), or paddle boat (U.S., Canadian, and Australian English) is a human-powered watercraft propelled by the action of pedals turning a paddle wheel.

Contents

Description

A pedalo is a human-powered watercraft propelled by the turning of a paddle wheel. The wheel is turned by people operating the pedals of the craft. The paddle wheel of a pedalo is a smaller version of that used by a paddle steamer.

Use

Pedalos, being particularly suited to calm waters, are often hired out for use on ponds and small lakes in urban parks, as well as in beaches when the weather allows.

Designs

The earliest record of a pedalo is perhaps Leonardo da Vinci's diagram of a craft driven by two pedals. [1] [2]

Typically, a two-seat pedalo has two sets of pedals side-by-side, designed to be used together. Some models, however, have three pedals on each side, to allow a person boating alone to pedal from a centrally seated position.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Propeller</span> Device that transmits rotational power into linear thrust on a fluid

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle</span> Mobile equipment that transports people, animals or cargo

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human-powered transport</span> Transport of goods and/or people only using human muscles

Human-powered transport is the transport of person(s) and/or goods (freight) using human muscle power. Unlike animal-powered transport, human-powered transport has existed since time immemorial in the form of walking, running and swimming, as well as small vehicles such as litters, rickshaws, wheelchairs and wheelbarrows. Modern technology has allowed mechanical advantage devices and machines to enhance human-power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tandem bicycle</span> Type of bicycle

A tandem bicycle or twin is a form of bicycle designed to be ridden by more than one person. The term tandem refers to the seating arrangement, not the number of riders. Patents related to tandem bicycles date from the mid 1880s. Tandems can reach higher speeds than the same riders on single bicycles, and tandem bicycle racing exists. As with bicycles for single riders, there are many variations that have been developed over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddle</span> Tool for paddling boats or mixing ingredients

A paddle is a handheld tool with an elongated handle and a flat, widened distal end, used as a lever to apply force onto the bladed end. It most commonly describes a completely handheld tool used to propel a human-powered watercraft by pushing water in a direction opposite to the direction of travel. It is different to an oar in that the latter is attached to the watercraft via a fulcrum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steamboat</span> Smaller than a steamship; boat in which the primary method of marine propulsion is steam power

A steamboat is a boat that is propelled primarily by steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S or PS ; however, these designations are most often used for steamships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watercraft</span> Water-borne conveyance

A watercraft or waterborne vessel is any vehicle designed for travel across or through water bodies, such as a boat, ship, hovercraft, submersible or submarine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddle steamer</span> Steam-powered vessel propelled by paddle wheels

A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the bicycle</span>

Vehicles that have two wheels and require balancing by the rider date back to the early 19th century. The first means of transport making use of two wheels arranged consecutively, and thus the archetype of the bicycle, was the German draisine dating back to 1817. The term bicycle was coined in France in the 1860s, and the descriptive title "penny farthing", used to describe an "ordinary bicycle", is a 19th-century term.

Pedal boat may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bumper boats</span> Amusement park boat ride

Bumper boats are an amusement park ride that uses inner tube shaped watercraft that can be steered by the rider. Some are driven by electric motors, some by gasoline engines, and some require the rider to propel the craft by pedaling. Most are equipped with water guns for duels with other riders. Bumper boat attractions can commonly be found in places such as amusement parks, carnivals, fairs, family fun centers, and theme parks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine propulsion</span> Systems for generating thrust for ships and boats on water

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Paddle boat may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddling</span> Manually propelling a boat using a paddle

Paddling, in regard to waterborne transport, is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using at least one hand-held paddle. The paddle, which consists of one or two blades joined to a shaft, is also used to steer the vessel via generating a difference in propulsion between the two sides of the watercraft. The paddle is not connected to the boat, unlike in rowing where the oar is attached to the boat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddle wheel</span> Form of waterwheel or impeller

A paddle wheel is a form of waterwheel or impeller in which a number of paddles are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several uses, of which some are:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydrocycle</span>

A hydrocycle is a bicycle-like watercraft. The concept was known in the 1870s as a water velocipede and the name was in use by the late 1890s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human-powered watercraft</span>

Human-powered watercraft are watercraft propelled only by human power, instead of being propelled by wind power or an engine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonardo's self-propelled cart</span>

Leonardo's self-propelled cart is an invention designed by Leonardo da Vinci, considered the ancestor of the modern automobile.

References

  1. Dumpleton, Bernard (2002). Story of the Paddle Steamer. Intellect Books. ISBN   978-1-84150-801-6.
  2. "Paddle Boat". Leonardo da Vinci Exhibit: the Models. Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago). 2006. Archived from the original on 13 November 2015. Retrieved 17 September 2015.