Other Movies - Trampofoil Video

Trampofoil Demo: A rider sets the Trampofoil in the water, pushes off, then hops up and down. The main element of the Trampofoil is a large hydrofoil (seen just under the rider). This hydrofoil propels the craft forward and supports the riders weight (through flapping-wing propulsion) during down-strokes. A levered hydrofoil and skimmer at the front help provide flapping, as well as fore-aft balance and steering. Lateral balance is achieved by moving one's center of gravity side-to-side (the apparently unstable roll dynamics are quite slow). Getting started is quite difficult (as many Dynamic Walking conference attendees can attest) and riding it steadily is best equated to continually hopping up stairs. This may help explain why the Trampofoil is no longer commercially available. You can find more about the Trampofoil here. Rider is Steve Collins. Video by Mieke Ruina.