EP0026638A1

EP0026638A1 - Stabilizer apparatus for use with a sailboard

Info

Publication number: EP0026638A1
Application number: EP80303356A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Anthony Edward Bambridge
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1979-09-27
Filing date: 1980-09-24
Publication date: 1981-04-08
Also published as: DK404480A; GB2058679A; ZA805763B; AU6260480A; ES260833Y; ES260833U

Abstract

Stabilizer apparatus comprising a pair of floats (7,8) carried by support means (10) and attachment means (14) for releasably securing said support means to a sailing surfboard with which the apparatus is to be used with said floats located on each side of the hull (1).

Description

This invention relates to stabilizer apparatus for use with a sailing surfboard.
Sailing surfboards comprise a surfboard hull on which is mounted a mast carrying a sail. The mast is usually attached to the hull by a universal joint and the arrangement is such that the user stands on the hull and operates the sail by holding a boom to which the sail is connected. Control of the craft is obtained by tilting the mast fore and aft and controlling the angle of the sail. Craft of this type are well-known in themselves and will not therefore be described further apart from adding that there are many variations on the basic theme.
The difficulty with all these craft is for beginners to initially stand on the board whilst attempting to sail it. One of the chief difficulties is that of standing on the board and lifting the sail out of the water. Whilst attempting this beginners frequently fall off the board or the board turns over.
The present invention is intended to provide removable stabilizer apparatus which can be attached to a board whilst a beginner is learing to sail the craft and which can be subsequently removed when the user has became competant.
According to the present invention a stabilizer apparatus comprises a pair of floats carried by support means and attachment means for releasably securing said support means to a sailing surfboard with which the apparatus is to be used with said floats located on each side of the hull thereof.
Thus, the floats act to effectively broaden the beam of the board to provide more stability, and in a preferred embodiment the floats are carried in spaced apart relationship by the support means.
Thus, the distance between said floats can be greater than the beam of the surfboard with which they are to be used so that they are not in contact therewith and may therefore act as outriggers to considerably broaden the beam and effectively provide a tri-maran.
The support means can be provided in any convenient way and in one preferred construction comprises one or more cross beams which carry the attachment means.
These attachment means can take many forms and could be in the form of clips, clamps or, as in a preferred arrangement by adjustable straps which pass beneath the hull of a surfboard with which the apparatus is to be used to effectively clamp the support means to the upper surface thereof.
The floats themselves can be of any convenient shape and construction and could be made from hollow hulls made, for example, fran metal, a plastics material or wood, but are preferably made in the form of inflatable bags so that when the apparatus is dismantled from the board it can be easily stored.
The invention also includes a sailing surfboard incorporating stabilizer apparatus as set forth above.
The invention can be performed in many ways but one embodiment will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :-

Figure 1 is a side view of a sailing surfboard provided with stabilizer apparatus according to the invention;
Figure 2 is a front view of the board and apparatus as shown in Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a plan view of the same board and apparatus; and,
Figure 4 is a plan view showing one float of a construction using a single cross-beam.

As shown in the drawings the sailing surfboard with which the device is to be used comprises a surfboard hull 1 on which is mounted a mast 2 which is connected to the hull 1 by means of a universal joint 3. The mast 2 carries a sail 4 and a boom 5. In the arrangement shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 only parts of the mast, sail and boom are shown and in Figure 3 they have been removed. As sailing surfboards of this type are so well-known in themselves the rig will not be described further.
In Figures 1 and 2 the level of the water on which the surfboard 1 is floating is indicated by reference numeral 6. As will be seen from the Figures the hull 1 floats almost on the surface of the water and if the mast 2 is allowed to fall over the side it will be appreciated that a person standing on the board has difficulty in maintaining balance and keeping the board flat whilst bending over to lift the mast 2 and sail 4 prior to holding the boom 5 to control the sail 4 and sail the board. In order to assist beginners the stabilizer apparatus according to the present invention is shown attached to the board. This apparatus comprises a pair of spaced apart inflatable floats 7 and 8. These floats are suitably shaped to pass through the water and have a tapered bow profile indicated by reference numeral 9. In section they are circular. The floats 7 and 8 are carried on a pair of cross-beams 10 and 11 to which they are secured by pockets 12 into which the cross-beams fit and are secured. As will be seen from Figure 2 the cross-beams have a cranked shape so that when the lower surface of each cross beam rests against the upper surface of the hull 1 the floats 7 and 8 are approximately on the water surface 6. The cross-beams are secured to the hull by adjustable straps 14, as shown in Figure 2, the ends of the straps being secured by loops, not shown, to the cross-beams 10 and 11.
It will be appreciated that there are many ways of securing the cross-beams in position and indeed of providing the support means for the floats. In the arrangement shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3 two cross-beams are provided but if desired only one beam would surfice provided the floats were given sufficient directional stability on its ends, and Figure 4 shows such a construction. In Figure 4 the float 15 is inflatable the valve being indicated by reference numeral 16. A single cross beam 17 is provided and two transversely spaced apart hoops 18 and 19 are carried on plastics materal patches 20, 21 which are welded to the float material. The beam 17 is a tight push fit in the hoops which is sufficient to hold the float in place and provide directional stability.
As will be seen fran Figure 3 the distance between the floats is sufficient to ensure that they are well spaced away from the hull 1 to provide the necessary stability and in fact, act as outriggers.
When the beginner has become sufficiently competant to sail the board and becomes familiar with picking the mast out of the water the stabilizer apparatus can be removed.
In the arrangements described above the cross-beams 10, 11 and 17 are made from aluminium tubing, the inflatable floats are made from rubber neoprene or a plastics material for example polyvynilchloride or polythene and the straps 14 are made from a rubber or canvas material, or a similar material, for example, a synthetic plastics material webbing.
Sailing surfboard of the type referred to above are very easily carried on motor vehicles and stored because they occupy such little space. Similarly the stabilizer apparatus as described above can be easily dismantled by removing the straps 14, dismantling the cross-beams or beam from the floats and deflating the floats. Thus storage spaced required is kept to a minimum.
According to another construction, not shown in the drawings, the hull 1 of the sailing surfboard is provided with clamps or vertically projecting pins onto which stabilizer apparatus according to the invention can be clamped thus obviating the strap means described above.

Claims

1. Stabilizer apparatus comprising a pair of floats carried by support means and attachment means for releasably securing said support means to a sailing surfboard with which the apparatus is to be used with said floats located on each side of the hull .

2. Stabilizer apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said floats are carried in spaced apart relationship by said support means.

3. Stabilizer apparatus as claimed in claim 2 in which the distance between said floats is greater than the beam of the surfboard with which they are to be used so that they are not in contact therewith.

4. Stabilizer apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said support means is provided by one or more cross-beams which carry the attachment means.

5. Stabilizer apparatus as claimed in claims 1 to 4 in which said attachment means are provided by adjustable straps which pass beneath the hull of the surfboard with which apparatus is to be used.

6. Stabilizer apparatus as claimed in claims 1 to 5 in which said floats are provided by adjustable bags.

7. Stabilizer apparatus substantially as described herein with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

8. A sailing surfboard incorporating a stabilizer apparatus as set forth in any one of the preceeding claims.

9. A sailing surfboard incorporating stabilizer apparatus substantially as described herein with reference to and as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3 and Figure 4 of the accompnying drawings.