How does an electric 1kW outboard motor behave behind a water scouting Lelievlet?
After a presentation about electric sailing at the first skipper's evening of the Sailing Corso 2023, we started talking to a few water scouts from Souting Wesselgroep from Vlaardingen . This was a celebration of recognition. I was a member of the water scouts from the age of 10 to the age of 22. It was thanks to water scouting that I ever started sailing.
The water scouts were extremely interested, perhaps the most interested of all those present, in the possibilities of electric sailing. It resulted in the best conversations of the evening. From anecdotes about sailing on De Kaag and scouting Boterhuiseiland to the genuine question of how such a steel, somewhat clumsy, scouting Lelievlet would sail with a modest electric motor like the ePropulsion Spirit 1.0 Plus .
Time for a practical test
We decided to test this as soon as possible and Saturday April 1 was the day. It was cold, it rained, the wind blew hard, it was extremely muddy and dirty; the perfect conditions for a day out with the scouts.
The Lelievletten of the Scouting Wesselgroep have been slightly modified. On the port side at the rear, the transom has been lowered a few centimeters so that an outboard motor can be mounted without an engine support. This made mounting the ePropulsion Spirit 1.0 Plus even easier. We would, however, like to advise scouts to purchase a long tail. The bobtail we had with us did fine, but still with some cavitation. A long tail would walk even better.
Immediately out of the box with three adults and three children on board, it was noticeable that this plump steel bathtub (that's what we used to call them: “Be wiser, we are made of iron”) shot off like a rocket. the torque of the electric motor came into its own in this situation. The acceleration and the ability to make an emergency stop were particularly impressive. This exceeded my expectations and those of scouts. I had never seen a Lelievlet sail like that before.
By the way, I was still on the shore and Nils was sailing with the scouts. I stayed behind to talk to the board about the possibilities of our motorcycles for this scouting group.
Hull speed
After fifteen minutes Nils came back and we also got on board. The sea explorers were very enthusiastic and loved being able to sail with these super modern and innovative engines themselves. With Navionics on the phone we discovered that the boat (now with 7 men on board, mostly too heavy) was going just under 3 knots at 300 watts and a strong headwind. What was special was that we had a tailwind and with 1000W we did not exceed 3.4 knots or 6.30 km/h. I didn't even know a Lelievlet could sail that fast, but apparently 300 Watts was enough to bring a 700kg steel boat with 7 people on board to hull speed. All the extra power mainly produced waves, but no speed.
Team leader Erik Scheurkogel was very satisfied with this first test with electric sailing with a Lelievlet.
Conclusion
With a 1276Wh battery, the ePropulsion Spirit 1.0 Plus able to move an overloaded Lelievlet at hull speed for 4 hours and 15 minutes; longer than an average turnout. Even we never expected that. This engine is made for a Lelievlet and this should actually become standard equipment for water scouts. Clean, quiet, safe, maintenance-free, can withstand a knock and sets a good example for the rest of water sports in the Netherlands.
Looking back at my own time in scouting, it was mainly rowing and prying, but later also screaming and leaking two-stroke engines. Fortunately, this will no longer be necessary in 2023.
