Hydrocycle
Bicycle-like watercraft
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.
Power is collected from the rider via a crank with pedals, as on a bicycle, and delivered to the water or the air via a propeller. Seating may be upright or recumbent, and multiple riders may be accommodated in tandem or side-by-side.
Buoyancy is provided by two or more pontoons or a single surfboard, and some have hydrofoils that can lift the flotation devices out of the water.
Brands include Seacycle, Hydrobike, Water Bike, Seahorse (Cross Trek), and itBike. Kits exist to temporarily convert an existing bicycle into a hydrocycle.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hydrocycle”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Water velocipede.jpg by Edward H Knight, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Man operating water tricycle, ca. 1900.jpg by Bain News Service, Public domain
- Hydrobike.jpg by father of Oktaeder, Public domain
- Seacycle.jpg by Theo Schmidt, CC BY 2.5
Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.
