BREWERPAUL wrote:
We were in Cooperstown this past weekend, where a big paddling regatta was
being held. We saw a LOT of cars with the same type of canoe on top: straight,
flat bow and stern, with a peculiar diamond shaped cross section at the middle.
Most of them had a fitted cloth cover on them.
What kind of canoe is this, and what is the special attraction of this
apparently popular boat?

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These are marathon solo racing boats. The rule
(http://www.uscanoe.com/2002canoespec.html) reads that width of the boat
has to be at least 14.375% of the length at the 4" waterline. That
works out to 32" wide for 18'6" (max length). To minimize the wetted
surface and prismatic coefficient, the boat is sharp pointed, narrow,
and flares suddenly. Gene Jensen, who probably originated the species,
tried a number of variations with sharply flaring wings, some with sort
of a bubble back, trying to hit the best combination of speed, ability
to turn bouys, ride wakes, and handle deep and shallow water. A number
of variations exist, with variations on the theme from a number of
different builders, but most of them still have the unique 'diamond
profile. Typically, the boats are made of kevlar, wood strip, or carbon
fiber and weigh in the 20-30lb range.
One other point - the cloth covers are travelling covers to protect the
boats from bugs, hail, and mostly sunburn. Composites will break down
relatively quickly if they spend their lives sitting out in the sun, and
most racing boats live a fair portion of the time on top of cars from
March to October.

Marsh Jones
Minnesota