Blogging takes a lot – creating awesome content , designing , moderating comments , commenting on other blogs, guest posting , … And social media is just a part of it. There are over 200 social sites (at least according to Wikipedia ), but does this…
Author Archives: admin
Bay Sea Scouts STEM Project A Simple Electric Motor
This past meeting the Sea Scouts were challenged to build an electric motor using a length of copper wire, a magnet and a AA battery. Very simple but it did demonstrate the electro-magnetic forces present to produce movement of the wire (armature).
It really worked, the trick was balancing the CU wire on the positive terminal of the battery.
Check out the Bay Sea Scout Instagram page to see the motor in action. Please become a follower to while you are there. We have a lot more up our sleeve.
Transition into spring.
As the ice on Lake Erie melts and is broken up by spring storms we are transitioning back into our STEM adventure of exploring electricity and wind turbines at our regular Tuesday meetings.
http://www.tumblr.com/blog/bayseascouts This link will take you to a short video of the wave action breaking up the ice. You can imagine how powerful the waves are.
Bay Sea Scouts See Signs of Spring.
Spring officially started a couple of days ago but in Bay Village we know it is on the way because; the turkey vultures have arrived. A whole “kettle” of them fly up and down the shoreline searching for carrion.
The first ore boat of the 2014 shipping season has been sited off the shores of Bay Village. With the Lake Erie over 95% covered in ice it has been a difficult season for the shipping industry. A busy one for the USCG ice breakers.
Sea Scout Iceboating Plans are a Real Learning Experience.
The one thing we have leaned this winter is that to go iceboating conditions have to be just right. The ice is the number governing factor, it cannot be too rough.
A nice smooth clear ice that is 8 inches thick is ideal for an iceboat and to reach speeds of 50-60 MPH you need a good breeze of 10+ MPH.
You may have good ice and a nice breeze but then you need the space too. Is does not take long to travel a good distance at 40-50 MPH.
So this year while it has been bitterly cold we have learned that iceboating takes the right conditions and a lot of patience.
Freezing Temperatures Thickens Lake Erie Ice for Sea Scouts DN Boat.
Link
It’s been a while since this blog was updated, so here goes, a quick synopsis.
The scouts spent the fall renovating an old Detroit News (DN) iceboat and had it ready to go before it really became cold.
Then the really cold weather came but with it the snow. The lakes and bays froze but were covered in snow mounds which made it impossible to iceboat. For more information:
http://westlakebayvillageobserver.com/read/2014/01/07/hoping-for-subzero-temperatures
Sea Scouts looking for freezing temperatures.
That’s right, believe it or not that’s what we are all excited about. Freezing temperatures mean that ice is forming on the ponds and lakes. Can sailing ice boats be far off?
Sea Scouts work to resharpen DN Ice Boat Runners
Rusted screws and broken heads made for hard work as the steel runner blades were removed from their oak bases. The runners are a critical component of the Sea Scout DN 1228 recently purchased by Sea Scout Ship Intrepid (41).
Sea Scouts prepare their DN Ice Boat for winter.
Sea Scout Nate has stripped the hardware off DN 1228 and has sanded the wooden hull. Nate is planning to put a protective layer of fiberglass over the hull using the West Marine West System epoxy resin and hardener.
DN Ice Boat purchased by Sea Scout Ship 41
The Bay Village Sea Scouts latest move was to purchase a DN Ice Boat through Craig’s List. It will need some work to make it ready for the ice but the scouts are excited and willing to put forth the effort needed. We are all looking forward to sailing on the ice at Chippewa Lake this winter. Maybe we can go to BSA Greater Cleveland Council Boy Scout camp to sail?