In Central Russia, DIY Motorized Propellers Ski You!
- By Erik Malinowski
- February 24, 2011 |
- 7:00 am |
- Categories: Equipment, hacking
Dissatisfied with merely walking around his hometown of Dzerzhinsk, Russia, Sergei Khvalin decided to harness his inner DIY geek and rig up his own mode of transport: motorized, propeller-powered skis.
Building off of an old lawnmower motor, some spare paraglider parts and his own innate know-how, Khvalin fashioned together his own monstrous, back-mounted, propeller-based propulsion system that he uses to commute to work every morning. The entire apparatus weighs around 34 pounds, so it’s not for anyone with chronic back issues, for sure.
So now, instead of hoofing it through the freezing snow, Khvalin can slap on his skis and shush around town with an extra 25 mph of speed, thanks to the power of his 200-cc [12-cubic-inch] engine.
“It’s a new mode of transport,” Khvalin says. “Whoever does downhill skiing should understand this.”
Ah, so simple. But will it get you through the next Snowpocalypse? Would love to Kickstarter up a few hundred of these babies and find out.
Erik is the editor of Playbook, Wired.com's sports blog. He's also the managing editor of Longshot and a contributor to Pop-Up Magazine.Follow @erikmal and @wiredplaybook on Twitter.
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