Folding Kayaks Forum

Paul: I think it would take me years to recover psychologically from a major roll like that and I'd be behaving like a sissy any time I got near to any similar circumstances.

Apparently Erik is a larger legend than I even first imagined. In the Wiki story I linked he has apparently been immortalized in James Bond books in which he is teaching James Bond how to drive



For SAAB trivia, I was completely unaware that Saabs had made it into any James Bond books. I suppose it makes sense, since SAAB invented the ejection seat

Now if we could just get Bond to use a folding kayak, -but then I suppose it would need to self assemble at the touch of a button

-Andreas

That's him with the sunglasses in the front seat of the second kayak off the sub. He's on a secret mission in Chile this week. The rest of the guys are his doubles.




Tattoo and his minions will do the assembling.

Nice looking Grand Raids.

Paul,

Congratulations on your second birthday!

You are extremely lucky! Walking away from a rollover can be considered a true miracle. I have an unfortune of experiencing one about 15 years ago, and it had forever changed my driving style and how I choose and maintain my vehicles.

Dmitry.

I might say!

First, the old-fashioned wood-framed folding kayaks. Then, the prolonged discussion about TinTin. Now, Karlson-On-the_Roof!

I am really beginning to feel warm and at home!

What is it about these boats?

Dmitry.

Paul: where did you find that great picture?

_________________
Chris T.
~'91 Klepper A2 w/ BSD schooner rig.
'64 Klepper Passat/Tradewind and T12 restoration projects.
Non-folding: Early '90s Old Town Canoe.
Previously owned '04 Pakboat Puffin II and '05 Swift (prototype), as well as an '84 Hobie 16.

Hi Chris,
Check out: http://www.faltboot.de

I always wondered what that hypalon patch on the front deck of the Grand Raids was for. It enables an anchor to be carried w/o harming the deck.

Paul, that is truly a great photo! -Thank you, I've added it to my collection! Its properties tell me it originated from http://www.armada.cl , the Chilean Navy's official website. I went there to see if there were any other cool pics.
Too bad we can't find the Australian's Amphibian MK3 Commandos on manuveres!

These guys are hard core! Snow falling, etc. Look at the size of those anchors! And the flag, -sort of makes the flag I have on my boat look itty bitty! What do you suppose those round disks on the starboard bow are? They remind me of the filling port on my Camelback, -are they hatches?




Glad you feel at home. If you start kayaking on your apartment roof (or 4x4), we'll call you Dmitry-on-the-roof

Actually this course of events where we discuss things besides kayaks is perfectly normal to me, -we can't spend all of our time on the water. Folding kayaks is our common thread; the reason we're here. It's bound to happen that we'll casually mention other parts of our lives. These are called icebreakers (no connection to the previously mentioned 007 book). By establishing more common threads, we become closer friends. The fact that a posting about 4x4's has become one of the most popular threads on this forum just proves the point.

What is it about these boats? I suppose if you're eccentric enough to try a folding boat in the first place, you're probably got some other eccentric tastes! -We're not exactly main stream!

-Andreas

Hi Kaptain,

Those discs are hatches. They are 13.5cm in diameter, one in the bow and one in the stern. I know because I'm investigating these Grand Raids myself!

You'll notice the stern holds a square looking bucket. What do you think this is for? On the Nautiraid website the photo of its 'military' kayak has the same 'bucket.'

These kayaks also have heavy gauge D rings fore and aft of the cockpit for lifting and dropping out of helicopters and what not.

Paul

[url=http://foldingkayaks.org/phpBB/viewtopic.php?p=4536#4536]Link: Military Kayaks
[/url]

I love this thread, but I'm just doing a little house keeping, trying to keep the 4x4 thread about vehicles

-Andreas

Great work - keeping the thread alive and pointed firmly at the issues of our favorite vehicles.

Luckily I havent yet figured out how to attach images – or we´d really be in trouble. Thanks for the great Saab anecdotes, I enjoyed a few moments in your time machine. Even though these swedish rigs weren´t among the fastest things I strapped myself into – they remain amongs the most memorable.

On the topic of Land Rovers – for us, there is a natural chemistry in the relationship – Land Rover / Klepper. Two timeless, tested and proven designs. Full of character and capable far beyond their humble looks. Much like my Hasseblad and Kitchen Aide.

Isn´t it great that while most things around us seem to change at the speed of light – there are a few ikons that just keep on shining. Don´t let anybody tell you otherwise.


Evening Greetings to You All, from Denmark,

Morten Bibow

Thanks! I saw the eagle logo on the grill, but I'd never heard of Adler. It has a lot of similar lines to the older Opels but also MG's.
Is the second Adler pictured a soft top? The first one seems to have the rag sun roof

I've renamed this thread to "Kayak and Gear Transportation" to try to keep it kayak related. (-Me being the worse offender )


I found the Willys Jeep and Folbot pic.



-Andreas

The first two pictures show cars of the MG T-Series. Our family had one that my mother drove when my brother and I were young, and that Mom kept until she remarried.



Note the steel wheels with holes surrounding the central hubcap, and the doors that open "backwards."



I thought I was seeing a coupe version of one of these cars, an MG of the Y-Series, I think, in the photo with the young couple and folding boat, posted above.



May all your faltbootkarten be sturdy, functional, and decorative -

C.

And, harking back to page 1 of this thread, I'm happy to say I just got a car. An 88 Mercedes with AWD

I've already ordered the special "feet" to attach my Thule crossbars to the factory roof rack.

_________________
Chris T.
~'91 Klepper A2 w/ BSD schooner rig.
'64 Klepper Passat/Tradewind and T12 restoration projects.
Non-folding: Early '90s Old Town Canoe.
Previously owned '04 Pakboat Puffin II and '05 Swift (prototype), as well as an '84 Hobie 16.

It's remarkable how similar the Adler is to that last MG. Apparently the Adlers went out of production in 1941, like so many other German auto manufacturers. I wonder if they ever made a cabrolet version?
The soft top MG's (but also the classic Mercedes SL's) above have always been the convertible by which I measure all others. I have always loved its lines. Last time I was in Hawaii, I saw one with right hand drive for sale for $20K, -very tempting!
I can say from personal experience that soft tops aren't the best choice for transporting even folding kayaks. A 3rd of my trunk/boot is used for stowing the top and the rear seat doesn't fold down like it does in all other Saabs. I have managed to put both boats in, -one in the trunk/boot and one in the reclined passenger seat. There wasn't room for anything else! Putting the kayaks on the roof isn't a real option.
At least the second MG has a provision for folding kayaks! -The luggage rack over the spare. I have a hitch on my car which I use for a bicycle rack. I've thought about getting a platform rack for the hitch, but all current models available are either built for larger receiver sizes or extend further behind the car than I'd like. I think the further back it extends, the more likely it is to canter lever the car or bump into things in turns If I do this, I'll probably buy a stock one that I like and have it altered in a welding shop.

My parents had a Messerschmitt KR200 in the early 60's in Germany:




The only way they could transport the Klepper was on the luggage rack. This car was so small it could almost have been stowed on the Klepper!
I wish I had this car now! They paid $200 for it in 1963 and they regularly fetch $20K on e-bay now!

Chris T: You'll have to post pics of your Merc when you get your boats on top. Congrats on the new car. Also, tell us what you think of its quality.

-Andreas

I like to belive that I have got a close to perfect "kayaking utility vehicle"!

About a year ago I decided to get my hands on a Volvo C303/Tgb11.
(Sorry but you will have to click the link to behold it, because I don't know how to upload pictures to my post...) http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php

It's an ex Swedish army jeep who laughs in the face of any Humwee or Landrover when it comes to loading space and cross country ability.
But what I like most about it is that I can fit the fore and aft frame of my Klepper 490 assembled next to each other in the back, which I found to be a great relief when you want to get paddling first thing in the morning after driving to a new place the night before.
Hell, I can easely sleep in there as well, on one of the collapsable gurneys you can hang from the roof!

It's a proper fuel guzzler though, but I don't get to use it all that much anyway so I can live with that.


/Vildmannen