July 2009 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 19.
THE GREEN SUBMARINE
By Captain George Kittredge, USN (Ret.) work and did a great job. It was just what I turning drastically one
What should a small submarine do, be wanted but the new, pedal power submarine way or the other and it is
used to look at the bottom to count scallops did not turn so good. Its turning circle was too fast for an old man
and lobsters? Or be a new toy to get the about four times what I thought it should be. pedaling his submarine to
attention of your neighbors? After my small I had a friend who had been one of my officers follow him.
firm in Warren, Maine built a two-man subma- on the second submarine which I com- Last summer, I found
rine for the University of Nagasaki in Japan, manded when I was in the Navy. When my that like charging batter-
I decided to quit building submarines. The friend went up in rank, he had gotten com- ies, I got tied of pedaling.
sub for the University of Nagasaki was the mand of a “boomer,” a 24 missile sub which After an hour or so pedal-
40
th
submarine we had built and I wanted to had its rudder forward of the prop. I asked him ing submerged in the
retired. But my retirement did not last long. how the “boomer” turned at slow speeds. “It Keag River it always
Why retire if you are doing something you didn’t turn well at slow speeds,” he said. “But seemed a long way back
like to do? it didn’t need to except when we got near port where I kept the sub
A side view of the Green Submarine.
Besides, during retirement I was brain and then we always had a couple of tugs to moored in Weir Creek so I
washed by the media telling me that the youth turn us.” decided to rig a sail. I used
of America was too fat. Forty percent of our His answer satisfied me. It was back to a telescoping aluminum
young people were obese, the media told me. the drawing board. The rudder in front of the mast, stored in a metal rack
Why not build a pedal powered, one person prop looked nice, but there is a lot of differ- on the starboard side of
submarine, and made it green in order to join ence between an 18,000 ton giant sub with the hull. The rig was
the green revolution? nuclear power and a 1.5 ton midget sub pow- Marconi and the boom
I still had a submarine hull left over from ered by an old man pedaling. We put the was stored in a similar rack
the business in Warren so I decided to make rudder back where it should have been all on the port side of the hull.
it into a pedal power submarine rather than an along, behind the propeller. Now, it turns in The sail was kept in a bag
electric motor and battery driven craft. Be- its own length. We also changed the color of inside the hull. When I
sides, I was tired of changing batteries. It the sub, which had been painted red. We re- surfaced the sub and
takes a fairly lone time to charge the four painted it green to conform with the “Green opened the hatch, I would
Robin R, certified in 2008 for 16-passenger service
batteries in a K-250 submarine or the eight Revolution.” put the mast in its holder
and used in Penobscot Bay.
batteries in a K-350 two person submarine. I I used the pedal power sub for several forward of the conning
wanted a submarine that I could just jump in years. It dove well and I could see the bottom tower. Then I would bend
Proud builders of
and go when the tide and weather were through the bottom view port in the forward on the halyards, and pull
favourable. So I went to Bill Glover who owns elliptical steel head. The bottom always fas- the sail out of its bag. As it
Mitchell Cove Boats
Rockport Steel and asked him if he could cinated me. Every couple of feet you see went up, I would snap the
Mitchell Cove Boats are built in 20', 32', 35', & 37' models.
convert the hull to a pedal powered sub. Bull something new. When you come across a nylon holding straps
All designed by Calvin Beal, Jr.
had helped us repair the ANNIE W. after we lobster, it will raise its claw and grab the ¾ around the mast and con-
with excellent sea-handling capability.
salvaged it. The ANNIE W. was a Bruno inch steel bar that links between the two twin tinue pulling the halyard
Stillman fiberglass boat, which had sunk after keels. The bar protects the forward, bottom until the sail was all the
A full-service yard
hitting Alden Rock off Tenants Harbor. view port. As soon as the lobster finds he can way up. The mast and sail
120 Tillson Ave.
Bill Glover agreed to do the work and I not cut or crush the bar, he decides to leave work and beat pedaling
Rockland, ME 04841
gave him some sketches. One of the things I fast. He swims backward with his tail acting home, but I am not fully
207-594-4444
wanted was for the hull to look something like like a crab in water. Every ten feet or so, the satisfied. We are going to
www.journeysendmarina.com
the big US Navy nukes with the rudder in lobster will scrape the bottom with his tail, do more work on the sail
front of the propeller. Bill Glover took on the sending up a cloud of mud dust. Then he jinx, this summer.
Stay tuned for more!
Our customers’ boats are part of our family.
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DiMillo's Yacht Sales
Cyrus Hagge (left) with Jason Curtis of PYS
launching Cyrus’ boat on a clear 20° day in February.
“I’ve been coming to Portland Yacht Services for years because
they’re as passionate about boating as I am.” Cyrus Hagge – Customer
Our dedicated staff provides the kind of service that keep owners like
Cyrus Hagge coming back year after year. The PYS team has the experience,
training and certifications to efficiently handle both the routine and
extraordinary needsof virtually any type of boat or yacht, sail or power.
• Long-term Annual Maintenance • Outboard & Inboard Repowering
• Moorings, Dockage and Storage • Generators, AC & Refrigeration
• Painting & Fiberglass • Full Parts & Rigging Departments
• Refits, Repairs & Restorations • Systems Repairs & Design
We invite you to visit our marina and boatyard near the historic Old Port,
by land or sea, today! Check out our qualifications at portlandyacht.com
58 Fore Street • Portland, ME 04101
T: 207.774.1067 • F: 207.774.7035 • E: service@portlandyacht.com
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