Outrigger canoe

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Modern sailing outrigger canoe in Hawaii, USA

Large Passenger-carrying Outrigger Canoe (bangka), Puerto Galera, Philippines

The outrigger canoe (Tagalog and Indonesian: bangka; Maori: waka ama; Hawaiian: waʻa; Tahitian: vaʻa) is a type of canoe featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull. Smaller canoes often employ a single outrigger on the port side, while larger canoes may employ a single outrigger, double outrigger, or double hull configuration. The sailing canoes are an important part of the Polynesian heritage and are actively raced and sailed in Hawaii and Tahiti.

Using an outrigger or double hull configuration greatly increases the stability of the canoe, but introduces much less hydrodynamic inefficiency than making a single hull canoe wider. Compared to other types of canoes, outrigger canoes can be quite fast, yet are also capable of being paddled and sailed in rougher water.

The outrigger float is called the ama in many Polynesian and Micronesian languages. The spars connecting the ama to the main hull (or the two hulls in a double hull canoe) are called ʻiako in Hawaiian and kiato in Maori (with similar words in other Polynesian languages); in Micronesian languages, the term aka is used.

1 History
2 Modern sport use
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

The traditional pōpao of Tonga

Outrigger canoes were originally developed by the Austronesian speaking peoples of the islands of Southeast Asia for sea travel, and were used to transport these peoples both eastward to Polynesia and New Zealand and westward across the Indian Ocean as far as Madagascar during the Austronesian migration period. Even today, it is exclusively among the Austronesian groups (Malay, Micronesian, Melanesian and Polynesian peoples) that outrigger canoes are used.

Hawaiʻiloa, a double hull sailing canoe built as a replica of Polynesian voyaging canoes

When Magellan's ships first encountered the Chamorros of the Mariana Islands in 1521, Antonio Pigafetta recorded that the Chamorros' sailboats far surpassed Magellan's in speed and maneuverability. In fact, the Micronesian sailing canoe, the proa, was the fastest sailing vessel in existence well into the 20th century.

The Polynesian Voyaging Society has two double hull sailing canoes, Hōkūleʻa and Hawaiʻiloa, and sails them between various islands in the Pacific using traditional Polynesian navigation methods without instruments.

The technology has persisted into the modern age. Outrigger canoes can be quite large fishing or transport vessels, and in the Philippines, outrigger canoes (called bangka or banca) are often fitted with gasoline engines.

[edit] Modern sport use

Outrigger canoe racing has become a popular canoeing sport, with numerous clubs located around the world.

Racing outrigger canoes. The canoe in the front right, with a narrower hull and smaller body, is a single person outrigger canoe, or OC1. The other canoes are six person outrigger canoes, or OC6.

Six person outrigger canoes (or OC6) are among the most common used for sport use; single person outrigger canoes (or OC1) are also very common. Two and four person outrigger canoes are also sometimes used, and two six person outrigger canoes are sometimes rigged together like a catamaran to form a twelve person double canoe.

Modern OC6 hulls and amas are commonly made from fiberglass. However, some canoes are made of more traditional materials, such as being carved from koa tree logs in Hawaii. The ʻiako are usually made of wood; the ʻiako-ama and ʻiako-hull connections are typically done with rope wrapped and tied in interlocking fashion to reduce the risk of the connection coming completely apart if the rope breaks.

Modern OC1 hulls and amas are commonly made from fiberglass, carbon fiber, and/or Kevlar to produce a strong but light canoe. OC1 are often made with rudders operated by foot pedals. More traditional designs do not have rudders. OC1 commonly use ʻiako made of aluminum, with a mechanism for quickly assembling and disassembling the canoe (snap buttons, large wing nuts, etc.).