Just finished getting my Licenses for excavater/loader/grader and backhoe and was chatting to my trainer about what it would cost to build a channel 50m wide 1.5m deep and 2km long.
He said the best way to build it would be to use a Scraper the approx cost would be $1000 a day and it would take 3 weeks to complete, if the ground is easy to dig in alot less time.
With the federal election coming up governments have a tendency of throwing around money especially to sporting clubs and groups it wouldn't be a silly idea to get a proposal put together and submit it for funding,all we need is a suitable location to build the thing.

Put a couple of speed humps in the Sandy point run

Sounds like an expensive option.....
What about just buying some of those oil slick booms from BP after they have finished with them in the Gulf of Mexico.
Tow 1.5 kms of those out with your boat and you can have your speed course wherever you want.
The booms will probably be well soaked in oil which will leach out and calm the water further.

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elmo said...

Put a couple of speed humps in the Sandy point run

not until i have had a chance to sail it at least!
better use would be ploughing the rocks out of hardies run and deepening A land

Been waiting for Mineral to bring down one of his big Cat's for a wee demo on a low tide, could sort it out quick smart

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elmo said...

Put a couple of speed humps in the Sandy point run

The Pit allready has speed humps Elmo, see all those lumps below especially the 2 big ones jutting out on the right that never use to exist before the start of the run. Hopefully it will return to its natural state that existed (before the greenies interfeared with it?) by way of some more storm surges like in the pic below(2009), , .....

Choco make sure you build it with a curve like the Pit

Loose these bumps....


the wind will pump like in '88....

=

Choco - If your trainer only wants $1000 a day for a scraper then book him now.

Your talking about shifting 150,000m3 of dirt - you wont do that in 3 weeks with a single scraper. From memory a CAT 623 is about 17m3 a lift so thats 8823 lifts in 150 hours.
Methinks your trainer is a little off the mark.

The Maquarrie Innovation guys looked into building a canal and came up with estimates around a Million $

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Ben 555 said...

Choco - If your trainer only wants $1000 a day for a scraper then book him now.

Your talking about shifting 150,000m3 of dirt - you wont do that in 3 weeks with a single scraper. From memory a CAT 623 is about 17m3 a lift so thats 8823 lifts in 150 hours.
Methinks your trainer is a little off the mark.

Couple of scoop racers useing 657E's, a Cat skinner, and two scoop chasers should get it done smartly.

Choco,
Haven't you already got one on your moon?

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Ben 555 said...

Choco - If your trainer only wants $1000 a day for a scraper then book him now.

Your talking about shifting 150,000m3 of dirt - you wont do that in 3 weeks with a single scraper. From memory a CAT 623 is about 17m3 a lift so thats 8823 lifts in 150 hours.
Methinks your trainer is a little off the mark.

In all respect he didn't sit down and work it out i just wanted to hear a $$ figure.
I think it would be easier to just build earth walls by pushing them up instead of digging a trench as long as the topography is nice and level.
Andrew how big was the MI canal going to be?
There are plenty of sporting Grants on offer it would be great to get something put together and get funding for 3 speed canals one in WA - SA and NSW,my brother in law is a member of the South Australian Hellenic Shooters Club and they recieved over $60,000 in grant money from the state government!
Surely we could milk them for our sport.
The ASF project scope for a feasibility study is limited to $50,000.
grantsearch is Australia's original and most comprehensive funding database, detailing $8billion distributed to 18,000 recipients every year.
http://www.grantsearch.com.au/
www.asf.org.au/how_register/apply#Facility

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brad1 said...

Choco,
Haven't you already got one on your moon?

True, but the anti freeze evaporated

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choco said...

There are plenty of sporting Grants on offer it would be great to get something put together and get funding for 3 speed canals one in WA - SA and NSW,....blah blah blah

WTF - where's Queensland come into your equation numbnuts.

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sausage said...

choco said...

There are plenty of sporting Grants on offer it would be great to get something put together and get funding for 3 speed canals one in WA - SA and NSW,....blah blah blah

WTF - where's Queensland come into your equation numbnuts.

Any state with a natural speed course shouldn't apply eg Vic,Qld and Tassie this will leave more money for the rest.........hold on! $hit gotta include Qld

Has to be built where the wind blows its arse of consistently I think

I have a shovel, so we could at least start it.....

good thing at henty (Tas) it has is own digger for free.....the length in September 2009 was around 800m now around 1.7km just need another year of record rain on the west coast and theres easy over 2km and it was for free and still growing.

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izaak said...

good thing at henty (Tas) it has is own digger for free.....the length in September 2009 was around 800m now around 1.7km just need another year of record rain on the west coast and theres easy over 2km and it was for free and still growing.

Can't beat nature,but a purpose built canal you can have nice grass rigging areas right on the waters edge,toilets and oh yeah a hotdog stand at the end of the run

y bother digging it out .. plant a **** load of explocives and blow most of it away .. uses the scrapers and equipment to clean up

I remember seeing a photo of Bjorn sailing alongside an anchored floating boom with sheet plastic to make a calmish water run, I don't know if it was any good otherwise it would have gotten popular.
I think the theory is good, set whatever angle you like to the wind instead of waiting for the right angle on formed sandbanks.

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choco said...

izaak said...

good thing at henty (Tas) it has is own digger for free.....the length in September 2009 was around 800m now around 1.7km just need another year of record rain on the west coast and theres easy over 2km and it was for free and still growing.

Can't beat nature,but a purpose built canal you can have nice grass rigging areas right on the waters edge,toilets and oh yeah a hotdog stand at the end of the run

yes your correct, well we have a nice grass rigging area 2m away from waters edge......and, well, argh, nothing else,(civilization about 30min away).....

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choco said...

izaak said...

good thing at henty (Tas) it has is own digger for free.....the length in September 2009 was around 800m now around 1.7km just need another year of record rain on the west coast and theres easy over 2km and it was for free and still growing.

Can't beat nature,but a purpose built canal you can have nice grass rigging areas right on the waters edge,toilets and oh yeah a hotdog stand at the end of the run

Better put a bar at the end as well Choco (maybe both ends), just for those days without wind.
The last two months in Darwin are making Burrum look windy.

Problem with chop killers is that the upwind chop still kills the wind at the surface. They are good for smoothing off the sharp bits of water but the swell gets straight through. They had something like that set up off Port Beach when they were dredging Fremantle Harbour over summer. It was pretty fast if you were lucky enough to get a gust within 50m of it. The rest of the time the wind was being killed by the sausage, which was sitting 50cm off the water.

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Spotty said...

elmo said...

Put a couple of speed humps in the Sandy point run

Loose these bumps....

you guys would be stuffed if the speed run was in the "bay of cocks" weipa far north queensland, speed bumps galore!!!

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greenleader said...
you guys would be stuffed if the speed run was in the "bay of cocks" weipa far north queensland, speed bumps galore!!!

Yep, that would be an absolute "CockUp" Greeny

One of those in the middle looks like Scooby Doo's head

Many years ago someone was trying to sail in the useless loop / shark bay salt works pans. I seem to remember they managed to go there and not get an wind (pretty difficult thing to do).

The salt mines have already built the ponds its just whether they would give anyone permission to sail in them (and who knows what angles etc... they are).

does anyone else remember that ?

Here's a shot of that sausage (pipeline) that was off the coast of Perth this summer. It started off in a straight line then they put a bend in it mid summer - this was taken in a 12-18 knot seabreeze so you can see it really has knocked the chop down but swell still sneaks through. Total length of pipe was about 3-400m?.

funny how we all think the same. I reckon working in with a farmer who needs an irrigation pond-('dam' over there?) would be the go.
Just south of Chch someone built a lake of the size you're talking about for his mad keen water ski sons. Trouble is, he then planted trees all around it!!!

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Spotty said...

One of those in the middle looks like Scooby Doo's head

Good pick up Spotty.

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[

Couple of scoop racers useing 657E's, a Cat skinner, and two scoop chasers should get it done smartly.

657's are 25-30m3 a bowl Mineral? - Thats still 5000 passes - for your 657's plus D10/11's to push 'em -big big big bucks- well past chocos' trainer's estimate of $1000 per day - if only

Choco said
I think it would be easier to just build earth walls by pushing them up instead of digging a trench as long as the topography is nice and level.

Wind flow would be affected slightly, even if you had long batters.

Any channel would have to de dug / constructed in a suitable soil type to retain the water or have a large water supply nearby to keep it supplied

Choco if you get this one up I will come and work on it for free

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Ben 555 said...

Choco if you get this one up I will come and work on it for free

and I'll come and sail on it for free