Wake up and hear the music

The Epic 23e is the world's first hybrid electric wakeboard boat and is a quiet runner - apart from the stereo. It features a 10-speaker transom audio system. Photo / Supplied

Hybrid cars, while still in a very small minority, are no longer a novelty. Hybrid technology in marine diesel engines is also now a reality with several manufacturers offering a version as part of their range.

But a wakeboard boat? A boat where the power-to-weight ratio is everything? Where the idea of lugging around a bank of heavy batteries seems, at least at first glance, to be ludicrous?

Well, that, you see, is the trouble with first glances. They often seem so obvious that there is no need for a second glance, or a well-considered third. And in the case of the 23e that would be a mistake.

Because the fact is that wakeboarders are constantly trying to get weight into their boats, especially at the rear. At first glance, this could be because they are almost invariably young, annoying and stupid. On the other hand, it could be because they like to have a heavy transom. Because this buries the stern of the boat and produces a dirty great wake.

For centuries, boat designers have wracked their vast intelligences trying to find ways of not producing big waves out the back of their boats. Since the early Phoenicians set sail around the ancient waters of the world there has been an understanding that wake equals inefficiency. Why harness all that power from the wind (or the latest four-stroke, whizz-bang outboard) and use it to produce waves when it should be used to make the boat go faster?

Wakeboarders don't care about any of that. They are delightfully simple souls. They want wake. Out the back of the boat. To jump off. While loosely attached by a piece of string.

Most have not heard of the early Phoenicians. Those that have think they are an energy drink.

American Chris Anthony, owner of Epic Wakeboats, at first glance, appears to be such a man. This is largely by virtue of the fact he not only wakeboards but also builds boats specially designed to create wake. However, a glance or two further on, it is clear that Anthony is also quite a clever fellow.

He has successfully invented and created the world's first hybrid electric wakeboard boat: the Epic 23e.

In the Epic 23e, there are 28 batteries "in the floor" and a diesel generator, well aft. The generator recharges the batteries while the boat is being used. These batteries then power a flux propulsion electric drive motor that turns the propeller.

The company reckons all of this produces the "hybrid equivalent" of 375hp and pushes the 6.7m craft at speeds faster than some of Epic's other combustion engine-powered boats.

The company also states that the flux propulsion system is so quiet that one may not even know it's on. I tried to check this out on their website, but the "background" music was so loud, the engine could have been an un-mufflered V8 and it still would have seemed silent.

Nevertheless, it is a given that electric engines are remarkably quiet, so this is probably the case here.

Initial reports are that the 23e also performs well and has plenty of torque out of the hole.

Of course, the big plus is the lack of fuel required for a day's hoonery. In a typical wakeboard boat it would not be uncommon to burn up to 200 litres a day. The Epic 23e's fuel tank only holds only 75 litres and their claim is that one can easily wakeboard all weekend on just a single 75-litre tank.

This is because the boat can be run for up to three hours before it needs to burn a single drop of fuel.

At the end of the day on the water, the boat is simply plugged in and it will be charged and ready to go in the morning.

Well, that's the claim. Propeller Magazine's technical editor, Peter J. Morgan B.E. (Mech.) has made some calculations and says he struggles a little with the charging and running times being quoted.

Be that as it may, this is a pretty tricky piece of equipment. As well as all the usual "special" features one finds on a wakeboard boat, the 23e has a few "extra special" features, too.

These include a touch-screen monitoring system that presents every piece of information related to the operation of the boat (including customisable settings for specific wakeboarding setups).

Of course, as I discovered on the company's website, the real purpose of a near-silent running engine is so those within several kilometres can properly hear the stereo.

Not to be outdone in this department, the Epic 23e features a 10-speaker transom audio system. This is actually built into the rear of the transom, from port to starboard, ostensibly so the others on the boat do not have to be blasted to get the required level of volume out to the wakeboarder on his or her bit of string.

The Epic 23e does actually exist but it is early days. Production models are scheduled to be available in 2010. At this stage, the price tag is likely to as hefty as those batteries: up to US$150,000 ($237,500). However, the company is also optimistic it can produce a US$70,000 version by 2012, pretty close to what one would currently pay for a specialist wakeboarding boat.

When available, the Epic 23e will be distributed in New Zealand by Ian Scarlet of Manga Boats.

Background information and photos courtesy of Propeller Magazine, www.propellermagazine.co.nz.