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The Equipment
Introducing the latest innovation in wind-powered technology... the 
It's fun, fast and compact!
Ideal for racing or recreation and appealing to everyone, the blokart has been designed to make catching the breeze easier than before.
It's small enough to fit in the back of your car; can be assembled in less than five minutes and will sail just about anywhere... from the beach to the carpark and sports grounds.
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| Height: | 4.2m (13’ 9") |
| Width: | 1.4m (4'7") |
| Wheel Base: | 1.65m (5’5”) |
| Weight: | 25kg (55lbs) |
| Set up time: | 5 minutes |
| Bag dimensions: | 1.2 x 0.7 x 0.2m 3’11” x 2’3” x 8” |
| Sail: | 3.3 sq m (35.5 sq ft) |
| Mast: | 4 piece Glass Fibre (grp) |
| Chassis: | High strength steel (electro-galvanised; silver/black powder coated) |
| Stub axles: | Stainless Steel |
| Suspension: | Flexible Glass Fibre (grp) |
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How safe are blokarts?
blokarts are very safe to use provided you...
..learn and use the blokart Road Rules,
..ALWAYS wear a protective helmet and appropriate shoes,
..ALWAYS use the blokart seatbelt - very important as it ensures you don’t get thrown out of the blokart if you ever flip over,
..keep you hands and feet inside the blokart at all times - especially if you flip over,
..and use common sense where ever you go blokarting.
If you are initially worried about going too fast and not being able to stop, then learn to blokart in very light winds. Only go out in stronger winds when you feel ready. Basically the stronger the wind - the faster you'll go! The great thing about blokarting is that its up to you, "it's as mild or as wild as you want it to be"!
You use blokarts at your own risk. Therefore..
..learn and use the blokart Road Rules (see the next FAQ below),
..always learn to blokart, particularly how to stop, in light winds,
..as blokarts do not have brakes and require technique to slow down, always ensure you have enough room to slow down and stop quickly,
..ensure you are an experienced, competent and have learned how to stop before blokarting in strong winds,
..always check the area you will be using before you start blokarting to ensure it is firm, flat, free of obstacles, pot-holes and people!,
..always get permission before using your blokart on an area you are not familiar with.
What are the blokart Road Rules?
The blokart Road Rules have been put together for everybody's safety, and so that we all know what to do when we meet another moving blokart or land yacht in any part of the world! Please follow these rules to make sure your blokarting is safe and fun.
1. Be safe!
2. Always wear your seat belt, a safety helmet and closed footwear.
3. If you are sailing head-on towards another blokart, steer to the right.
4. In general – always give way to your right.
5. Keep well clear when overtaking or overlapping another blokart.
6. When you are being overtaken don’t make any sudden moves or turns.
7. Check behind you before making any changes in direction.
8. Use a hand signal if you intend to turn or stop.
9. If you’re turning around a marker/flag, don’t pass another blokart on the inside or ‘cut him off’.
10. Don’t force other blokarts on to unsafe or impassable ground or into obstacles.
11. If you need a push, don’t get in the way of blokarts that are moving.
12. Secure your blokart safely when you’re not using it – turn it over on its side.
13. Have fun and enjoy!
Do I need to know anything about sailing to be able to blokart?
You don’t need to know anything about sailing to be blasting around right from the start. Simply throw a piece of grass up in the air to determine the direction of the wind, then head off at 90 degrees to the wind direction, i.e. across the wind, turn round when you need to (by using the handle bars!) and head back to where you started. Repeat till the wind disappears. To slow down or stop, either steer your blokart directly into the wind (the wind should be blowing straight into your face) or turn sharply round in a tight circle to reduce your speed and skid to a halt. It’s as easy as that.
Can I buy a blokart?
Of course! If you enjoy your blokart adventure experience, you may decide to take up the sport. We can provide you with equipment and additional training. Please ask us for details.
How long does it take to learn how to blokart?
blokarting really couldn’t be any easier – get in, lay back, belt up, steer with one hand and pull in the (accelerator) rope with the other! Basically the stronger the wind - the faster you'll go! We guarantee you won’t find a more exciting adrenalin filled sport as easy to master as blokarting.
Do you need to adjust the blokart to fit different sized people?
No, you can’t adjust the size of blokarts, one size fits all! Small kids sit more upright with straight legs, taller adults lay right back bending their knees - blokarts will accommodate just about anyone up to seven foot tall.
Do you need a lot of strength for blokarting and will I get tired?
One of the great things about blokarting is that you can do it all day long and you won’t get exhausted. Unlike other adrenalin sports you don’t need physical strength to excel. The steering mechanism is so light and responsive only one hand is needed to steer, the other hand is then free to pull in and hold the accelerator rope. A set of blokart gloves can be a useful to protect your hands - especially if you are a soft-handed office worker! One thing’s for sure … blokarting won’t get you fit but it will get you smiling.
How do you stop blokarts tipping over?
Well that’s easy, if you feel the blokart tipping over because the wind is too strong, just let some of the accelerator rope out to slow down and bring you back down onto three wheels again. In extreme cases, if you panic or want to get back on ‘terra firma’ quickly, let go of the accelerator rope altogether and you should quickly drop back down onto three wheels. In any case after 5 minutes you’ll feel like an expert and probably be trying to keep your blokart up on two wheels as long as possible as it’s so much fun.
How much wind do you need to get going?
The amount of wind required varies according to the surface you are blokarting on and the weight of the user. blokarts will need less wind to get going on asphalt (tarmac), gravel or hard sand than on spongy grass, and in lighter winds heavier people will go slower than lightweights. However on the other hand, when it gets really windy a bit of extra weight helps you control the blokart so you can go faster than lightweights.
Wind and speed comparisons.
Now for some approximate figures based on trials in a flat asphalt car park using the standard 3.0m blokart sail.
N.B. these figures are not guaranteed and should only be used as rough guide as there are so many variables that affect speed, (tyre pressure, skill and weight of the user, how the sail is set up, the surface being used, wind strength and consistency, etc)...
5 knots of wind is really insufficient to get an 80kg adult going, however it will get an average 7-year-old kid (20kg) going at 10kph (6mph).
10 knots will get an 80kg adult going at 20kph (12mph), and a 20kg kid at 25kph (16mph) and up on two wheels if he feels like it.
15 knots will get an adult up on two wheels at 30kph (19mph), the 20kg kid will be flying along on two wheels with a big grin!
20 knots is loads of fun for the adult, however too much for kids with the standard sail. It would be best to change down to the smaller sail to enable kids to carry on blokarting in these winds.
From there on up its more a matter of skill and guts to see how fast you want to go! Remember the speed record so far is 90kph (55.9mph) … can you beat it?
Where can I use blokarts?
blokarts can be used on beaches (generally below the high tide mark - above this is usually too soft), car parks (great at night if lit up), grass parks, gravel tracks, tennis courts, school playgrounds (with permission!), disused runways, etc basically anywhere hard and flat with a little bit of room and with out obstacles or people to crash into. Once you start blokarting you’ll be amazed at how many flat empty pieces of land are about just waiting to be blokarted on! We usually use beaches around Ireland's coast because they offer the most space.
How much space is needed?
You don’t need as much space as you might think to enjoy blokarting. Due to the very tight turning circle of blokarts it is possible to use them on a tennis court in low winds. If the wind picks up however, and you start going too fast, tennis courts can become a bit scary as you run out of room very quickly!
Obviously a two-mile long beach is fantastic doing big turns at top speed, however even with a large space it can sometimes be more fun to set up a tight racing course to compete against others. This forces you to turn sharply, after say 100 metres, regardless of how fast you are going - instead of disappearing off into the sunset at top speed.
How fast can blokarts go?
Well this depends on the wind strength, the location you are blokarting on, the space available, and how much guts you have. The current speed record stands at 90kph (55mph), the minimum speed so far however remains at zero.
Can I race against others?
blokarts have been designed to make racing fun, exciting, and easily accessible to anyone – just turn up, set up in 5 minutes, and start racing. As they handle just like a gokart – sliding into and drifting through corners, spinning round in a 360 if not handled skillfully, and zipping around, racing should always be fun. Look out for blokart clubs and organized racing events near you soon!
What happens if there is no wind?
Well you have a few options. Take the sail off and use it as gokart – still hours of fun for kids. Or if you crave even more excitement try paragliding - check out www.paraglideadventure.com! Paragliding is perfectly suited to light-wind days.
How heavy and portable are blokarts?
If you own your own blokart, you can take it on holiday where ever you go as it amazingly only weighs 25kg - about the same weight as an average holiday suitcase. The wheels can also be attached to the blokart bag so that you can wheel it around airports like a wheelie suitcase or wheel it along paths from the car park to the beach.
What is the chassis made of?
blokarts are available in either high strength steel or in stainless steel (stainless steel are more expensive).
The high strength steel blokart chassis are initially electro galvanized then powder coated in order to help combat the effects of corrosion.
The stainless steel blokart chassis are made of 100% stainless steel!
We have not used aluminum for the following reasons…..
1. Aluminum in fact oxidizes when used in a marine environment.
2. It is not as rigid as high strength steel and fatigues easily. This means that when it's new its great, however after constant use it becomes more flexible and won't spring back to it's original position.
2. A chassis made out of larger diameter tubes would be bigger, harder to fit in a small carry able bag, and therefore less portable than the current blokart made out of high strength steel.
What is the mast made of?
The blokart mast is a four-section mast made of fibreglass. We have purposely used fibreglass instead of carbon fibre for a number of reasons...
1. Fibreglass is more flexible than carbon fibre making it easier to rig up the sail. Any one from kids to grandparents can easily set up the sail.
2. The extra flexibility of fibreglass means that the mast bends to absorb gusts of wind instead of instantly flipping you over as might happen if a stiffer carbon fibre mast was used.
3. Fibreglass is better suited to handling the bumps and knocks experienced when flipping over. Carbon fibre eventually develops weak spots when bumped and may shatter if knocked against the ground.
4. In the unlikely event of a breakage we only need to replace one inexpensive fibreglass mast section instead of a more expensive carbon fibre section.
What are the axles made of?
The blokart axles/suspension are made of fibreglass which allows them to flex and absorb most of the bumps you’ll encounter while blokarting. We have not used carbon fibre as this would make the ride too rough, is not as durable as fibre glass and therefore not as suitable for taking the knocks and bumps likely to be received.
What is the maximum weight limit for a blokart user?
We’ve had a person of 120kg (270 pounds) blasting around in a blokart without any problems, so it’s a bit hard to state an absolute maximum.
Can I improve the performance of my blokart?
blokarts have been designed to give maximum performance straight out of the bag. There are therefore no add-ons available to improve their performance – when you initially buy your blokart you have all that is needed to potentially reach up to speeds of 90kph (55mph). You can however extend even further the wind range you can use blokarts in with larger and smaller sized sails that will shortly be available.
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