Some of you will probably remember the brainteaser I posted long ago, asking if it was possible to build a wind powered vehicle that will go directly downwind, faster than the wind, steady state.
We built a few of these vehicles, and demonstrated them primarily on treadmills. But some folks didn't believe that working on a treadmill meant it would work outdoors. So a buddy and I decided to build a 250 lb vehicle with a 16 foot prop, that carries a driver. We're hoping to test at the Alameda Naval Air Station in April. It would be great to get locals there to witness.
You can see our progress at www.fasterthanthewind.org
ETA: We let the BUFC loose on the lakebed at Ivanpah, NV. We were pretty excited to do better than 2.5X windspeed directly downwind. These are not official results, but we're now preparing for an official record run.
Some videos from Ivanpah:
First run: http://www.vimeo.com/10476453
Second run: http://www.vimeo.com/10477373
Last run: http://www.vimeo.com/10476216