A law was passed last year in congress specifically for the benefit of the company trying to build the windmills in the sound. It was in the print media the other day. It read that once the initial permits are issued no public hearings had to be held. The law was attached to some other bill of greater importance and went unnoticed the small article said. Maybe this is one of the reasons why Romney said he will veto the farm given the chance. I myself think this is extrordinarily arrogant on the part of a private concern trying to take public land for the benefit of their stockholders first and the rate paying public second.

My other thought is, does anybody think electric rates will be any cheaper or electricity anymore available because of the proposed windmills?

IMHO any reduction in energy usage, whether the public sees a reduction in their electric bill or not, is a very good thing. I'm optomisitic that eventually the cape will become a model for other areas to do the same scale/type of project.

Back in 94-95 I worked for TPI inc In Portsmouth RI building these windmill blades, we sold them to Kenetech windpower before they went out of business. From what I was told thier generators where not efficient enough. Today, from what I have read they are 5 times as efficient! So I think it's a great thing.

My other thought is, does anybody think electric rates will be any cheaper or electricity anymore available because of the proposed windmills?
Energy costs will go up, there's no way around this...

But what the alternative sources of energy can do is sustain our way of life with less change.

As for the back-door changes to the laws...this is how Congress works :eek:

-spence

Back in 94-95 I worked for TPI inc In Portsmouth RI building these windmill blades, we sold them to Kenetech windpower before they went out of business. From what I was told thier generators where not efficient enough. Today, from what I have read they are 5 times as efficient! So I think it's a great thing.

The latest West Systems newsletter had a story about making windmill blades in it.

Impressive stuff.

I thought something was recently put into a bill basically shutting the thing down?

I'm in favor of wind power generation. Its a good match for our area since we almost always have some wind blowing and usually its fairly high velocity wind. If you were located above some big geothermal formation , you'd tap into it for power , why not tap into the wind we have along the coast?

About the backdoor law approach...what's new!! :)

The latest West Systems newsletter had a story about making windmill blades in it.

Impressive stuff.


Cool I will have to check that out. we used polyesterstyrene for the body and hoop wrapped carbon fiber with west system for the hub. We also SCRIMP bagged the whole thing towards the end. We were actuallyt he first to do SCRIMP it is dry vacume bagging under pressure. It draws in the resin after you bag it. Pretty nice, it was very clean.

I just wish that the people that will have to put up with looking and listening to it would benefit from it.

They say it will generate 3/4 of the power the cape needs, but then they tell you the power is going 'into the grid'. It will be a very small portion of what is in the grid, so while realistically there is more power to meet our needs the cape won't directly benefit from it. There are no guarantees the electric rates down there will even go down. Wonder what 140 turbines sound like with a 15+ mph sw wind blowing the sound onshore all summer.

Its too bad this has to be a for profit thing.

Wonder what 140 turbines sound like with a 15+ mph sw wind blowing the sound onshore all summer.

It dosen't sound like anything?
Because you can't hear them.

Scott: I thought Goetz thought that one up? And half the boats I race on were built down at TPI :hihi: (couple sleds and a couple JBoats)

I'm in favor of them, no argument. Lots of people think they are ugly....I think they are allot more pleasent to look at than a cooling tower or big smoke stacks. 5 miles offshore they will look relatively small. Initial studies say the birds aren't a problem. Hopefully you'll be able to fish near them but with today security stuff you'll probably be restricted by 300 feet or so.

As far as lowering anyones bill....especially on the cape, forget it. Into the grid and sold for as much as the grid is willing to pay for that day.

Does anyone know how the 2 turbines in hull operated money wise? I'm sure it goes into the grid and the town gets a check monthly. Are they owned by the town or leased or private? I didn't read too much in the paper about them.

It dosen't sound like anything?
Because you can't hear them.

Scott: I thought Goetz thought that one up? And half the boats I race on were built down at TPI :hihi: (couple sleds and a couple JBoats)


Well when we started in back in 94, we were made to sign an agreement and were told we were the first to do it, but who really knows. I worked mostly at the Portsmouth plant, all the boats are made in bristol (which I built more that a few). The portsmouth plant was dedicated to blades. They now build a cute little sailer called a Alerion, decently priced and put together ok, I did the electronics installes on a few as a sub contractor last year to help out a friend, it was fun climbing in a bilge again:)

they do make noise, but it is the blades, not the generators, it is a low hum, it reminds me of that austrailian instrument, the Diggerydoo (sp?) just slower. And only in very high winds

Well when we started in back in 94, we were made to sign an agreement and were told we were the first to do it, but who really knows. I worked mostly at the Portsmouth plant, all the boats are made in bristol (which I built more that a few). The portsmouth plant was dedicated to blades. They now build a cute little sailer called a Alerion, decently priced and put together ok, I did the electronics installes on a few as a sub contractor last year to help out a friend, it was fun climbing in a bilge again:)

The alerion is a total sleeper too.
Old school above water layout with a high performance bottom.

Bristol did a good job fixing their own work too. (When x-Titan XI was t-boned at Antigua). You'd never know they stuffed a wide body sheet winch all the way past the pedastle.

I'm glad I only work on sleds these days. No crawling in bilges. All the carbon panels just pop out and everything is routed cleanly.
God bless empty boats. :rotf3:

Been helping my father put B&G Network on his Cape Dory 36... thankfully using the old wires as messengers but some spots have been at the very least... "interesting".

But back to the topic, yes, it takes alot of wind for those blades to start humming.
Probably a vast majority of the days, unless you looked up at them, you'd never know they were there.

The alerion is a total sleeper too.
Old school above water layout with a high performance bottom.

Bristol did a good job fixing their own work too. (When x-Titan XI was t-boned at Antigua). You'd never know they stuffed a wide body sheet winch all the way past the pedastle.

I'm glad I only work on sleds these days. No crawling in bilges. All the carbon panels just pop out and everything is routed cleanly.
God bless empty boats. :rotf3:

Been helping my father put B&G Network on his Cape Dory 36... thankfully using the old wires as messengers but some spots have been at the very least... "interesting".

But back to the topic, yes, it takes alot of wind for those blades to start humming.
Probably a vast majority of the days, unless you looked up at them, you'd never know they were there.


B&B huh, probably the highest quality electronics on the market. They sold out to Simrad a few years back. VERY high priced though, the masthead unit is three time the cost of a raymarine:lasso:

B&B huh, probably the highest quality electronics on the market. They sold out to Simrad a few years back. VERY high priced though, the masthead unit is three time the cost of a raymarine:lasso:

I do work mostly on the Hercules and Hydra systems. You can buy a boat for what some of these full systems cost.

Got a tabletpc with Deckman sitting on my desk here right now running as a slave to my laptop running Deckman as the master via bluetooth doing some testing. :hihi:

Observation of the day: don't load a polar file for wind trends as the polar file for the boat. It makes deckman crash and you have to reinstall it. Ball Peen hammer next to all nav stations as far as im concerned. (not to smash the computer, but to smash the fingers of the idiot who screws it up in the middle of a race)

Gougeon Brothers used to build boats and windmill blades with laminated wood and their "secret sauce" epoxy in the 80's

I do work mostly on the Hercules and Hydra systems. You can buy a boat for what some of these full systems cost.


Gougeon Brothers used to build boats and windmill blades with laminated wood and their "secret sauce" epoxy in the 80's

That's right and we all know what the "secret sauce" ended up being now don't we :cool:

I have been out in Palm Springs off I-10 where they have a pretty big windmill farm. With the winds moving at 45 mph all I heard was the wind. I guess if you were right next to one you could hear it spin but its pretty quiet.

Before we started wrapping the hoops with CF and epoxy, they were breaking left and right at all the farms from florida to California. I was one of the guys who got to fly out and do on-sight repairs. I have been to 4 different farms and when they start cranking, you hear them. But you have to be under them, it't not like they are some public nuisance or anything, they just make a deep sounds that is actually pleasing:D
Quick story:

Once one flew pretty far and flew through a barn and stuck in the ground about 3 feet! THese where 75 foot blades. The owners of the barn thought is was a UFO hahahahah. He was a cool guy and was in good spirits when the crew got there, I was not on that crew so I only got to see pictures, it was pretty damn crazy looking.

there was a good show on msnbc about alternate energy sources and these new efficient windmills were on. There is a place in TX with them and they provide power to over a million people and the farm isn't too big either. THe ones in the sound should be good for most of southern NE.

On a side note, the program said that a 100 square mile solar panel area in the Mohave desert would be able to power the entire US. Sounds good to me.

Well I live here on the Mid Cape, and they will be 3 miles from me and not much closer to any other land.

Sit in your house and hold up your thumb, and look out the window across the street, what do you see with your thumb up??
Nothing!! Now even as big as they are, they will be 3 miles away, what do you think your going to see?? Tooth picks thats what!

You will never hear a sound from them either.

As far as fishing goes, they will provide structure for the fish and they will become abundant in that area, And as far as the dragger's are concerned, they have done enough damage to the ocean for years and years, and continue to this day!

It will be good to give the fish a break for a change!!

Take a good look at the gas prices, oil, electric, Natural Gas, Everyone is complaining but when you have a way to start something new you don't want it??
Well listen up, this is a must and its coming, if not here now then some where else, then here but its coming!!
Fight it or be apart of it, but if you fight it then don't be bitching when the gas is to $7 a gal as it already is in alot of country's.

Even the Mass Maritime has erected a wind mill that will save the school upward of $300,000 a year!! and it will also be used to train students how to maintain and repair windmills.

Look for it when you are on the west end of the canal can't miss it!!

I vote yes for the wind farm!!