Maybe that's why it seemed like I was going faster in my PO NorSea..... it had 250+ osmotic blisters!!!!! Joe ----- Original Message ----- From: Steve R. To: montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Sent: Friday, May 13, 2011 6:49 PM Subject: M_Boats: The Science of Whale Flippers Here is an article from the Mechanical Engineering magazine that may be of interest. It describes how bumps on whale fins reduce drag. http://tinyurl.com/Whale-Fins If that link doesn't not work, search for "Whales" and "ASME". The bumps are on the "wrong side" of the fin from a conventional wisdom perspective. They allow a higher angle of attack before stalling. Unfortunately this is useful only in limited circumstances. I wonder if there may be a practical application to a rudder or perhaps centerboard. steve Steve R. M-15 #119 Lexington, KY _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats When posting, remember that there is no privacy on the Internet!