Viking ship built of ice-cream sticks to set sail Creator hopes to sail boat made of 15 million birch strips across Atlantic AMSTERDAM - A replica Viking ship made of 15 million ice-cream sticks is to be launched in Amsterdam on Tuesday by a former Hollywood stuntman who hopes eventually to sail it across the Atlantic. The Viking longship, which is 15 meters (about 49 feet) long and took Robert McDonald and two volunteers two years to build, is to be launched in Amsterdam harbor with a crew of around 25 for what is intended to be a 90-minute excursion in a bid to set a world record for the largest sailing ship made of ice-cream sticks. “It’s a dream come true. It’s truly worth all the hard work,” McDonald said Monday of the painstaking two-year effort to assemble the birchwood sticks into a vessel. “I never want to look at glue again. I don’t think I will be in a hurry to look at ice cream sticks again.” The ice cream sticks used to make the ship were provided by Unilever’s ice cream maker OLA and by children who collected discarded sticks around the world. McDonald is a 45-year-old from Jacksonville, Fla. whose Sea Heart Foundation helps provide leisure activities for children in hospitals, hopes to sail his Viking ship across the Atlantic next year. “That’s still the ultimate goal, to sail across the Atlantic in the Viking-style,” McDonald said. Christopher Columbus was acclaimed for centuries as the man who discovered America in 1492. But in recent decades, more evidence has come to light showing that Icelander Leif Ericsson and the Vikings were the first Europeans to set foot on the American continent around the year 1,000. Viking longboats let Norse warriors land, pillage and plunder large parts of Europe and sail off knowing that no other vessels could catch up. Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Hey 3814, I bet she would have taken a "ride ride" if you had one of these.
Is it all sticky? Did he make the sails out of the wrappers? Does it have a cream center? I hope his dream doesn't melt away.
MAN, I spent about $1000 eating ice cream and harassing the ice cream man to sell me so many popsicles, when out of nowhere these bozos come out with their VIKING crap... SO MUCH FOR MY IDEA.
a viking stick made entirely of ice cream sticks and that is the only picture we get..... I feel ripped. Submitter needs to change headline to include no cool pictures within
From the BBC: Viking lollystick longboat sails A replica Viking longboat made out of 15 million ice cream sticks has been launched in Amsterdam harbour. The ship was painstakingly glued together by former Hollywood stuntman Robert McDonald and two friends - a job that took two years. The sticks were collected by children all over the world. Mr McDonald is claiming the world record for the biggest boat made that way. He hopes to sail the 15m (50ft) ship across the Atlantic. The ship carried a crew of 20 on its maiden voyage. "It's a dream come true. It's truly worth all the hard work," said Mr McDonald, quoted by Reuters news agency. "I never want to look at glue again. I don't think I will be in a hurry to look at ice cream sticks again." The 45-year-old, from Jacksonville, Florida, is president of the Sea Heart Foundation, an organisation which runs projects for children in need.
I would be scared to set sail on a boat made of popsicle sticks. I think it would be pretty fragile.....
Former Hollywood Stuntman Launches Viking Ship Made of Ice Cream Sticks in Amsterdam Tuesday, August 16, 2005 04:19:51 PM A former Hollywood stunt man now living in the Netherlands launched his greatest project to date Tuesday: a 45-foot replica Viking ship made of millions of wooden ice cream sticks and more than a ton of glue. Rob McDonald named the ship the "Mjollnir" after the hammer of the mythic Norse god of thunder, Thor. After the 13 ton boat was lifted into the water by crane, "Captain Rob," as he is known, stood calmly on the stern as a team of volunteers rowed the apparently sturdy vessel around the IJ River behind the city's central station. "I have a dream to show children they can do anything," McDonald said before the launch. "If they can dream it, they can do it." He said he was confident the ship would float, but organizers had prepared an alternate press statement just in case something went wrong. The biggest fear was that the ship's keel might be too light and it would capsize. But the launch went smoothly, and McDonald plans to apply for a mention in the Guinness Book of Records. McDonald set the previous record in 2003 with a smaller version of a Viking ship built from 370,000 wooden ice cream sticks, which has been approved by the Guinness Book of World Records. McDonald, an American who lives with his Dutch wife and their son in the city of Emmeloord, had help from a host of advisers, sponsors and neighborhood children. He estimated that in all, he used up to 2.2 tons of glue and 15 million birch wood ice cream sticks donated by an ice cream manufacturer and found by neighborhood children. "I'm proud," said 8-year-old Kim Jaasma, one of the volunteers on hand for the launch. "I hope it works." She said she didn't think McDonald was crazy at all. "He's funny sometimes. He's very nice," she said. McDonald and his son Rob Jr., 11, fixed a final ceremonial "15 millionth" ice cream stick, made of gold, shortly before the launch. Rob Jr., sporting a Viking helmet and a wooden sword, appeared ready to go on a voyage of looting and pillaging. The inside of the boat was reinforced with fiberglass and it can be propelled by its modern mast and sail, or oars, or a backup motor. Afterward, the boat was moved back onto dry land and will be on display at Sail 2005, a major show for antique ships that begins in Amsterdam on Wednesday.
Let's not give the polish navy any ideas fellas. Why did the Polish navy use glass bottom boats? To see the old polish navy.
Well, I’m a jet fuel genius - I can solve the world’s problems Without even trying I have dozens of friends and the fun never ends That is, as long as I’m buying Is it any wonder I’m not the president (he’s not the president) Is it any wonder I’m null and void? Is it any wonder I’ve got Too much time on my hands, it’s ticking away at my sanity I’ve got too much time on my hands, it’s hard to believe such a calamity I’ve got too much time on my hands and it’s ticking away from me Too much time on my hands, too much time on my hands Too much time on my hands...
