James Lambden: No Putt-Putt

The engine on James Lambden’s boat makes no noise, so sometimes
it’s hard to tell whether it’s off or running full throttle,
especially because it tops out at about two-and-a-half miles per
hour, and is operated with a watch-sized remote control.
Nevertheless, Lambden’s workboat — which he modified from an
existing hull to run on solar power — ferries men (or man) and
electrical equipment from place to place in the harbor every day;
Lambden’s company, Above the Waterline, does electrical work on
boats. With a trolling engine fore and aft, the baby boasts extreme
maneuverability. James Lambden’s boat will be featured on Earth Day
in the Green Vehicles Show as the only known vehicle in Santa
Barbara operating solely on solar power.

The best part is that Lambden never needs to fill ’er up with
smelly dirty diesel, replace the battery, or plug it in to charge
the battery. The solar panels produce six to seven amps on a sunny
day, one amp on a rainy day, and when it’s all charged up, the boat
has a 10-mile range. Lambden charges almost all of his cordless
tools using the boat’s panels, too, and he is now completing the
solarization of his 30-foot Catalina sailboat so that it relies
strictly on the sun for lights, refrigeration, and powering in and
out of the harbor.

Lambden is soon to be in the market for another earth-friendly
vehicle: an electric car. He would prefer one that avoids the grid
to reduce the coal burning that produces most electricity. “I think
it’s possible to live off the grid in Santa Barbara,” Lambden said.
“You can’t say that about back East, so I think it’s our
responsibility to do any little thing we can.”

Maybe Lambden will find the car of his dreams at this year’s
Green Vehicles Show. An all-electric car from Phoenix Motor Cars of
Ojai, which exceeds California speed limits and gets 120 miles on
one charge, will be on display, according to show organizer Arjun
Sarkar. The car can be charged using solar panels on the roof of a
house. For those who can’t afford a roof in Santa Barbara, a frisky
little golf cart refurbished with solar panels by students of Santa
Barbara Junior High School industrial arts teacher Mike
Shallenberger might be just the thing. Commercially available,
all-electric cars that top out at 25 mph will be on display, along
with several major manufacturers’ hybrids and flex fuel vehicles
that use either regular gas or E85 (85 percent ethanol fuel), and
autos that run on biodiesel fuel, which is 99.9 percent soybean oil
and can replace diesel directly with no engine conversion
necessary. Finally, an internal combustion hydrogen engine such as
those Governor Schwarzenegger promised would resolve the world’s
energy issues will be there too, EPA-certified, and ready to sell.
But if Lambden can’t find what he’s looking for there, maybe he’ll
just make his own.