Excitor

Excitor

The "Excitor" is a jetboat and major tourist attraction in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. It is used on a high-speed trip through the scenic bay out to Cape Brett, where the boat travels through the 'Hole in the Rock', a natural sea-tunnel (wave-heights permitting). The boat is operated by InterCity Group(NZ)Ltd.

Jetboat

The timber-fiberglass jetboat, in its second incarnation as "Exitor II", was built by Johnson Yachts International Ltd, and uses 2 x 'Seafury' jetboat drives built in Silverdale, Auckland, powered by 2 x 800 hp turbo intercooled CAT engines. It reaches speeds of up to 46 knots (approximately 85 km/h), and carries 46-54 tourists. It is 18 m long, 4.2 m wide and has a 1.2 m draft. Around the end of 2002, the boat replaced the smaller "Excitor I", which was in use by the company for six years on around 900 trips." [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=543&objectid=3099766 Skimming the surface] " - "The New Zealand Herald", Saturday 08 February 2003] [http://www.excitor.co.nz/default.php The Boat] (from the official Excitor website. Accessed 2008-06-16.)]

Accidents

The trip is not fully without danger. Passengers sitting in the open boat have to wear life jackets, and waves swamping the boat have been reported, though it is designed to quickly drain the water through its stern.

However, the "Exitor I" was involved in a serious incident in 1998, when a mechanical failure in the gearbox linkage caused the boat to become unsteerable while entering Cathedral Cave. With the starboard engine still running ahead, the bow of the vessel collided with the cave wall. Twenty-nine people aboard had to abandon the boat and were forced to "swim for their lives" to the mouth of the cave, while the boat was battered against the cave roof by 3 m high wave swells. After 20 minutes, the operator was able to reverse the boat out of the cave, radio for help, and pick up the passengers. One person sustained light injuries, and one young child suffered hypothermia." [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10941 Passengers angered by 'weak' accident report] " - "The New Zealand Herald", Friday 30 July 1999]

Passengers involved in the incident accused the operator of subsequently downplaying the duration and the risks during the incident, such as the danger of being dashed against rocks. [" [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=846 Tourists tell of panic and dangerous swim] " - "The New Zealand Herald", Friday 01 January 1999] They were also critical of the (at that time unreleased) official incident report by the Maritime Safety Authority, which was said to have failed to address contributing factors such as the late arrival (5 pm) of the boat at the cave, the height of the swells outside the cave mouth, as well as alleged fatigue of the skipper.

References

External links

* [http://www.excitor.co.nz/ Excitor] (official website)


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • excitor — [ek sīt′ər, iksīt′ər; ] also, esp.for 2 [, eksī tôr, iksī′tôr΄] n. [ME exciter] 1. EXCITER 2. Physiol. a nerve which, when stimulated, causes increased activity of the part that it supplies …   English World dictionary

  • excitor — noun Date: 1816 an afferent nerve arousing increased action of the part that it supplies …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • excitor — /ik suy teuhr, tawr/, n. 1. Physiol. a nerve whose stimulation excites greater action. 2. Archaic. an exciter. [1810 20; EXCITE + OR2] * * * …   Universalium

  • excitor — SYN: stimulant (2). * * * ex·ci·tor sīt ər n an afferent nerve arousing increased action of the part that it supplies * * * ex·ci·tor (ek siґtər) a nerve that when stimulated excites greater action in the part it supplies …   Medical dictionary

  • excitor — n. one who excites, one who arouses, one who stirs up; afferent nerve (Physiology) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • excitor — ex·ci·tor …   English syllables

  • excitor — ex•ci•tor [[t]ɪkˈsaɪ tər, tɔr[/t]] n. phl a nerve that increases the intensity of an action when stimulated • Etymology: 1810–20 …   From formal English to slang

  • excitor — /əkˈsaɪtə/ (say uhk suytuh), /ɛk / (say ek ), / tɔ/ (say taw) noun 1. Physiology a nerve whose stimulation excites greater action. 2. → exciter …  

  • excitor — ikˈsīd.ə(r), ek , ītə noun ( s) 1. archaic : exciter 2. : an afferent nerve arousing increased action of the part that it supplies …   Useful english dictionary

  • excitor nerve — a nerve that transmits impulses resulting in an increase in functional activity …   Medical dictionary

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