I think Jerry has the Morris engine on his, and yeah, it goes vertical. The floats are just for taxiing. He blasts off like a patriot missile.

I'm sure Chip Hyde can notice a difference, but to me and most everybody else, properly selected and installed floats don't cause much of a performance penalty. Bad floats, heavy floats, or poorly installed floats can screw you up. Most planes I see have the same or very similar takeoff run with float as with wheels and if anything the landing run can be longer on floats.

Jerry makes his own floats from foam, carves them to a streamline (schneider-style) shape, and glasses them.