Re: [Paddlewise] Wave~Length: touring boats

Gerald Foodman wrote:

> I demo'd the Caribou in 25 knot winds on protected water.  It weathercocked
> terribly.  Extremely hard to hold on course.  

I don't have any trouble holding a Caribou on course.  I've paddled a
Caribou in everthing from gentle breezes to a full gale, and on bodies
of water ranging from a lake to the open ocean.  As for your
difficulties, several possibilities come to mind.  First, any tendency
to weathercock will be exacerbated by a wind blowing over a short reach
(such as when you are paddling in a strong wind behind a protective
jetty or on a lake).  Second, the Caribou is somewhat sensitive to
trim.  It paddles better when loaded a tad stern heavy.  Third, the
Caribou is extremely maneuverable.  While this makes it easy to correct
for course deviations, it doesn't have the "locked on" feeling of less
maneuverable boats.  This doesn't bother me, but then again I don't find
it all that difficult to paddle a whitewater boat in a straight line,
and the Caribou tracks like it is on rails compared to my whitewater
kayak.  While some folks don't like boats with "soft" tracking, I much
prefer a highly maneuverable boat to a boat that sacrifices
maneuverability for tracking stiffness.  I have a Sosltice that tracks
stiffly but I seldom use it anymore--It doesn't feel very lively. To
each his own.

> Try it in wind before you buy.

This is always a good idea!

Dan Hagen
Bellingham, Washington

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