[Paddlewise] Paddles You Use

The thread on boats people paddle has been a useful one for me --
learned a lot about different craft without even getting wet!  I'd be
interested in hearing what others use to paddle their boats, and how
their paddle choice has evolved.  Here's my saga to kick things off:

Started with an older version of the 230 cm Werner San Juan:  huge
paddle face area.  Lots of paddling power in this thing!  After a season
of use, because I could not keep up with my yakking partner, bought a:

newer version 240 cm San Juan (even more area).  Bad idea!  Very quickly
had tendonitis in my elbows -- had to abandon this paddle and go back to
the smaller one.  The tendonitis persisted until I bought a:

220 Lightning (smaller blade face than the San Juan -- not sure of the
model; think it is their main blade for sea kayakers).  Great paddle! 
really works well -- seems very efficient, and all the elbow tendonitis
went away, but from too much paddling I started to get wrist tendonitis.
Still struggling with that.  To accomodate other boats (mainly a Folbot
Greenland II -- loooong ways to the water!), I acquired:

a couple Mid-Swifts (240 cm and a special order 250 cm).  These are
really sweet paddles! Very light and have plenty of face for the
double.  Can get by with just the 250 cm, so I'd sell the 240 to a good
home.  My SO (in the front hole of the G II) has used a:

230 Sea Swift for three seasons, now.  Really likes the blade.  Too much
area for my poor wrists, but this thing really puts the power in the
water.  She can use it from the front hole of the G II.  Too short for
me to use from the rear.

Had Werner modify the 240 San Juan down to a 230 -- it's the one I loan
to others paddling along with me.  The original 230 San Juan has
developed serious blade cancer in the shaft area -- it's going off to
Werner for surgery any day now -- to live the remainder of its days as a
backup paddle. 

Just a happy paddle guy!
-- 
Dave Kruger
Astoria, OR
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