To add a personal comment to the Greenland paddle thread --- there was a comment about the virtues of home-crafted Greenlands that was right to the point. The indigenous folks who carved these things made them to their own dimensions --- anthropometrically. All the gouges are in the John Heath articles --- hand size influences loom, length is the upraised hand with fingers curled, etc. And the significnace here is that it really <does> make a difference. A big difference. I have two paddles made identically, but one is an inch shorter than the other. Same wood, same dimensions otherwise. Big diffenence in paddling. A better paddler than I am could probably distiguish a smaller difference. A 7'6" paddle is going to be close to be ideal for some one or two percent of all paddlers, but less correct for the other 98% or 99% of us. Little differences in the loom, the blade width, the stiffness (as a function of the wood used or the thickness) will also yield a very different paddle. And all this matters a lot at the end of a long day. Speaking of which, that's why these paddles are so great. They don't blow your tendons out. They're easy on the body. Especially <old> bodies! And they're great for rolling, as has been noted in other posts. But the other area of importance --- at least for me --- is that crafting them can be almost a religious experience. It's very therapeutic, taking a two by six of cheap, recycled pine board --- <free> on the beaches of the Potomac and the Chesapeake --- and carving it, planing it, sanding it, scraping it into a clean, efficient paddle is a great weekend project. Try reading the articles --- the directions are even pilot-proofed! And the payoff is a beautiful paddle, arguably the most efficient sea kayaking device you can make! Joq Martin St. Inigoes, MD --- the ospreys are home. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Joq wrote; > To add a personal comment to the Greenland paddle thread --- there was > a comment about the virtues of home-crafted Greenlands that was right > to the point. The indigenous folks who carved these things made them > to their own dimensions --- anthropometrically. All the gouges are in > the John Heath articles --- hand size influences loom, length is the > upraised hand with fingers curled, etc. And the significnace here is > that it really <does> make a difference. A big difference. Actually I have clear up the record here. Most Inuit kayakers today use paddles made from cast off hockey sticks. When asked why they use hockey sticks instead of carving a paddle from a piece of drift wood they laugh and reply that the only reason their ancestors carved paddles form driftwood was because they didn't have any old hockey sticks. A top quality carbon fiber hockey stick paddle is much prized by Inuit hunters. Personal note to Joq; Just received your package in survival gear and it should keep me busy nights digesting it. No wonder government workers have those glasy eyed looks. Cheers, John Winters Redwing Designs Specialists in Human Powered Watercraft http://home.ican.net/~735769/ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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