To: >internet:paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net John Winters wrote: > I don't know that anyone has done much with small blades and a more vertical stroke. Always it seems to be small blades on long shafts (Greenland) or large blades on short shafts (racing and white water). I have short shafted wooden paddles with small blades made specially for me. 4"x18" blades, symetric, roughly rectangular. I originally intended the design as a storm paddle, but now use it almost exclusively as my working paddle. It looks RIDICULOUS, but at the higher cadence I actually move my kayak faster and put less strain on my joints. It is also a good kids paddle, and as a spare is easy to carry on deck because of the small blades. If curious, please e-mail me off-list since I don't watch this list closely. Although this paddle looks extreme, I have seen one paddle more so. An old photo I have seen shows an Eskimo paddle that was nothing more than a short pole with a small seal scapula on each end. So, I still have more extreme things to experiment with ... -- Larry Edwards *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
John Winters wrote: >I don't know that anyone has done much with small blades and a >more vertical stroke. Always it seems to be small blades on >long shafts (Greenland) or large blades on short shafts >(racing and white water). One of things that has helped my slalom (and downriver) times a lot in the last year is focusing on a vertical stroke with as much torso rotation as I can stand. But it's hard to have a truly vertical stroke if you paddle is too long. A second factor has been my switch to an asymmetric "cleaver" blade that really grabs the water -- not just on vertical strokes, but on duffeks as well, making spin moves much faster. That paddle (it's a Mitchell) also has a carbon shaft with just the tiniest amount of flex in it, just enough to yield a dramatic decrease in the fatigue that I get from paddling flat-out for 120-200 seconds (the length of a slalom race). Finally, some changes in tactics have helped, too: I now begin races with 6-8 very fast short strokes -- in fact, I try to push the stroke rate to about 120 for those. The idea is to get the boat up to cruising speed as fast as possible, then back off the rate while keeping the boat moving just as fast. I finish the same way (well, okay, I *try* to finish the same way) and in both cases, turn the boat (if necessary) by edging it rather than using steering strokes. ---Rsk Rich Kulawiec rsk_at_gsp.org *************************************************************************** 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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