Ralph wrote; (Large SNIP) > >The story is true since I heard it just a few days after it happened and >talked extensively to all the people involved. I think you missed the >point or points of my story. First, the performance boat in the story >had a great paddler in it but even at some point, he could not handle >the situation because his boat lacked enough initial stability to get >set for the next wave. The guy in the Chinook chose to ride out the >waves on a broached brace. The boat was good enough to do what he >needed and had the sufficient skill for what is a fairly moderate task. >What surprised me is his ability to hold it for half a mile or more. I >think it was a nice combination of initial and secondary stability that >allowed this plus just the modicum lean allowed in the Chinook. Experts >will feel happier and challenged in their advanced boats; the rest of us >will be happier in boats that do some of the stuff for us and apply our >less sharp and less practiced smaller arsenal of skills. > What Ralph is talking about here is valid within the context of the event and the people involved. I don't know that "expert" is an absolute. Experts come in a wide variety of types, sizes, skills, etc. just as novices may be instinctively good or just incompetent regardless of experience etc. The point that I think Ralph makes is that "advanced" is a relative term and that not every boat is advanced or even good in every set of circumstances Keep in mind that it is possible to have a boat that is too unstable for conditions or paddler just as it is possible to have one that is to stable for conditions or paddler. There is an ideal boat (theoretically) for every individual paddler under any specific set of circumstances and it is not the same boat for all paddlers. One should not conclude that more stability is better than less stability from one incident. One should only recognise the effects of stability and its different advantages and disadvantages and act accordingly. When we talk about "advanced" boats we are really talking about a rather airy fairy thing. An advanced boat for ocean crossings will not be an advanced boat for surfing or day trips or rolling practice or swamp exploring etc. etc. Performance as a comprehensive term is a package of characteristics that varies with objectives and paddler. >From a design standpoint an advanced boat is one that meets a particular objective in a superior fashion relative to existing boats designed for that purpose. That objective may be seaworthiness and seakindliness for a long distance traveller, speed for a racer, responsiveness to the paddler who enjoys pirouettes and so forth. The failure of one person/boat combination under a particular set of circumstances should not be construed as a failure for all circumstances either real or imagined. It is common for paddlers to assume that the boat that is right for them is right for everyone and to argue vehemently about it. I suppose people need reinforcement that they made the right decision and try to get it by persuading others to paddle the same or similar boats. Builders love it. It is called brand loyalty. It is, as has been proven many times, not always rational. I believe that one need only define what one would like a boat to do. Then find a boat that does does it better than any other boat and you have found your advanced boat. 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/ ***************************************************************************Received on Mon May 11 1998 - 05:00:13 PDT
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