Bruce wrote; >Whether one prefers a single or double bladed paddle is really just a matter >of taste. John wrote that using the double is "disgusting". I don't find it >so. This is not an argument, merely a statement that our tastes differ. De >gustibus non disputandum est. Actually just kidding since I use the double bladed paddle myself when paddling a canoe especially when on open water and in a head wind. > >As John indicated, you'll have a hard time buying something that fits the >above bill reasonably well, so if you're serious, you'll need to build your >own, or have one built. IMO, the "Wee Lassie" variants around are fat little >tubs. ("De gustibus..." again, of course.) So I'll ramble on for a bit about >what you want if you go this route. Everything will be qualitative, of >course: my shoes probably won't fit you, so why should my boat? But I'm >trying to point to what you need to think about. Quite true about the Wee Lassies. Bruce's boats would be much more fun for those who are used to more responsive boats. > >And I do enjoy a bit of speed now and then. My boats aren't up to John's >standards, and won't come close to Richard's sprint kayak, but they will >keep up easily with, or walk away from, most non-racing sea kayaks. And I >even have a few true stories that can be made to sound very impressive. Bruce is too modest here. I have paddled his boats and they are bloody fast. Actually what I should say is that they cover a range of speed and stability. You can kind of take your pick the compromise that suits you. If recall correctly Bruce has built seven versions. The ease of building these boats is a bonus. I believe one can be built (strippers) in a weekend if one isn't too fussy about the finish. This allows you to build and try a design without investing a lot of time or money. If you use short strips (I ue strips as short as two feet) that you can rip out of almost any piece of wood the cost can be quite low. You could use cheaper cuts of redwood, pine, spruce, basswood etc. If you really like the boat you could even sew a canvas deck for it and you would have a hard shell/soft deck sea kayak. 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 Sun Jul 19 1998 - 03:00:55 PDT
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