Dan Hagen posted that paddling his Caribou, and by extension any boat, without rudder or skeg is more fun than with. I have to agree under the condition that you don't have to fight strong winds for control. Duane Strosaker wrote: >I also have a Looksha IV in plastic, and I have paddled it a lot in rough >weather, on crossings and in the surf. I really love the kayak, but it >doesn't behave in even a mild crosswind with the rudder up. .... But the price for the >maneuverability is reduced tracking and increased weathercocking. >I love the kayak so much that I am willing to deal with the weathercocking. >When a beam wind hits me, I just flip the rudder down. ...I'll tell you though, I hope that >rudder doesn't break when the nearest land on a crossing is 10 miles and I've got a >nasty beam wind. Nick Lyle posted that he demo'd the Caribou and found it greatly affected by wind, and decided in favor of an Express which is completely neutral in side winds when the seat is adjusted properly. It is interesting to me that people can have such divergent opinions of the same boat. I haven't tried the Looksha but Duane's description makes it sound awful, rather than fun, in winds. I have tried the Caribou in winds and it wasn't fun for me at all, rather a big effort to go in the direction I wanted. (Dan, I know we had this argument some time ago. I still don't get it.) Jerry *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Gerald Foodman wrote: > > ...<snip>.. > ... an Express which is completely neutral in side > winds when the seat is adjusted properly. Exactly. And if you shift some weight forward by moving the seat or gear forward--thus moving the center of lateral resistance forward--it will no longer be neutral. The key is getting the weight distribution adjusted properly. > It is interesting to me that people can have such divergent opinions of the > same boat. ... I have tried the Caribou in winds > and it wasn't fun for me at all, rather a big effort to go in the direction > I wanted. (Dan, I know we had this argument some time ago. I still don't > get it.) Well, I suppose I'll take another crack at unraveling the mystery. You paddled the Caribou once, behind a breakwater (short wind fetch), with the boat empty and with the seat in the factory position. First, with an empty boat and with the Caribou's seat in the factory position there is a moderate tendency to weathercock (although nothing like you describe). Adding weight behind the seat--using the gear and water that most people take on a day trip--takes care of most of this. (You can also reposition the seat slightly aft.) With enough weight shift you can create lee helm, which is to be avoided. I suggest leaving slight weather helm, which can be controlled with adjustments so subtle they become subconscious. Second, any weather helm will be exacerbated when the wind is blowing over a short fetch--such as your experience behind the breakwater. Finally, to learn how to use a boat's handling characteristics to your advantage may take more than one or two short paddling sessions. What may seem difficult at first can seem trivial later on after you become acquainted with the boat. Sometimes the effort required to get to that point yields huge dividends, although I realize that this is an increasingly out-of-date sentiment given our fixation with immediate gratification. It's no wonder that the market is dominated by sea kayaks with various adjustment mechanisms. "Quick and easy" has become synonymous with "good" (and leads to increased sales). You paddled the Caribou once. I have paddled it countless times in all seasons and conditions over the past three years. Maybe you understand the Caribou better than I do, but I doubt it. I have sold other boats during this time, but have kept the Caribou, which I now paddle exclusively. I find it very easy to control in strong winds (and certainly not "dangerous"). How do I do it? It must be magic! Either that or some weird combination of physics, experience, and skill. Happy paddling! Dan Hagen *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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