(no subject)

From: Derek Wakeling <depawake_at_ihug.co.nz>
To: PaddleWise <PaddleWise-request_at_lists.InteleNet.net>
Subject: Wrist tendonitis "cured" by using Greenland paddles
Date: Saturday, April 08, 2000 10:01 AM

Hi there

The point of this story is that the right wrist tendonitis
 that was constantly bothering my wife, Pam to the
extent she was considering giving up paddling has
completely disappeared since she started using a
 Greenland style paddle

I was stimulated to make my first Greenland paddle
 by an in our local News letter ASKNET.    It took me
 a couple of hours before I started to get used to the
 different style of paddling but after a few days I was
 going at least as fast and with less effort than with
my previous lightweight carbon fiber paddle. At first
I found the Greenland paddle only worked best once
the kayak was up  to speed, the paddle seemed to
 create a vortex behind it and not to grip the water
 whatever angle I held it. It also it  difficult to
 accelerate quickly enough to surf on the face of a
 wave.
I have now made four Greenland paddles and altered
 the blade shape slightly and find no difficulty in
 accelerating. This is probable due to combination of
 the new paddle (narrower and better airfoil section)
and more experience.

The first time my wife, Pam and I swapped paddles
Pam was soon asking for her conventional paddle
 back. How ever the second time Pam persisted and
after a couple of hours found it a delight to use.
 I then made her a Greenland paddle with narrower
blades and smaller destroy loom to suit her smaller
 grip.

Some of the delights of using a Greenland paddle
 are the ability to paddle almost silently in still water,
 the paddle enters and leaves the water so smoothly.
 The the wooden loom feels good. When held at the
proper angle there at no bubbles or vortex behind the
 blade and I do not think the wind catches the paddle
so much as with some modern designs. The pull
you can get with that narrow blade is amazing.

There are several sites giving details of how to make
Greenland paddles. http://seacanoe.org/grnpadle.htm
http://www.jacksonville.net/~dldecker/fskaGreenland.htm
http://www.users.zet.co.uk/cbrown/pdlemk.htm

My second paddle is 2.43m long,
Blade 3.75 inches wide, parallel 15 inches from tip.
 Loom 22 inches long, 40mm by 33mm. (I am 5' '10.5'' tall)
 a flattened oval in section
 Pam's second paddle is also 2.43m long, 3" wide
 parallel 15 inches from the tip,
Loom 24" long, 30mm by 34mm. ( Pam is 5' 9.5" tall)
Sorry about the mix of metric and imperial, its not very
professional but it is the
way I remember various things. Half my tools are metric
 and half imperial, sometimes I am working from imperial
US data and sometimes from metric and metric came
along hallway through life. SO!! Now that I am retired I
have given up worrying about it.

The relatively long looms for a Greenland paddle are
 because we often paddle a double but they seem to
 suit our singles equally well.

A tip! Some of the Greenland style paddles I have
 seen are made so that the blade at the junction
with the loom is much narrower than the loom, This
 causes bending stress to be concentrated at this
point and is the cause of some and, I suspect,
most breakages.  It is much better engineering to
 make the thickness of the blades taper from the
 full width of the loom down to the .5 inch tip as the
 stress is then distributed along the blade with
consequent much greater strength.
 At a recent sea trip at Coastbusters Sea Symposium
 there were 74 kayaks on the water.  Pam and I
 were paddling my own designed double "SWIFT"
which just loves rough water and several kayakers
came to have a second look said they were amazed
at how fast we oldies went with our narrow paddles
 as we were out in front of our group most of the time
and went on to a second Island which only a third of
 the group attempted.  They didn't say oldies but it
 was apparent in the body lauguage.

Hope this might help somebody. Happy paddling,
Derek Wakeling




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