Sounds to me that you have been reading an out of date or unrevised book by Derek Hutchinson explaining the advantages of British kayaks and the differences between them and most North American kayaks from back in about 1984 when he first wrote this propaganda (in the guise of a textbook). Times have changed and several others have already pointed out these generalizations are no longer true (even those parts that were actually true back in 1984) out so I'll skip the details. Matt Broze http://www.marinerkayaks.com From: Joshua Teitelbaum <teitelba_at_post.tau.ac.il> <SNIP> It is my understanding (I do this with the utmost humility in this forum, please...), that these boats tend to be sportier; by this I mean that they are: Narrow (& tippy), relatively fast, good tracking (slow to turn) low volume (less windage/less cargo), snug-fitting (more control/less comfortable) & extremely durable (& heavy) all of which adds up to an extremely seaworthy craft that requires effort and skill to pilot and enjoy. While American boats tend to be: Wide (& stable), slower, maneuverable (poor tracking) higher volume (more cargo/more windage, loose fitting (more comfortable/less control) & light (but somewhat fragile) all of which adds up to a very comfortable craft for gentle waters that requires little skill to pilot and none to enjoy. (The above characterizations are those of a Paddlewiser who back channeled me a while ago -- he remains anonymous since I have not asked his permission to post his comments.). <SNIP> *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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