Re: [Paddlewise] Sea Kayaker Reviews

Ralph Diaz wrote:

>>Hmmm, interesting.  If that original reasoning is the case, and I hope
it is not, it says a lot about what the editors think about the
companies that advertise in the publication and the corruptability of
the reviewers.  Maybe, I am just more trusting by nature (we New Yorkers
are, BTW, despite our reputation for cynicism), certainly regarding
individuals who take on a task such as reviewing something for the
common good of a community they belong to.  Most people are not going to
betray such a trust certainly in a small community such as ours where
transgressions will be spotted easily and their reputations soiled.  I
still say, take a chance on bribes, and identify the people and give
them more coherent longer statements about the boats rather than the
snippet/sound bites.<<

I'm sure you are right about most reviewers and manufacturers in this regard
but your original conclusion is about Sea Kayaker's negative beliefs is way
off base. I'm sure Sea Kayaker wants to avoid as much as possible the
possibility (and the appearance) that their review system could be easily
abused rather than because they have a low regard for their advertisers
and/or reviewers.
I've seen many instances on this very list where posters jump to the
conclusion that something is being done from sinister motives. I certainly
thought of that possibility regarding the self selected testers on the
website that started this thread. Best to distanced yourself as far as
possible from the possibility of cheating. Years ago I know of an instance
of a runners magazine cheating on a large shoe review for under the table
payola. Years ago when discussing our frustrations about another paddling
magazine one kayak company owner said to me, "It's hard to know how to deal
with a company that is so (then something like--out front about--or blatant
about advertising dollars being connected to favorable mentions and
reviews)."

Ralph again:
>>Since you know a good number of them and, I don't believe travel to all
corners of this country, I get the impression that most of the reviewers
are in your Northwest, which is certainly logical given where the
editorial offices are headquartered.   From what I have seen, paddling
styles, skills and expectations vary widely throughout the land.  There
are certain regional preferences in boats and paddling waters.  Would be
interesting to see how a Chesapeake expert paddler would react to a
certain kayak or a Maine paddler or a Great Lakes paddler.  This is
another good reason for IDing the testers so we know where they paddle
and what "school" or "paddling religion" they belong to.<<

Three that I can think of off the top of my head are from CA, a couple of
them are probably lurking on this list right now. I assume a majority are
within driving range of Sea Kayaker because a new model kayak that is sent
to Sea Kayaker for testing may not be readily available in all parts of the
country. Being that the editor is from Seattle he can probably access the
paddling skills of more local testers as well. I think Sea Kayaker has gone
to some effort to get testers from other areas especially when they can test
a more commonly available model. I don't see how it is that important
though. Knowing where someone is from hardly is enough information to know
their "religion". Given the reviewers are asked to tell the reader about the
handling characteristics of the kayak rather than what their personal
preferences are I think a good paddler from any religion can describe their
experiences with the kayak. Some one who likes a stiff tracking kayak and
another that prefers a very maneuverable kayak can both agree on which
kayaks are which in that regard. This is why it would be difficult to judge
the value of a certain feature or handling characteristic of a kayak in a
way that could be more informative to a beginner. Different strokes for
different folks. If that were not the case the one all around perfect kayak
for everybody would be the only one that ever sells. I think Sea kayaker is
trying to judge who this kayak is best for and does it perform well under
the manufacturers statement of intent. By sticking to just the facts rather
than an interpretation of them those of different religions can often agree.

Oh yeah, in my post written early this morning "Shaman" (in the one instance
I missed replacing it) should be "Cape Horn". I had originally paraphrased
Dave's post from memory and confused the WS Shaman with the WS Cape Horn in
my memory (until I rechecked the original post before sending it). Does
anybody know how to do a global search and replace in IE?  I see that the
whole paragraph got very poorly edited before I pushed send. Hope it wasn't
too confusing. Oh well, I've got to learn to go to bed earlier and not write
when I'm half asleep.

Matt Broze
http://www.marinerkayaks.com


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