Rob wrote: > > I have no doubt that this holds true in theory. It is just that I have > never witnessed it in kayaking. The only reason I mention it at all is I > have heard members of the cult of the skinny boat tell new paddlers that a > skinny tippy boat is much more seaworthy than one that is more stable. I > just haven't seen a case where a kayaker was in a boat with such high form > stability that they could not lean it far enough into a breaking wave to > prevent capsize. Doesn't mean it doesn't happen, I just haven't seen it. Most of the people who paddle in these conditions have a lot of skill (at least the ones who survive :-)) and I confess that I try to avoid such conditions as much as possible although avoidance does pose problems in the North Atlantic. To get an idea of the conditions try side surfing into a beach in plunging breakers. :-0 (SNIP) > > Attention lapse or worse yet-incorrect response to a given condition, e.g.. > leaning away from the wave while doing a high air-brace. No doubt. You can find a good story about what happens in Hannes Lindemann's "Alone at Sea" . He capsized when his sea anchor line failed. Drifted sideways and capsized. Of course, this had nothing to do with a lack of skill. He was sleeping at the time I think. > > > This of course, does not mean that narrow boats work a whole lot > > better in > > these conditions except in the hands of skilled paddlers. > > Yup, that's all I'm saying. Yes, I think a lot of people leap to conclusions about what "is best" as universal rule when it really amounts to "what works best for me and what I do". So long as paddlers recognise the down side of a boat's stability characteristics and allow for it they can stay out of trouble. Low form stability boats require generally higher skill levels and more constant attention most of the time while high form stability boats can lull one into a false sense of security and require either a lot of attention in breaking seas or some other means of keeping the boat normal the the sea train. You pays your money and takes your choice. Cheers, John Winters Web site address http://home.ican.net/~735769 *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Wed Sep 13 2000 - 18:01:08 PDT
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