Re: [Paddlewise] More on the Perception Eclipse and Kayak Fit

From: Wes Boyd <boydwe_at_dmci.net>
Date: Fri, 20 Oct 2000 09:13:51
At 07:29 AM 10/20/00 -0500, Luke Hoffman wrote:


>evidently this is not an uncommon problem.  I have gotten a couple of other 
>boat suggestions, plus I remembered Wes Boyd's Boats for Big Guys page at:
>http://www2.dmci.net/users/wesboyd/bigguy.htm

You know, it sure gives my ego little smiley faces inside to see other
people put up pointers to that page. I guess it's providing a useful
service to somebody, which makes me glad that I thought of doing it.

Well, now with the weather getting colder, the days getting shorter and the
kayaking season winding down, maybe it's time to think about spiffing it up
again, adding some boats, cleaning up some minor errors, jazzing up the
page appearance, etc. From this topic and a couple e-mails I've had
recently, I can see I need to put more emphasis into boats for the plus-six
footers, especially those with big feet. Does anybody have any suggestions,
ideas, or pointers (I mean, over and above what's been discussed in this
thread?)

>I'm going to check out some of those too.

One of the few areas where men can share in the joy of shopping that women
often seem to extol is searching for a new boat. It gives plenty of
opportunity to try out different boats -- which can be habit forming, just
ask Matt Broze -- or stand around talking kayaking, or just get out and see
new scenery, thinking about what you want in a boat, wondering how you're
going to pay or it and/or explain it to the wife, the thrill of finding the
perfect boat marked off 40% at an end of season sale, and so on, and so on.
In other words, shopping for boats is fun and habit forming and an
excellent way to pass the time. Plus, it's certianly better for you
(although perhaps no less expensive) than drinking or drugs.

Joking aside, shop around. It's worth it to try out lots of different
boats, especially if you're an odd fit. You can learn a great deal from
looking at the different approaches to the same problem. As I said on the
above-mentioned web page, "A boat can haul a load that could break down a
pack horse, track like an arrow, turn on a dime and be fast as the wind,
but if you can't get in and out easily, and be comfortable in it for
several hours, it is not the boat for you. The only way to be sure it fits
you is to try it on; if it doesn't fit, look elsewhere."

Have fun with it!

-- Wes

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Received on Fri Oct 20 2000 - 06:12:06 PDT

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