[Paddlewise] Cockpit size

On the subject of small cockpits, Jack Martin wrote:

" The downside is decrease in ease and speed of entry and exit,
especially in extremis --- in
surf landings, I always pop my skirt before getting to the beach, but,
even
then, beaching and getting out before the next dumper gets to you can be
difficult.  (I do not easily forget one such landing, where the big
dumper
which followed me in overtook my wave just as I was preparing to exit.
Unfortunately, my nose arrived at that nice, solid foredeck a fraction of
a
second before my helmet rim did."

I'm acquainted with that oh-so-vulnerable feeling associated with
climbing out of a kayak before arrival of the next wave. A small cockpit
boat adds a degree of difficulty, but a relatively small one. Here's an
exit strategy which I worked out in a (small cockpit) Pintail:

After popping the sprayskirt, in a single motion pressing down with both
hands, ease your butt up onto the rear deck, tuck, and roll backward off
the stern deck and into the water, angling towards the seaward side of
the boat.  Obviously, it's prudent to take into account the location of
any deck cargo and rudder (ouch!). And a helmet is de rigeur.

The maneuver neatly avoids the dangerous moment of being seated with one
or both legs outside the boat and a wave -- even a small one --
approaching. Sure, you'll get wet, but that's probably going to happen
anyway. So you might as well get wet with panache.

A bit of athleticism is required, but in my experience athleticism and
fear have always been closely related.

Mike Vandamm

 

 
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