From: "Thomas Mitchell" <mitchell_at_nwlink.com> > Werner also has a bent shaft touring paddle and a new version with a foam > core blade. I have a Werner WW paddle with their version of a bent shaft > and I prefer it to the AT. It feels much more natural to me. > > http://www.wernerpaddles.com/premtour.htm > This shaft is interesting in that there's an extra bit of bending. There are three variations on bent shafts. One places the paddle ahead of the hand, one places it behind and the other, like this Werner, is neutral. If the paddle is ahead of the hand, the paddle will tend to turn away and requires a firm grip. I understand some competitive paddlers like this. If the paddle trails, it acts like a caster wheel and follows the direction the hand leads. Most bent shafts seem to adopt this design. The only problem I've had with this is on a high-speed running draw with the shaft near vertical. The paddle wants to twist in your hand and, if held near the hip close to the kayak, tries to catch and flip you. Again, a firm grip is required. On the other hand, the paddle practically sets itself up in a roll. The Werner adds an extra bit of bending to prevent castering. However, it looks as though you'll get a bit of the other paddles' behavior (either castering with or against your stroke direction) if you hold the bent portion near the ends of the grip zone. My guess is that this effect will be fairly small. This neutral balance is probably what feels natural. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sun Nov 18 2001 - 20:53:36 PST
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