Re: [Paddlewise] newby

At 03:05 PM 3/7/02 -0600, Bill Lee wrote:
>Well I am ready to throw myself on the mercy of this court. I am 61 out of
>shape and have just purchased a 16' Sun thor model tandem. It allows me to
>move the front seat back to center the weight for single paddling. I live in
>Bay St Louis, MS and have this bay plus Biloxi bay as well as Lake Ponchtrain
>all in my backyard. This boat does not have a rudder and I am beginning to
>think that may be a mistake.

Not necessarily. Unless you're going to be paddling in a lot of wind you're 
probably better off learning to paddle without one.

>I have not seen the boat yet as it was just
>shipped yesterday from Canada. How about a few hints and suggestions to keep
>me from drowning the first day. Also what about CG regs. I have couple of
>$5.00 pfd's that I bought more for show then safety. I see wal mart has some
>that look good with large open arm areas for about $20.

Even $20 is a ridiculously low amount to spend for a PFD.  Some of the best 
advice I received when I first started paddling was to not try and save 
money on a PFD.  A lot of the cheap PFD's are not very comfortable.  If 
it's not comfortable you're more likely going to take it off and stuff it 
behind your seat or under the deck bungies.  Unless you're wearing the PFD 
it's not going to be effective when you need it.

I would imagine that those $20 PFD's at walmart are not designed for 
paddling but more likely for waterskiing.  PFD's designed for paddling are 
cut a bit higher (instead of going down to your waist) to give more freedom 
of movement and to keep from interfereing with a spray skirt (that isn't an 
issue though with the boat you bought).  Get a good PFD and you won't mind 
wearing it whenever you paddle.  I *always* wear mine whenever I get into a 
kayak, even when I'm doing rolling practice in a swimming pool.


>fortunatly most of
>these areas are so shallow I can walk to shore. If i have to.

If it's that shallow there's a greater chance of hitting your head on the 
bottom when (not if) you capsize.  There is no good reason not to wear a 
PFD whenever you get into a kayak, though, legally, most places only 
require you to "carry" a PFD.


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