Ralph at FoldingBoats_at_aol.com wrote: <<Alv, I've been following your description with interest. But let's face it, manufacturers originally introduced inflatable side tubes into some of their folding kayak models mainly merely to ease the process of assembly...>> I am aware of this, but the original motivation does not change the effects of sponsons in actual use. The "other" Ralph made some interesting comments on this in his newsletter last year. <<There are people out there who prefer more slender boats. There are manufacturers who still provide such boats. It would appear that what you're proposing is that these boats be legislated out of the production line-up?>> If you read my arguments carefully, you will find that this is not the case. I am only trying to find a way to make recreational boats safer for the "uninformed". But you are touching on my main problem here: How do we define what is a recreational kayak vs non-recreational? <<Inbuilt floatation, if it is to be effective, requires, according to Archimedes that a good amount of interior space must be filled out by it. That space is lost to stowage capacity. But what about gear carried in dry bags, which, once the boat starts to flood, also reduces the floodable volume? In fact, a long distance paddler is likely to be blocking a considerably greater volume of the boat's interior in this way!>> Yes, but would a long distance paddler be in a recreational kayak? <<(The additional floatation that sponsons happen to provide is a nice side benefit (although only once the boat is completely flooded and when does that ever happen in practice in a decked canoe or kayak?!?)...>> Actually, the stabilizing effect starts long before the boat is completely flooded. I do not know how often it happens, but suspect that since most recreational boats/paddlers are not outfitted with skirts, flooding may not be all that rare. <<I'm a sea paddler, the increase in the risk of broaching in a partly flooded boat WITHOUT something to keep the water from sloshing into the ends is a very real problem -- one rarely recognized or discussed and one NOT solved by sponsons.>> Yes, but please remember that I am not trying to solve the problems a sea kayaker is likely to get himself into. Sponsons can do some nice things, but there are problems out there that they do not solve. <<If you wish to push for legislation that makes floatation mandatory, then let's do so in a way that keeps the paddler responsible.>> I am afraid the necessary enforcement would be very intrusive, and I would not want to go that route. <<Edi Hans Pawlata already recognized and publicized the fact in 1928 that it's not the boat that is seaworthy, but only the combination of boat and paddler.>> That is a good point, but I am not sure how helpful it is in this discussion. I am trying to find a way to make the boat/paddler combination more seaworthy. Since I see no way to reach all the beginning paddlers, our best bet may be to make the boats a bit safer. That should have a positive effect on the combination. <<By all means make it mandatory that the paddler is properly equipped and that s/he properly deploys the equipment ... but let's not push for legislation, which only covers half of the potential problems,>> That is just what I am trying to do: Define a problem of limited scope that has a well defined solution. <<or should we also mandate floatation built into the ends of sea boats and padding built into the stems of white water boats and should we mandate flexible coamings and deck construction that does not break the paddler's back when a breaker sweeps over him, or ...>> No, let us leave those problems for some other time. <<It remains an obvious fact that boats with some inbuilt floatation -- like Pakboats -- present an advantage to the safety conscious paddler since s/he does not have to add quite so much floatation themselves. Having said that, you would not catch me putting out to sea without a whole lot more floatation stuffed AND strapped into the hull of my boat than that provided as standard on the current crop of folders of whatever stripe.>> You are hardly the beginning recreational paddler I had in mind, and I am well aware that you have the experience and judgment to outfit your boat appropriately. We know, and the people who read this know, that a boat needs to be appropriately outfitted for its use. I add flotation for whitewater play, and I leave the flotation bags home when I go wilderness tripping because my gear provides the flotation I need. My concern in this discussion is for the beginning recreational paddler who does not know. Best regards, Alv Elvestad *************************************************************************** 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 Thu Apr 18 2002 - 11:18:29 PDT
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