Re: [Paddlewise] Wing Paddle

-So, whadya all think about the Wing Paddle?

Josh-


Josh,

I would hazard a guess and say that more kayakers in New Zealand are using
wing paddles than not. This is due to the high level of participation in
multisport and adventure racing, which has had a flow on to sea kayaking.

I had always shunned the things, mainly due to ignorance. This feeling was
reinforced when trying to teach a wing user how to do a sweeping brace
stroke. He said that he couldn't, as the blade would dive. Most strokes that
I suggested met with the same response. Eventually I asked him what they
were good for, and he said he would race me to the corner to show me. When I
suggested that we race backwards, he reneged.

This view changed after watching a good friend who has been paddling for
nearly 40 years, and has used wings since Mark 1, Version 1. He was coming
in through surf in his sea kayak when he did a bow rudder stroke, while
using his wing paddle. When I said I didn't think they were any good for
anything other than forward strokes, he chucked me his spare paddle, also a
wing, and said simply, "Learn to use it".

I can now declare that there is nothing I can do with a conventional paddle
that I can't do with a wing. They grab a big hunk of water and hold it
tight, which does require slight changes to some slicing strokes, ie:
hanging draws and sculling draws. Apart from those minor points, they're
great.

I now use a "wing paddle stroke technique" when using standard blades. This
generates more power as well as solving a minor problem with tennis-elbow.

I'm back to using my Lendal modified-crank shaft with Nordkapp blades, but
can't help but wonder what would happen if I took a saw to the shaft and
grabbed some epoxy glue, and......

Cheers

John Kirk-Anderson
Banks Peninsula
New Zealand


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