I'm buying a surprise paddle for a 5'5" novice paddler. I'm 5'8" and use a 210 cm, so I'm thinking 200 cm. Does this sound reasonable? I'm giving the lessons, so a vertical stroke will be learned. There really is not an easy answer to this question. For sea kayaking a 200 may be too short. Going below 200 would also be too short (another post). You want a paddle that permits the person to get the blade fully immersed in the water when vertical, but avoid the need to increase the number of rpm's needed to propel the boat. I.E. the shorted the paddle, the more rpm's need to cover the same distance. The only true way is for the person to try paddles of several lengths on several trips. Buy her a gift certificate. good luck sid *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
(Moderator's Note: Content unaltered. Excessive quoting (i.e. headers/footers/sig lines/comments from previous posts, etc.) have been removed. Please edit quoted material and list footers when replying to posts!) What I do/have done - try out diff length paddles, the most accurate guide is this... at a perpendicular line from where her feet touch the foot braces is the ideal spot for the paddle to enter the water. using that as a guide, pick the appropriate length paddle. Scott Simpson Anchorage Alaska "There is always one more thing you can do to influence any situation" Lt. Gen Harold Moore, USA (Ret) ----- Original Message ----- Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Paddle length From: Ed Sullivan > I'm buying a surprise paddle for a 5'5" novice paddler. I'm > 5'8" and use a 210 cm, so I'm thinking 200 cm. Does this > sound reasonable? *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
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