Conventionally, a sprint racing kayak does not have bulkheads and does not have float bags; a wild water kayak does not have bulkheads but does have float bags, and a sea kayak has bulkheads and gear bags rather than float bags. As far as the tightness of skirts goes, new paddlers use easy to remove skirts, whereas experienced wild water paddlers use very tight skirts. Similarly, deck lines are the norm on sea kayaks, but are dangerous on wild water kayaks. Sprint racing kayaks are very fragile, wild water play kayaks are bomb proof, and sea kayaks range from solid to very sturdy depending on anticipated use. There are so many variations of kayaks that what might be best for one is no more than an embuggerance for others. I do not want a one-size fits all solution. Remember poor Sally Sponson. Knowledge and experience is what keeps us safe, including the knowledge and experience to know what sort of design and outfitting is appropriate for particular uses. Let's encourage manufacturers, retailers, and new paddlers to learn about product safety and safe paddling practices. Cheers, Richard Culpeper *************************************************************************** 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 Apr 04 2004 - 09:44:34 PDT
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