> You could take the rudder off to save weight - it's unnecessary on > the Solstice kayaks. > > Mike I have had my Solstice GTS for about 8 years and paddle it with and without the rudder. I do not agree with the necessary/unnecessary dichotomy with respect to rudders. The rudder helps to save energy on long paddles in choppy windy conditions. It is not strictly necessary perhaps, but is very nice to have and I generally use it, except in rough conditions where I prefer not. If I want to paddle without a rudder I choose my Mariner Express. The GTS is not only very straight tracking but also has excellent balance in side winds. I had a rudder cable snap once while soloing off shore and was able reset the footbraces so that they were fixed and the rudder retracted, so I just continued my paddle with no problem, I have never missed a roll with the GTS. When fully loaded it rides low in the water and I do not care for it as much. I weigh 170. If you are going to camp and load the boat and weigh more, I would choose the GT. Jerry *************************************************************************** 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 Fri May 14 2004 - 07:24:59 PDT
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