Re: [Paddlewise] Greenland Style Paddles

At 02:12 PM 9/3/2004 -0400, Kirk Olsen wrote:
>On Fri, 3 Sep 2004 11:55:51 -0400, "Larry Pelletier"
><larry.bp_at_verizon.net> said:
> > I have several questions:
> >
> > First, I have been paddling for just two years, but I'm not a kid.  I
> > have arthritis in my right shoulder and tendonitis in my left elbow.
> > I have read that the Greenland style of paddling is less stressful on
> > joints since it is more aerobic than strength orientated is there any
> > truth in this?
>
>I think so.  When I switch from my greenland style paddle to my euro
>paddle the euro paddle feels like a shovel on the end of a stick.  The
>euro feels clumsy to me after spending time with the greenland.  The
>converse is also true, if you are used to a Euro paddle the first
>reaction to a greenland is likely to be. "how do you get anywhere with
>this." and "why didn't that stroke work".
>
> > > Second, If the above statement is true where can I try out this
> > > type of
> > paddle and learn the correct paddling style to go with it? (I live in
> > Rhode Island)
>
>Sept 11/12 is the Arctic Boat weekend at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut
>
>http://www.mysticseaport.org/source/show_course.cfm?mcourse=215&mki-
>nd=visit I can't think of a better way to go way overboard on
>starting out ;-)
>
>http://www.qajaqusa.org is where the "hardcore" greenland practitioners
>hang out, on the web.  Just in case you wanted to waste more time on the
>Internet...

I'll add a couple more links...


http://www.studiofurniture.com/delmarva/index.html
The DelMarva paddlers retreat has it's 16th annual retreat coming up on 
Oct. 1-3.  It always includes a Greenland paddlemaking workshop and 
provides on water instruction as well.

http://www.newfoundrendezvous.org/
The Newfound Woodworks rendevous, while primarily about wooden boats, also 
usually has sessions on building a Greenland style paddle.




> > Last, How do I select the correct length paddle?
>
>Chuck Host did a nice pdf on building your own greenland paddle and
>sizing it properly: http://www.qajaqusa.org/QK/makegreen2.pdf
>
> >  I don't have a Greenland style kayak, I have a Wilderness Systems
> >  Cape Horn which is a relatively wide high volume kayak.
>
>I'll leave this up to others.  I would go with a slightly longer, than
>the anthropomorphic measurements, paddle.

Larry may be asking himself (or about to ask us) by now "wdo I have to 
build a Greenland paddle?  Why shouln't I just buy one?"

The answer to that question is actually related to the answer of the "How 
do I select the correct length?" question.

Unlike Euro paddles there are actually several "lengths" to be concerned 
about.  When you buy a commercial euro style paddle you typically have a 
limited number of choices in overall length (typically 210cm to 240cm in 
10cm increments).  Some venders offer a couple of shaft widths, and then 
you have a select of paddle blade styles.  For a greenland style, there is 
the overall length (typically if you stand next to the paddle with one tip 
on the ground you should be just be able to wrap your palm over the other 
tip).  Of equal importance is the loom length, especially for a shouldered 
loom.  Basically that's where your hands go when you're holding the paddle 
normally.  Then there's the width of the blade.  If you grasp the blade 
near the end of the paddle it should be no wider than the from the webbing 
between your thumb and hand and the first joint on your index finger.

Because these lengths are specified based on your personal body type it's 
not commerially viable for a greenland paddle builder to pre-build paddle 
that would fit all these requirements.  There are several commercial 
greenland paddles on the market, and if you're lucky, you might find one 
that will fit, but they're fairly inexpensive and easy to build a custom 
paddle that fits perfectly.
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