For a paddle to create lift in a forward direction the leading edge (first through the water) must be towards the front of the boat, like the leading edge of a propeller. As you describe, the paddle may be creating lift, but it is in a direction perpendicular to the direction you want to go, so it isn't "useful" for propelling the boat forward. This isn't to say it is useful for some other purpose, but it is not contributing directly to making the boat go forward. One "useful" aspect of the lift is it may help submerge the blade fully. By pulling the blade deep you improve the overall efficiency potential. I suspect that during the latter half of the stroke, the "leading" edge swaps and that as you bring the blade back up towards the surface, the blade has the ability to produce some lift in the forward direction, but I have yet to hear from a Greenland paddler who can confirm this. On Sep 7, 2004, at 5:26 PM, Robert MacDonald wrote: > > The paddle moves parallel to the direction of motion. The leading > edge is towards the back of the boat. If the left blade is in the > water on the left side of the boat, it looks like this: \, and moves > towards the bottom of the page. It is hard to say which direction the > total force is directed, but there is a significant component in the > drive direction, also a significant component in the cross-boat > direction. Nick Schade Guillemot Kayaks 824 Thompson St Glastonbury, CT 06033 USA Ph/Fx: (860) 659-8847 http://www.guillemot-kayaks.com/ *************************************************************************** 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 Wed Sep 08 2004 - 05:58:04 PDT
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