PeterO asked: >>>>>>Does solid secondary stability generally correlate with a less comfortable ride in choppy water? i.e with increased stability and less tendency to stay vertical on a wave, is the ride likely to be less comfortable? I seem to feel that in boats I've paddled.<<<<<<< I think John and Dave did excellent jobs of answering that, and yes I think you were confusing secondary stability with primary (initial) stability. The only things I would like to add to what they wrote is that I like a progressive secondary stability that doesn't peak until a large angle of lean combined with a low initial stability. Effortless to lean at first but much more secure feeling when leaned than a kayak with high initial stability (or one with low initial and low secondary stability). If viewing a stability curve (such as in Sea Kayaker magazine reviews), this looks like a straight line of increasing stability with increased lean. If the line on the graph is initially too much towards the vertical (high initial stability) you won't be able too lean at much of an angle before the stability line starts to bend and shallow out (and once it starts to shallow out you aren't in the steadily increasing stability situation I like any longer). If the line starts out from zero degrees nearly horizontal (little or no initial stability) there won't be much secondary stability either unless the curve takes a turn upward later (and then you don't get the comfortably consistent progressive increase in stability with lean). The greater the angle of lean before the curve starts to bend and shallow out the more the kayak can be leaned and still have that cushion of even greater stability helping keep you from leaning further too quickly--possibly accidentally capsizing or at least having to throw in a quick brace. I wrote about secondary stability much more in the FAQ's on our website. High initial stability I likened to leaning a four legged chair, high secondary stability seems more analogous to a rocking chair. If you made the rockers on a rocking chair the arc of a relatively small circle that would be more analogous to neither initial or secondary stability. Sea Kayaker also did a good technical sidebar on this subject of how to interpret their stability graphs in their Spring 1986 issue (reprinted at the end of the Mariner XL review on our website for those who don't happen to have it handy--five different kayak's stability curves are also in that review and article). To answer the question above more directly, it is the low initial stability that causes the Pittarak to automatically not be tipped in side waves (essentially by not offering the wave much lever arm with which to tip it). The kayak with low initial and high secondary also doesn't give the wave much of a lever but is also much more comfortable doing leaned turns and is usually comfortable when on the face of even a steep wave or breaker (unless the deck is too low and too wide such that the wave or breaker can get on top of the side deck, where the falling water can essentially get a good grip on the edge sticking into it and tip the kayak in towards the wave). Matt Broze www.marinerkayaks.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 Thu May 12 2005 - 01:58:54 PDT
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