Gee Whiz!!! You forgot to add that rudders can get tangled in wild parsnit which would leave you susceptible to bear attack!!! I have heard the maintenance and breakage issue for ever, but haven't found either to be a problem in my 5 years of paddling. While I haven't heard of anyone I know have a rudder break, I know several who have had jammed skegs, supposedly the more reliable option. My rudder probably only gets used in 3% of my paddling, which may seem to make it rather superfluous, but when I want it I'm glad to have it. For the most part, my straight tracking QCC only tends to weathercock on top of my car when I'm going 75, but when conditions get to a certain point and I'm tired from a long paddle, it's nice to have some help. Or if I'm trying to keep a certain track through some rocky areas. My fixed pedal Seal Line rails eliminate the spongy pedal problem, which is a cause for concern. It seems there are poorly designed rudders, misused rudders and overused rudders, but none of that speaks to the case of proper rudder use. And it always bugs me with the implication that we are incapable overcoming the inherent problems of designing a good rudder. I'll admit boats without rudders just look better and it's best to be as capable as you can be without one, but I think they have their proper place in the sport. Mark -----Original Message----- From: Matt Broze Your efficiency point is arguable since rudders themselves cause additional drag just being in the water so they need to make up for more than they loose (with increased control of direction with less effort used--which may or may not be the case depending on many other factors, the kayak's design being a major one of those). 14)Rudders have been hit by sharks. Some have speculated that the motion (or vibrations from the rudder) acts as a lure to them. 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 Tue Jun 26 2007 - 08:06:37 PDT
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