Re: [Paddlewise] Rudder redux

On Tuesday 26 June 2007 17:07, PaddleWise wrote:
> First let me say that Im fine letting anyone choose if they want to use
> a rudder or not. I dislike them and I stated my reasons for not liking
> them (although personally I dont worry about sharks either way). Some
> kayaks absolutely need a rudder so Im certainly not arguing that
> someone with such a kayak forgo the rudder. 

I think it is pretty hard to sail a klepper without a rudder, even if you 
can use your paddle as a poor man's rudder! We always paddle with the
rudder on, but at times we lift it out of the water - especially close to
the shore.

(snip)

> >>>>>>>>At least one record-holding long-distance paddler (Paul Caffyn -
>
> Google his name for those who haven't run across his exploits before)
> has kept records to indicate that he covers more water in less time with
> a rudder (a deep rudder) than in a boat with no rudder at all. Or, for
> that matter, in a boat with a skeg. This, all by itself, is a powerful
> argument for using a rudder. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
>
>
>
> The Nordkapp HS that Paul used has a fairly strong weatherhelm (the HM
> version can be very hard to turn when at speed (so making corrections
> while on the wave to prevent a broach is nearly impossiblein my
> experience with the HM especially the result is a long carved broach off
> the wave that doesnt end until the boat is nearly perpendicular to the
> wave direction or the wave passes the boat). Id say adding a rudder to
> the Nordkapp HS was a good solution for Paul and I have no doubt that he
> did indeed make better time with a rudder than without. I should note
> that Pauls rudder was about twice as long as rudders normally found on
> sea kayaks because without the extra length Paul would have suffered
> much more in steep following seas where the rudder often doesnt reach
> the water as the stern is liftedand if the waves are steep lifts the
> rudder blade from the water just when it is needed most. 

A very good point! With the rudder we spend very little time correcting
our track, while without it is a coordinated effort - sometimes involving 
harsh words!

> 1)Less fatigue. Loose or spongy foot pedals diminish the power of your
> stroke in those systems where the rudder pedal slides (because of the
> reduction in being able to use thigh and calf muscles to help share the
> load). Where the pedals work like gas pedals just the calf muscles are
> mostly lost for sharing the hull drag load among your muscle groups.

Klepper's ain't spongy!

> my rudders are operated by my tippy-toes while my heels stay firmly
> planted against the cockpit sole and my knees are against the foam pads
> under the cockpit coaming. This position allows me to use my stomach and
> thigh muscles (much like having a friend sit on your legs during
> sit-ups) while I paddle. Is this less efficient than making multiple
> consecutive correction strokes or putting more energy into a stroke on
> one side of the boat while edging? I don't believe so. 

Hear, hear! 

(snip)

> Yes, I learned that lesson my second time in a kayak. I was surfing
> whitecaps coming into a beach and thought using the paddle down wave
> might stop the broaching. Instead it almost tripped me over as the boat
> ran into the paddle. Why I didnt learn it on that first try when I
> almost capsized? I dont know. The second try could have killed me as
> after tripping over the paddle and capsizing I almost stayed stuck by
> the new (to me) unfamiliar spraydeck after the resulting capsize. I
> dont think I ever did it again that I can recall anyhow. My point is
> that with most (sliding pedal) rudder systems if you push the down wave
> pedal forward in order to point the bow back down the wave you loosen
> the grip on the down wave side of the kayak with your knee and when the
> rudder trips you upon reentering the water you dont have your knee
> giving you a firm grip to prevent the kayak from capsizing by leaning it
> into the wave. Of course, if both your knees always stay jammed up
> against the deck like you say yours do that might not be a problem for
> you. Crossing the rudder cables solved the problem for me and felt more
> natural to me as well. Of course, I havent spent enough time piloting
> an airplane to have reflexively wanted to use the pedals the other way.
> Surprising, piloting a small plane seemed very natural to me when I
> first did it years ago. So much so, I would have thought I must have
> been a pilot in a past life (if I believed in such things).

Haven't we all?!

> 5)Broken rudders, cables, corrosion, and wear mean far more maintenance
> is required. A rudder dependent paddler can suddenly go "cold turkey" in
> extreme conditions if the rudder fails. Or much worse, imagine your
> rudder stuck down and hard over to one side during a rough solo
> crossing. I once won a kayak race partly because a paddler in a faster
> kayak had this happen to him during the sprint at the start. After that
> he could only go in circles.

I inspect my rudder and cables each time I go paddling - as I install it
each time, it becomes natural!

(snip)

> Ill be happy to argue the fact that one must expend extra energy to
> turn a kayak without a rudder if you mean more than when using a rudder
> that extra  in that sentence seems to imply. The only time I make
> several consecutive strokes on the same side is when I want to turn a
> moving kayak as quickly as possible. Rocking a reasonably tippy kayak
> from one side to other is virtually effortless when also swinging a
> paddle and arms around and that is usually all I need to do to control
> my kayaks under all but the most difficult of conditions. In those more
> difficult conditions a little bit of stern draw at the end of the stoke
> on the side Im rocking the kayak towards usually takes care of that and
> adds more power to the turn/course correction helped by rocking. Yes, in
> some kayaks I have to go further down my list and do the things that
> require progressively more energy. How far down the list depends on the
> tendencies and the lean-to-turn ability of those particular kayaks (or
> with say a heavy gear load in a wide stable kayak that becomes more work
> to get it to lean).

We find turning the Kleppers have improved dramatically since we added
a leeboard up front - maybe something for other designers to think of -
a boat this is fairly stiff (turnwise), with rudder, that becomes very 
agile when used with a forward skeg - should be fairly simple to 
implement!
 
> I hate having to paddle using one side harder than the other. It was
> just such experiences with the kayaks we then owned that got us thinking
> about how we could modify our kayaks to get rid of those tendencies and
> still keep the solid foot pedals we didnt want to give up. Those
> discussions progressed into what we would do if we designed our own
> kayaks to correct the things we didnt like about the kayaks we were
> paddling. That lead to studying the other aspects of hull design to make
> the kayaks move as easy as possible through the water and have a sea
> kindly hull in waves. You see I am basically lazy. It is astonishing
> that some people think that paddlers who dont use a rudder have some
> macho need to be independent of the things and therefore feel they have
> to justify their using a rudder. Much of the skills in paddling strokes
> are to increase ones efficiency. This is especially important to a
> racer. If I could have been faster by using a rudder I would have done
> it in my racing days.  Im sixty-one and so far my shoulders are still
> fine.

:-)!

> Id be the first to admit that a six year old might make an excellent
> paddling skills role model. I usually learn much better when playing,
> goofing around and experimenting. Far better than I do from listening to
> and believing the predjudices of someone certified and tested by the
> further certified instructor trainers who got there first and
> institutionalized their own prejudices and are still passing them down
> the chain of command no matter how irrelevant they have become.
> Instruction cant hold a candle to play when it comes to learning.
> School systems make one stiff and self-conscious. Those are about the
> last things one needs to be when learning physical skills. If I had a
> six year old again I would endeavor to keep her away from institutions
> with teachers as long as possible. Sit still and fold your hands in
> front of you. All rise for the flag salute.

I salute you, Matt! I had just too much schooling in my day and it didn't 
do me much good either!

Tord
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