Re: [Paddlewise] Paddlers vs sailors and what happens when one tries to think for the other

First of all, I haven't tied a monkey's fist in 30 years and the toggles on
my Mariners are too short to get a hook in to tied them down on the Kia let
alone put a finger in. But the Nimbus boats.... hmmmm.

I am likely going to buy a Pacific Action sail for my double baidarka
> next week.


I would really like to hear how you like the PA sail. Be sure and post
something, please.


> I am unlikely to tell my wife what a PA sail costs.


One only acquires true wisdom as one ages. My advice is to ignore the issue
of price totally and, if pressed, lie like a rug.

While doing the typical internet hopping around on the subject of kayak
> sails I visited Canoe Sailing magazine. I found this article: http://
> canoesailingmagazine.com/index.php/Issue-3/Wet-Exits-Wider-Boats.html .


An interesting article written by people who are canoists, sailors, and
boatbuilders.

I read it quickly once and then more slowly a second
> time.  It reminded me of the passionate discussions we have here.
> Discussions that frequently change my mind on things from time to
> time like Scott vs the world on PFD use and how he made me think and
> change my position a bit.


There are many groups with useful discussions. Even way back on rec.boats we
had some interesting debates. Often, however, the points of view are not
interchangeable. I think this is what is going on with the Canoe Sailing
Magazine article. It's written from the point of view of people who do not
kayak or whose kayaking experiences are limited.

>
> I was pleased to see the article touch upon skills, equipment and
> knowledge
> but I was very disappointed in the point of the article. Wide=stable.
> I know its a canoe sailing site but the article seems to make the
> point that a wider boat is a safer boat. Fine for a sailing craft I
> guess but who is the article's audience?


I thought that the thrust of the discussion was that "wider = more stable";
which is true for initial stability. And let's face it, initial stability is
all new paddlers feel. I would expect this attitude from people who are
writing for an audience interested in sailing canoes. And for a brand new
kayaker a wide and stable kayak *is* safer. I put new paddlers in an 11-foot
(28 inches wide) Loon my daughter learned in (she paddles a Nimbus Solander
now). It's the same boat she used to introduce her boyfriend (now husband)
to kayaking (he paddles a Nimbus Telkwa now). And it's the same boat I put
6-year-old Hailey in last summer so she could demonstrate to her mother how
she could - all by herself - paddle the boat out 50 feet, turn around, and
paddle back and bump the nose of the Loon into the dock.

And I've been critical, myself, of the way so many paddlers insist that the
long, narrow kayak is the best for everything. I don't think they are but I
don't think they're unsafe. I do think they'd be unsafe for a complete
novice and even for many paddlers with years of experience. My father used
to say that a certain co-worker didn't have 10 years of experience; he had 1
year of experience 10 times over. And that is true for many kayakers (and
sailors and powerboaters... and even boat builders). There's nothing wrong
with that... one of the joys of kayaking is that you can choose the level
you like and just stay there for years.

Another thrust of the piece was that kayaking magazines pander to their
advertisers. Well, duh. Advertisers pay the bills. What paddling magazine
would refuse to take an ad from a manufacturer because it was too narrow? Do
new kayakers often choose boats (and aspects of the sport) that are
unsuitable for them based on advertising? Sure. They choose unsuitable boats
from what they see on tv shows and movies too. I bought my RPM Max white
water boat from an ad that read: "For sale, RPM Max white water kayak with
paddle, PFD, spray skirt and floatation. Used once on the Deschutes River."
There's an entire story about someone getting in too far in those 20 words.
I'm sure that there are a lot of sea and touring kayaks on craigslist for
the same reasons.

But I don't think it was fair of them to choose two or three issues of
Paddler Magazine and complain that they didn't have complete instructions
for self rescue. Paddler Magazine tries to cover a lot of territory and I
think they do it well. But they don't try to cover every aspect in every
issue. That's what books are for. I think we should expect some safety
coverage from every watersport magazine but some fall short. Powerboat
magazines fall far short. SKM does very well, I think... and, to be fair,
the article gave Chris Cunningham a lot of credit.

Still, as you say, a lot of what they were trying to get across was
valuable. Self rescue skills are important and need to be practiced; many
paddlers cannot roll and never will learn to roll; PFDs should be worn not
carried; dress for the water temperature not the air temperature; and pay
attention to the paddlers around you (something *I* need to get better at).
But they were canoists, sailors and boatbuilders not kayakers. They might
have done better by making more clear the fact that they were not experts in
the field they were criticizing.

Hoping I haven't become a smelly self appointed elite,
>

Every activity has people who focus on different aspects of that activity.
In computers there are Linux gods and Windows users. In bicycling there are
road riders and there are mountain bikers. In gliders there are pilots who
have never left the airport pattern while others set 1000km records. In
kayaking there are people who do it for the tranquility... and then there
are people who don't do it for the tranquility. :)


Craig Jungers,
Moses Lake, WA
***************************************************************************
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/
***************************************************************************