RE: [Paddlewise] Flutter

On July 2009 06:23, Chuck Holst  said

> It's not necessarily the paddle that's at fault.

Chuck

Your response got me thinking and I re-measured myself and re-read the info
I started with - five years ago (your 'Making a Greenland Paddle' pdf and
John Heath's 1987 Sea Kayaker article). 

I have always remembered that both of you refer to the two options of adding
either the short or the long cubit (elbow to wrist or fingertip) to the
span. Originally, I couldn't decide which way to go - so I split the
difference. My two measurements were 2200 and 2400 - so I used 2300 for the
paddle. That may help to explain why I eventually settled on a longer
paddle.
	
For paddles I've made - or people I've advised - I've always started with
the arms-only measurement - instead of the standing 'height to fingertip"
one. The contribution made by leg length just seems less relevant. I usually
get people to do both - and I've found that about 50% of people differ
noticeably (say by 50mm or more). (I'm 2350.)

While Harvey Golden has details (in Kayaks of Greenland) of two paddles made
for people whose dimensions we presumably know (John Heath & Maligiaq
Padilla), he says little about the paddle-human 'fit' - and speculates
little on the reasons why paddles might be sized as they are.

Have you fine-tuned your own preference - relative to the anthropomorphic
dimensions you first settled on ?

Also, has anyone any comments about the shouldered or un-shouldered GP
styles ? (From West or East Greenland, according to Chuck's article.) I've
always liked the un-shouldered, while most others (in NZ) seem to prefer the
shouldered style.
	
Best Regards
Paul Hayward, Auckland, NewZealand
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