RE: [Paddlewise] Wing paddle and hull speed was (Re: Who Took Shaun White Sea Kayaking?)

Doug wrote:

> I'm still looking for a fast sea kayak with a good top end, that has a sea
> kindly ride, low windage, responsive with some stability, and allows for an
> upright stroke when required......................... I suspect
> that's the issue with 18-foot waterline length kayaks - they just don't
have
> the sex appeal of the Greenland-styled kayaks.


Gerald Foodman wrote:
> > The question that interests me is whether one can paddle more efficiently
> > with a wing at fast touring speeds, say, 4 to 4.5 kts. I hope so, since I
> > just ordered my first wing paddle (ONNO) and do not ever intend to go at
> >max speed. I have also committed myself to a few months of learning the
> >stroke.
> > Freya said in her San Diego presentation that the wing was efficient and
> > that the wing stroke and paddle are what allowed her to do such long days
> > with no injury.



Using the data from a slide I photographed at Freya's slide show in Seattle I
calculate that her average speed for the trip was just under 3.25 miles per
hour (a little over 2.8 knots). That average speed makes me question whether
such a long kayak (with its extra wetted surface and windage) and a wing
paddle (preventing changing strokes much to use different muscles) were her
best choices for the trip. If she had been supported and paddling unloaded all
of the way, I think she may have been able to paddle faster in a narrow kayak
with a shorter waterline. Given having to carry all her food and equipment,
the extra volume of the longer kayak and the gear weight (to keep the ends
from blowing around and adding stability) may have made that long a kayak the
best compromise between efficiency and gear capacity.



Whatever would have been ideal, Freya pulled off a remarkable feat of physical
endurance and demonstrated a fierce determination to succeed in accomplishing
her ambitious goal. Insanely ambitious to my mind, but then I'm only a
mortal.
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