Duane said: > Back when I used a rudder, my distance paddling was much easier, > and I hardly noticed which way the wind and waves were coming from. > Now that I prefer to suffer in a rudderless and skegless kayak, > I always know which way the wind and waves come from, but I'm also > much more connected to the sea, not to mention sometimes ticked off at it. Duane - a very perceptive distinction and one which may help to explain that endless argument (to rudder or not). Maybe those who prefer to omit the rudder are just more interested in the sea itself and playing with the movement of the boat in the water, while those who prefer to rudder are just more interested in interacting with the land, by way of the sea - they are a bit (or a lot) more destination-driven or focused on sight-seeing land features. There is probably a parallel here with those who prefer a fixed-gear bicycle (no free-wheel) for the 'contact', or those who prefer riding a horse bare-backed. It's a logical progression in the direction of doing the activity 'for itself' rather than doing it to accomplish something else with it... I think I need more coffee. Best Regards Paul Hayward, Auckland, New Zealand *************************************************************************** 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 Sun Feb 21 2010 - 17:01:53 PST
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