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Main
Date: 28 Aug 2005 21:03:34
From: Paul Oman
Subject: paddle size
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Hello
I have upgraded two of my 10 ft plastic kayaks for an ancient tandem kayak.
I'm happy with the quality paddles I use with my small kayaks, but this
tandem came with a broken delaminated paddle about 2-3 ft longer than my
good paddles. Does a bigger kayak require bigger paddles?
paul
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Date: 29 Aug 2005 12:59:48
From: Brian Nystrom
Subject: Re: paddle size
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Paul Oman wrote:
>
>
> Hello
>
>
> I have upgraded two of my 10 ft plastic kayaks for an ancient tandem kayak.
> I'm happy with the quality paddles I use with my small kayaks, but this
> tandem came with a broken delaminated paddle about 2-3 ft longer than my
> good paddles. Does a bigger kayak require bigger paddles?
Not necessarily. A wide and/or deep boat may require a longer paddle in
order to comfortably reach the water, but the shortest paddle that will
allow you to comfortably bury the blades will be the most efficient.
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Date: 28 Aug 2005 20:18:45
From: Steve Cramer
Subject: Re: paddle size
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Paul Oman wrote:
> I have upgraded two of my 10 ft plastic kayaks for an ancient tandem kayak.
> I'm happy with the quality paddles I use with my small kayaks, but this
> tandem came with a broken delaminated paddle about 2-3 ft longer than my
> good paddles. Does a bigger kayak require bigger paddles?
Short answer: probably. Not because the boat is longer; because it's wider.
Longer answer: a paddle needs to be long enough to fully immerse the
blade during your normal stroke, whatever that is. Try paddling your new
boat with your old paddles. If you can't get all of the blade in the
water without altering your stroke (needing to make it more vertical,
probably), you need longer paddles. But not 2-3 feet longer. Probably
an additional 10-20 cm at the most.
Generally, try to use the shortest paddle that gets the job done. Bigger
is not better here.
Steve
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Steve Cramer
Athens, GA
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