Bob C

While I see your point, Deb is on the smaller side of paddlers and clocks in at 118 and is 5'5". She also fits very comfortably in my Tempest165 Pro and I'm 5'9" and weigh 145. An interesting point is that our first boats were Slipstreams, both considered to be low volumn. Deb always looked lost in the boat and had difficutly paddling it unless it was weighed down with the proverbial microwave and freezer. We've been told recently that these boats were probably too big for either of us. Conversely, a very good male friend of ours is wire-thin, probably 5'8", and paddles an Explorer. The only conclusion I can draw from this is if the boat fits, wear it and the boat selection should be what makes you happy, enhances your paddling, and not what someone else says you should be parking your butt in. Deb got her Bahiya at NESC and she trusts Alex, Chris and Joel implicitely as far as guidance goes in boat selection. BTW, I thought the Bahiya was also meant to compete with the Anas Acuta, which you've listed as being suitable for the smaller paddler.

Don't forget the P&H Bahiya. After Deb passed her 3* in her Vela, she started paddling her Bahiya all the time. The boat is 17'6" with a 20.5 beam and, while she has to pad out the cockpit and always paddle with weight in the back -- she has the same issues with the Vela -- the boat fits her well and doesn't overwhelm her size-wise. This is a hard chined boat, but it's not a larger version of the Vela as far as the design goes.

The schedule is still up at http://www2.smcvt.edu/wilderness/bcu.html Deb and I took: 3* paddle with Dale Williams -- did about 8 miles, paddled over to NY for lunch (how often can you say that) and practiced in the slop (long wind-blown fetch at points). Core Paddling with Dale Williams, Jed Looby, and Todd Wright -- fairly windy/rainy so it turned into a forward stroke *and* surf session on the wind-blown waves. Video tapes of our forward strokes and feedback were useful. I now have a goal of taking a surfing class with Dale. White Water/Sea kayaking Cross-Over with Dovid Yagoda and Steve Maynard -- these guys are really, really good and I wish I had pictures of the 100W smile on Deb's face as she paddled over a hydraulic. 3* training with Steve Maynard and Tom Bergh, Learned a few tricks, finally met Tom. 3* assessment with Dovid Yagoda and John Carmody -- was definitely fun, especially high bracing to the rhythm of a boom box on a cigarette boat moored nearby; even better, we passed. The Vermont Brewery in Burlington has excellent microbrews. The food's good, too. The Culinary Institute of New England has a very nice restaurant in Montpelier that we checked out on the trip home Sunday. Made new friends, had a great time!

Here's a link to the ICOM rebate coupon (posted on the West Marine site): http://www.westmarine.com/rebates/Icom_MarineM88_073105.pdf I've owned an ICOM IC706 amateur radio transceiver for several years and am very pleased with its performance. In the amateur radio market, ICOM has led Yaesu (Yaesu/Vertex/Standard) in quality and technology over the last 20+ years. Regards, Bob

Hi David, I think you misunderstood. Hugh is conducting the BCU training but he isn't the head instructor -- the position doesn't exist. Cheers, Bob

I'm 5'9", 145 lbs and have a Tempest 165. Fits like a glove. The stock seat, padding, and general outfitting is outstanding - fits me perfectly. The adjustable front of the seat elevates just enough to take pressure off my boney butt and helps prevent sciatica. It's been pretty easy to roll, do a backwards figure-of-eight, surf (boy does it surf), low brace turns with little or no pressure on the brace, including bracing on the "wrong" side. Fun to paddle in rock gardens. Tracks well in a straight line. All in all, I really can't say enough nice things about the boat.

Actually, Hugh Braley, the BCU trained coach, is only doing the 2/3* training and 2* assessments at ERBA. To my knowledge, he's not teaching the Soup to Nuts Course. Yo might want to call ERBA to verify this.

Hugh Braley, who also teaches at Osprey, is teaching some BCU 2/3* sessions through ERBA this summer. Sam Ladd and Alex Landrum (also known as Samantha and Alexandra) also teach a Woman's Beginner Class at Osprey every summer. I'm not sure of the date but you can check with Sam at Osprey or Alex at NE Small Craft. I know all three and recommend them highly. Best of Luck, Bob

>Since you haven't yet tried a wet exit, I'm assuming you've >had no real professional instruction, even at ERBA. If so, >I would also recommend looking into commercial course >offerings. One good systematic beginner's sequence in the >vicinity is at Charles River Canoe & Kayak (CRCK) >http://ski-paddle.com/main.html. (There are others, like >http://www.ospreyseakayak.com/ on the south shore, and ERBA >itself offers this as well. I don't have direct experience >with either, but I know the folks who run Osprey are >top-notch. Maybe somebody else will chime in regarding >ERBA.) > >The advantage of that, versus just NSPN practice sessions, >is a systematically designed curriculum and professional >instructors. Actually, the combination of professional >instruction and NSPN is especially good -- learn the >fundamentals from the pros; practice them, and get more tips >and techniques in NSPN lake sessions. You'll very soon be >ready for NSPN level 2 trips and then be off and running. > >Anyway, CRCK offers both sequences of classes and day trips >which are essentially instructional outings in various >protected harbors -- so you get not only instruction but >also some real salt-water experience. Those are their level >1 or introductory trips, and prepare you for their level 2 >trips as well as the specific classes do. > >It sounds like you live on the North Shore, in which case >you may find CRCK day trips easier to get to. They seem to >offer those nowadays in Manchester, Marblehead and >Gloucester Harbors as well as Hingham. > >It's all here -- >http://ski-paddle.com/paddle_school/paddle_school.html > >(Disclaimer -- I'm not associated with CRCK, but I started >there myself and know a number of the people, and can attest >that they are very good at teaching introductory kayaking.) > >Whatever you do, welcome to the sport... and be careful not >to get too addicted. ;-))) > >--David.

I added a NRS backband from NE Small Craft to my Slipstream. It has ratchets on either side for adjustment and I was able to use the seat bolts to attach it. It provided stiff lower-back support and did not interfere with sculling or rolling. Now that I'm selling the Slipstream it will end up in another kayak. See Alex at NE Small Craft for info on what she has in stock. Cheers, Bob

Yesterday Deb and I paddled with a group of friends out to Misery. While we sat in our wet-suited,life jacketed splendor on the beach, we watched a woman paddle up, alone, wearing a very skimpy black bikini top -- and the reason we know it was a bikini top was because her PFD was neatly secured on her back deck. Later we were wondering what she would have done had she capsized her Shadow in some of the swell and boat wakes between the island and Manchester. How would she have kept her hands on her boat AND paddle AND managed to get that PFD on, then gotten back into her boat? The water was supposedly 54F, and the air was definitely hot, but how long would one have before things got dangerous? Neither of us is so self-assured -- and we usually always paddle together and both of us have a roll (and Deb freely admits her's isn't bombproof yet) and can do a paddle float self rescue -- to assume that we could manage in this type of situation. While it ain't always fun wearing a dry suit or wet suit and sometimes you just want some color minus the PFD line, being dead isn't great either. Or, as Deb used to say (she's given up on being the PFD Nazi of the North Shore)when she'd see someone minus their life jacket: "You can tan when you're dead."

Both of Deb's boats -- P&H Vela and Bahiya -- are hard chined and she's never had any trouble bracing in or (finally) rolling either one. Her first "serious" ie Fibreglass boat was, as was mine, a soft-chined CD Slipstream that would put you in the water as soon as look at you. We both learned to paddle in these boats but don't miss them now. I paddle a Tempest165 and am very happy with its bracing and rolling abilities, and it's a moderate chined boat. Brian -- and Alex at NESC -- is right. There's a lot to how the boat is designed and how you paddle it as to how it will respond to you and to various conditions.

Whoops, I meant (actually Deb meant)Latex. For a complete survey of how to store that dry suit, per Kokatat, here's the website address: www.kokatat.com. Go to care and feeding of drysuits and you'll learn more than you'll ever want -- but you'll have your drysuit for a long time.

Hi Kevin Deb and I fold our drysuits and store them in a cool, dry space. We do not hang them as we've been told by a reliable source that hanging them on plastic hangers can react with the neoprene in the gaskets and cause them to break down.

I took a few of the ERBA radios apart last year to see why they had failed -- in all cases the likely cause was salt water getting into the case. The electronics were very basic - mostly discretes. What you pay for in these, as previously noted, is a watertight case and the battery. As both a ham and EE, I'd pay a few dollars more for a watertight case.

Hi Suz, What a great idea! We have two boats we're trying to sell -- the Slipstream and the plastic Capella (otherwise known as the BIG BANANA) -- but June works better for us. Bob & Deb

Deb & I will be at the Beverly session Saturday. You can try my fibregalss Camano out then if you'd like.

Hi Paula, I use an Inazone 230 and Deb uses an Inazone 225 for surfing -- those are the ones you've seen us in in pool sessions and so far I haven't killed myself in small (3-5') surf. My gurus on WW/surf boats would be Chris Thomas at NESC (helmet-cam videos *inside* the curl...) and Ken Cooper. Cheers, Bob