josko

Woiuld anyone know how many Greenland paddle entries there were at the Blackburn this year, in which categories, and how they finished? I can only find results broken down by boat class.

<p>What's the difference between a kayak camping trip and a kayak expedition? I would think that an expedition would have some non-recreational (e.g. scientific) underlying purpose, but I gather that's not a common definition.</p>

Rick, I've never understood the greenland paddle thing; tried it, and still don't get it... but that's a separate thread. - My question is really: if one were to settle into a nice 3 to 3.5 knot cruise in our typical sea kayak, what should the forward stroke look like?

I've been working on my forward stroke and am starting to 'see the light' when moving at a good clip, which for my Bahiya is faster than about 4 knots. However, I'm at a loss when paddling slowly, say with a group out for a mellow destination paddle. Below about 3.5 knots, I start loosing efficiency; my leg pushes generally go away, torso rotation drops, arms aren't quite as straight, blade angle starts to drop, etc. Can anybody offer insight on what an efficient forward stroke looks like when moving at a slow speed?

Took my first lesson with Wesley Echols and got to try a couple wing blades, from the (to me) benign Stellar wing to some high-twist esoteric stuff that Wesley races with. He was absolutely great at explaining the tradeoffs, differences and associated learning curves, as well as really influencing my forward stroke. I think I understand the design philosophy and tradeoffs, now own a Stellar wing and am planning to put serious time in with it before upgrading to one of the higher-twist blades in time. A big mistake was trying out his SEI surfski, which had the following epiphanies: 1. I can actually paddle this thing and stay upright! 2. My Bahiya now feels like a barge, but the time spent balancing it in conditions was absolutely well-spent. 3. I want one in the worst way. 4. I really hope a surf ski doesn't yank me away from kayaking. 5. I gotta find a surfski community on the Cape or SE Mass.

For the campers among us, the Biolite twig stove is an interesting charging option; http://www.biolitestove.com/campstove/camp-overview/features/ You have to feed it twigs occasionally, but it does provide the USB charger with a full 5W

What should a reasonaly fit person be able to average in the Bahiya? I've worked up to 4.5 knots (4 hrs over a favorite 18 nautical mile course, Naushon island circumnavigation), with the Werner Ikelos and feel pretty good about hitting that benchmark, but I'm wondering where that fits with other (non-competing) paddlers in similar kayaks.

How do people feel about down vs synthetic bags for kayak camping?

With a 'regular' paddle, we got blade area, shaft length, and bent/straight shaft. What additional parameters apply to wing blades? Are there different degrees of cupping? Are some blade shapes somehow more aggressive, less forgiving, more suited for beginners, rough water, etc? I don't mind spending the $$$ on a good blade, but just don't know what to look for or how to size it to me. I went through the Epic 'blade picker' software, and it's telling me I want the 'Mid-Wing'.

I think I'd like to try a wing blade. I've been putting in time, and can now average 4.5 kts over 18 nautical miles on a favorite route with a Bahiya/Werner Ikelos. I think my forward stroke is decent (but hey, who doesn't). (A few weeks back I did 59 miles/2 days and wasn't totally wasted at the end.) I have no idea how to pick a wing blade and what to do with it on the water. Should I call CRCkKand see if I can get a lesson along with help picking out a paddle? Are there other avenues to get me started? Or should i just buy one and get on with it? Thanks in advance.

John, if you send me your email to jcatipovic at hotmail... I'll send you a hopefully intersting animated tide atlas for the area.

Ya, I'd tow those two all the way home. (I knew this was gonna hit the gutter, but you folks made me.)

... or the Swedish bikini team...

Oh, fer cryin out loud people... They were two males, perhaps in their late 20's or in their 30's. Wouold it make a difference it they were female, different age, or of a specific ethnic background?

Perhaps it's best to leave demographics out of this.

While downwind surfing in Vineyard sound today, I came upon a tandem rec boat with issues. No skirt, one paddler bailing with a gal. milk jug, and the other paddling. (No wet-suits, cheap PFD's.) I gave them a pump, and towed them 1/4 mile to shore near Taurpaulinn cove, Naushon with one paddler pumping, and the other bailing. We made it, but they were pretty waterlogged. The catch is, they wanted to be towed ~6 miles downwind to their put-in. I offered to call Sea Tow, but they declined after I told them the likely cost. I told them it's be dangerous to put to sea with their boat (tide had switched and wind picked up to ~15 kts against ~2 kts of tide), but they could call 911 (they had a cell phone, and it had a signal) or walk along the Nushon jeep trail to Hadley's harbor. We parted in less than the best of terms. So what would you all have done? I brought them to safety (shore), and think that fulfills my rescue obligations. I suppose I could have towed them to Falmouth, but it would have been difficult at best without a spray skirt.

Along those lines... I'm retiring my (Kokatat) dry suit for the summer. Should I spray some 303 on the seals and/or wax the zippers before putting it away? What's the right way to best protect it?

I used up the Ibuprophen from my first aid kit, and would like to resodck it with ~6 200 mg pills, but am unsure how to package them. I don't want to cary a whole bottle. The originals were in a small waterproof pouch. Is there a way to buy just a half dozen pills in a pouch or can anyone think of a home-made way to securly have just a few pills in the first aid kit?

FWIW, a satellite only measures water temp in the top 1/8" or so. Any wind that mixes the water column shows as a reduction of surface temperature. Oftentimes, one will see the sat. image drop a few degrees as the seabreeze picks up.

Is plumbers putty the same as toilet seal wax? How is it used in kayak repair?

The compass on my GPS doesn't stick.

Much thanks to Will Burgess, who showed me yesterday what the Bahiya can do in 20-25 kts in Woods Hole. I now have a worthy goal to shoot for, and can only hope to grow into this hull.

Lots of good stuff in this thread, and I do appreciate it. Yeah, I HAVE taken a step back in terms of what's comfortable in a boat, in the hope that I'll come out a better paddler because of it. Guess this is what happens when you work with multiple coaches - you get different views and get to pick what works. Right now I feel those footpegs aren't going back. The Bahiya definitely seems more 'settled' with a butt-only connection - wonder how much that has to do with my knees moving from upper to lower deck and lowering the center of gravity?<br /><br />I live in Woods Hole, MA, and get exposure to snooty water; I was out (in the Romany) this past Monday on a flood tide and in some decent wind. I wasn't nearly as daring as I would have been with the knees clamped tight, but feel I'm on the steep part of a learning curve - I just don't know where this learning curve is taking me.<br /><br />Back to the Bahiya - I love the boat for camping, destination day padling (those great forays from Woods Hole to Cuttyhunk and back downwind through the middle of Vineyard sound with the afternoon seabreeze at the back), small-wave surfing (the damn thing pearls on anything bigger than ~4'), I love the way I can lay it over in current shear (really have to watch not to catch one of those big vertical surfaces in an eddy line), but really have a hard time with it in front of breakwaters, generally confused seas, and especially stern-quartering chop. I don't dare go rock-hopping with it.<br /><br />I'm not really sure I should be riding the Bahiya as a rock-hopping hull, but I'm willing to put in the time to grow into the boat. My original question was really about what others felt were the limitations of this boat, and what they do and don't do with it. I've been sorely tempted to ditch it and get a Cetus, but now think this boat has a lot to teach me. I'm becoming intrigued by overcomng its' quirks and am wondering where all the time I'm putting into it is leading me.

Thanks much for all this feedback. I do appreciate it. I train with Greg Paquin, and he emphasizes (I think) a 'tighter' connection with the boat than does John Carmody. My issue was (is?) that in conditions I'd get the boat twitching rapidly from side to side, sort of 'micromanaging' it and trying to muscle it around. So John tried to get me to relax, move my footpegs out, and 'steer the boat with my butt cheeks'. My feet are on the pegs but legs are pretty straight. I can just engage my knees by moving the heels all the way back. I 'see the light' of the new way when trying to calm the Bahiya, but am anything but comfortable with the new stance in conditions.

I did capsize unintentionally in the Bahiya a half dozen times. I normally roll up and it's not a big deal, but is frustrating. This past weekend I ran into some unanticipated rock-hopping opportunities (off Rhode Island), and didn't dare go in close because of my lack of confidence in confused water. I'd love to learn how to get over this issue, as the boat is just so good at the things it does well, that I hate to give up on it.