Some say a rudder isn't for going round corners. Wrong. a sloppy sea, caves, tunnels, coastal indentations (especially to get/pickup a back current) all are made easier using the rudder and the paddle just for forward motion. As for edging in a lumpy sea..... OK some paddlers only paddle on a mill ...

There is a huge variety of kayaks with skegs and rudders. Some of them are complete useless liability while some are amazing boats. Neither rudder nor skeg is indication of good seaworthy seakayak on it's own. I do spend approximately half of my time on the water in kayaks with skeg and other half i...

Hi, I think 10’ waves are definitely far too big to start learning surfing in any kayak. Good condition would be something around 3-5’ with long period, over ten seconds. Quite a lot depends on actually conditions and shape of the waves rather then size in numbers but I am not aware if I ever went o...

Hi, As long as you know what you are doing there is nobody going to try to stop you. You don't need UK leader or coach to kayak in British waters. Circumnavigation of IOW is roughly 95km if I remember it correctly. It is possible to cross from the mainland, you just need to take traffic and tide int...

As I'm only 5'6" and seventy kg I'm looking for a boat with small cockpit, lowish volume. Most boats seem to be designed with bigger people in mind. I think part of it is not about keeping bigger people in mind, shape and volume is often affected by the purpose how kayak is intended to be used. I a...

Plastic or composite? I have purchased plastic seakayak only once and swapped for composite version in less than one year. Difference in performance was too big, I couldn’t get used to it. Some composite seakayaks are quite fragile however well built composite boat should be able to take some seriou...

I took this photo of my kayak sometimes in early spring. Those scratches didn’t stopped me using it at all. In contrary I don’t worry at all if I add additional scratch to the hull. Having said that, I think it is very likely I will finally do do some gelcoat repair in 2019. Unless I am distracted b...

Billy g wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 08, 2018 1:02 pm

At 70 kg and 5'5" I might be on the small side for both these boats so the xcite s is also on the radar.

Best is always to try it personally but my wife is smaller and lighter than you and she is happy in Xtra HV.

I’m not sure if it’s the best one but this photo which I took last summer off north coast of Iceland is my favourite.

I really enjoy paddling Pace in following sea, it is much easier to catch and link waves in Pace Tour than it is in traditional seakayaks. Paddling kayaks like Pace Tour isn’t just about the speed, it interacts with water really well and there is lots of potential to have fun in conditions which I w...

Grian wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 14, 2018 6:24 pm

You are far south of me unfortunately, thank you for the offer though.

I know someone with Pace Tour S in Scotland if that’s better...

I am based in London.
Often I go paddling south or west, usually weekends.

Michal

My understanding is that Pace Tour S has identical hull as Pace Tour. Only difference is that deck is lower. I have Pace Tour since spring 2013 and I have also been in Pace Tour S once. I would say it is pretty stable kayak, I am happy to take photos with my dslr (without waterproof case) in normal ...

I had Kaikoura for number of years. I realised before the trip last summer it’s time to replaced it. After some research I bought Kokatat Maximus Centurion. I know it is WW BA but it gives me more freedom to paddle and rotate than any other BA I tried before. Really easy to take off and put back on ...

Southern coast of Chile, west and northwest coast of Australia, eastcoast of Greenland or a circumnavigation of Iceland. All rather remote places!! Or Antarctica!!!! Sincerely Thomas I would say Iceland is quite civilised and populated island. Remoteness there is more about weather and sea conditio...

gethroberts wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2017 11:27 pm

Hi Mark,

Under the new system, assuming you are a 5* leader, you may be endorsed as an Advanced Sea Kayak Leader after just 5 days on courses.

I'm confused now. I thought Advance Seakayak Leader is just a new name for 5 star.

Michal

I would not be as much concerned about recommended weigh range. We are all build differently and weigh is just one thing to take into account when choosing right boat. I'd say it's always best to try it to see how well do you fit in the kayak and how good (or not) it feels. Although my wife is at bo...

I suggest that if volume is of a concern when comparing boats from two different manufacturers, then you need to take a calibrated bucket with you when testing. In some cases, as highlighted above, one might need the bucket when looking at boats from the same manufacturer. I agree it is nice to kno...

Hi Mac,
I have number of Tiderace kayaks including Xtra HV, Vortex and Pace 17 in east London.
You are welcome to try them if you think any of them might work for you.

Michal

I'm not sure if my language skills are adequate but I will try nevertheless... To me it looks like question in original post was related to teachings and learning. I think paddling is very complex activity. There are huge number of factors playing smaller or bigger rolle even with something as simpl...

I am not a sea kayaker but I have enjoyed it when I have done it, but I teach 2 star canoes and kayaks. So with a white water kayak, a touring kayak or a recreational kayak one is supposed to edge into the turn, but in a sea kayak you are expected to edge away. And when you try this it really does ...

If you ever travel to London and are interested in trying Tiderace kayaks let me know. I have number of their kayaks for demo.
If you are interested in particular model/size which I don't have right now I can get it for demo day on 5th November.

Michal

Hi Mike, I have tried to make write my post mainly about edging than ww skills in seakayak. First post indicates that short kayaks like ww boats turn on the edge opposite way to seakayaks. I think this believe comes more from how we approach teaching skills in different kayaks than from how differen...

I think the way we are talking about turning in long and short kayaks is influencing common myth that seakayakers and ww kayakers are doing things in opposite way. Same applies to bracing. Many time I heard from ww kayakers that they wont try seakayaking because it would make them to learn wrong hab...

Number 2
Yes, I agree with that. From all the rivers (two) I've done so far East Lyn is best closely followed by Dart:)

I'm still looking for one!

Is anybody selling small Karma? Ideally in red coulor.
I'm based in London but can pick it up elsewhere.

Michal

I quess Hakase propably means is, there is nothing nasty on Olympic. I know some paddleres who would be flying down there strait a way but are worried to go there because of the glorification made by others. There is no point to be scaring people about it. People need to approach it with respect, ev...

Sometimes ago, on my second visit to legacy (knowing nothing about WW) I asked about olympic course. How big is it and what I need to know to be able to go there. Answer I was given was simple."It's same as legacy, just bigger and faster." I think most people who are comfortable on legacy should be ...

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