Grip wrote:
These are white water paddles you're talking of I believe. I have
broken two Werner Freestyles, Werner went to a cheaper glass some
years ago ( the kind you can fix your car with from Pep Boy's etc.)
As far as dripping, it is a wet sport! Lightning paddles are pretty
tough, and wear symetrically, last a long time of you put edging
around the blades. I have an older Riot crank shaft with nylon blades,
shaft made by Lendle, toughest thing I've ever owned.

Yes whitewater, although Lightning and Werner also make touring paddles
with smaller blades. When crossing fla****er in cold weather, it's nice
to have a paddle that doesn't drip a lot: keeps the hands warmer.

How do you put edging around the blades?

Lendal paddles should be tough-- they are very heavy. Lightning paddles
used to be lighter than Werner, but Werner has lightened up.

Courtney wrote:
Werner didn't go to a cheaper glass. Who told you that? They're
using the same glass for the Freestyle that they use on the other
paddles, just a different lay-up for each design. As for breaking
2 paddles, you can stress a paddle and not know it by hitting it
on a rock or throwing it on the shore or prying your boat off with
it, etc... Then later on down the road it breaks for no apparent
reason; just a small hit on something will do it. This is with all
paddles, not just Werner. Some people are harder on paddles than
others and all paddles will break. They're not indestructible.

I've seen all types of paddles break. The current Werner shafts
seem stronger than the current Lightning shafts, but this could be
just my imagination. Lightning blades seem fragile but I've never
seen one break. I have seen a Werner Wenatchee blade break after
a horse stepped in it, but it might be old construction. There are
posts on Boatertalk implying the (less expensive) laminated blades
are more durable than Werner's high-end foam core blades.

As to blade shape, my personal opinion is that "freestyle" asymmetric
isn't worthwhile. You get almost as good performance from symmetric,
and you don't have to worry about blade orientation after a swim, or
when you want to paddle backwards into the wind. However the Freeride
(downturned asymmetric) is worthwhile. It's so much quicker dipping
into the water, and quiet coming out of the water, that it more than
compensates. I'll try to find and test a Werner Side Kick, Player,
or Twist. Werner calls them "play" versus "river running" paddles,
and makes the same distinction for (black) carbon fiber models.
That might be a misnomer because downturned asymmetric seem better
for river running also.