bkr wrote:
Brian Nystrom wrote:
bkr wrote:
Brian Nystrom wrote:
bkr wrote:
My latest big question is how sturdy will these boats be in shallow
water where there might be small rocks and such. Lately I've read a lot
about newbies (like me) being able to bang up boats on rocks and it got
me to thinking how tough these boats will be compared to a plastic boat.
It depends on how you build it. Double up the fiberglass on the "football"
area of the hull and it'll be plenty rugged.
I'm looking at the Chesapeakes 17, 18 or
tandem, or the Arctic Hawk. If anyone has any solid recommendations
please feel free to throw those in as well.
Well, judging by the diverse list of boats, it seems that you need to define
what you want from a boat first. Why are you considering and tandem OR a
single? Are you paddling alone or will you ALWAYS have a partner to paddle
with? You cannot paddle a CLC tandem alone.
Assuming you want a single, there's a huge difference between the Chesepeake
series boats and the Arctic turn. The former are very high volume boats; the
17 is huge and the 18 is positively cavernous! They're very stable and can
haul a lot of gear, if that's your intent, but they don't offer much in the
way of performance. The 'Hawk is a low volume, high performance design that
CLC has licenced (smart move). It's nothing at all like the Chesepeakes.
You're smart to demo these boats first. That's the only way you'll be able
to determine the differences.
--
Regards
Brian
Thanks for the information Brian. I appreciate the advice that I can't
paddle a CLC tandem alone. That's pretty much what I expect to do most
of the time and the guy at the CLC wharehouse said he wouldn't recommend
it, especially to a newbie but it could be done. That's why I'm
waffling on whether or not to get the Chesapeake Sport tandem (narrower
beam the the "standard" Chesapeake).
He's right, don't even consider it. If you ever got into nasty wind/wave
conditions, the boat would be uncontrollable.
Also I think I would prefer the
Arctic Hawk because I like the performance factor more than the load
capacity, but I'm not sure if it's the right boat for me. I've only
paddle a couple of different plastics and they were more like the
Chesapeakes, which is why I'm going to demo all the boats I'm
considering.
The differences are huge, as you'll see. The Chesapeakes are boats that you will
probably grow out of, where the Hawk is a boat you'll grow into.
I can't tell from spec sheets the how big the boats will
actually feel but based on your comments I'm thinking the Chesapeake 18
is out anyway. I was just already inclined to removing that from my
list based on the recommended paddler weight which far exceeds my 165#s.
I'm 6', 175# with a 36" inseam and size 11 feet. I found the 17 and 18 to both be
WAY too large. The 17LT would be a better bet, if you decide against the Hawk.
--
Regards
Brian
Brian,
Again, thanks for the great info. We are fairly matched as far as size
so knowing what you like is going to be helpful for narrowing the field
I suspect. After more reading I'm really leaning towards the Hawk, but
I think I'm going to try and demo that and a couple of others next
Wednesday so I have a better idea.
bkr
BTW, if you want something that's in-between the Arctic Hawk and the Chessies, consider
one of Eric Schade's Mergansers. They're beautiful, nice handling boats and kits are
available for them. The "puzzle lock" joints they use eliminate the potential panel
alignment issues that you have with scarf joints. Check 'em out at:
http://www.shearwater-boats.com/
--
Regards
Brian