Hello - Am wondering if anyone has had experience with using the Crazy
Creek Canoe Chair II in an Alumacraft canoe..
My partner and I have been canoeing in the BWCA and Quetico for years.
This past summer we thought it might make sense to add a little comfort
to the trip so we purchased the Crazy Creek chairs and strapped them
onto our canoe seats. The seats themselves were very comfortable, but
we also gradually noticed that the canoe felt 'tippy' and slightly
unstable.
We've never had a problem with stability, even in rough water so we
ignored it. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before the (formerly)
unthinkable happened to us. We had just got over a portage and boarded
the canoe when it simply rolled over and dumped us into the lake.
Fortunately, we were only in about 6' of water - very wet and
frustrated but still ok.
It happened a second time the next day - could have been bad had our
partners not been nearby to help us out.
Then (after much discussion, analysis, blame, and frustration) we
realized that the backrest itself was causing the problem. When we
would lean back into the seat, our body (from the hips to the shoulder
blades) was essentially locked into the back rest - the slightest
leaning resulted in a leverage being applied laterally on the canoe,
causing it to want to tip over.
A fully loaded canoe could manage for awhile, but an empty canoe was
downright dangerous.
I wanted to post this out how so people could be aware of the inherent
danger of using a backrest like this - and also to find out if anyone
else experienced the same thing.
Chris L. - MN..