ace wrote:
I was following behind this guy about 10 ft for entire race. It took
quite a bit of effort to steer to stay behind him. I tried hard to get
closer but for some reason I couldnt. I guess I could have got behind
someone going slower.


Theoretically, if both paddlers and boats are perfectly matched, then
some small variable like wind or bow wave will make the difference.
However you have to ignore the advantage to the following paddler of
following a pace boat until the time comes for the final sprint. In
practice I think no paddlers and boats are perfectly matched.

In more extreme conditions position is important. Other posters have
written of cars and bicycles. When driving from Ottawa to Florida in a
small car, tucking in behind a semi on the I95 and driving in it's slip
stream conserves fuel. You just hope none of the watermellons on those
trailers in the Carolinas fall off the back. Drving from Ottawa to
Vancouver in a small car, trying to pass a semi in a head wind on the
praries my car could not break through the "bow wave". I tried a few
times comming up beside the cab but that was a far as I got. These were
low powered cars, Dodge Colt and Ford Festiva.

As far as paddlers staying together, it's probably because of the steep
gradient on the exponential hull speed curve. Small increments in speed
require large differences in paddler power which cannot be sustained
for long. I'm sure kayaks and canoes can be designed so the curve takes
off at given rates of power, cusomizing the hull to an individual
paddler's strength and endureance. I don't know if anyone actually does
this.

Sailors race under much the same conditions and have developed standard
strategies for competing in close quarters. Winning is as much about
strategy and position as boat speed. Boat speed is a necessary, but not
a sufficient, condition.