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replacing gel coat
Brian :
Thanks for your opinion and view of paddlesport. Maybe you need to expand your horizons a bit. Paddlesport includes a wide spectrum of instruction, not just moving water and rocky bottoms. There are many kinds of instruction that does not involve scratching hulls and being hard on equipment. In fact, more of that than not. They perhaps are not part of your world or your venue. I've been around this for a long while and realize that many people tend to believe that their milieu is the only thing going and it is to them. Most instruction does not involve basic river or white water, but is done in calm venues. I started out instructing moving and whitewater and felt as though this was "the paddling world". Once I got off of rivers and went on to other things, I fianlly realized that worldwide, most hulls are paddled on fla****er without rocks and hulls can and should be kept in good shape. I still teach in venues in which I expect a hull to be scratched and accept that, but also teach in some where that does not happen and a scratched up hull is a sign of poor control. Sounds to me as though you've had exposure to only certain types of venues and your priorities are a bit narrow. Te Canaille "Brian Nystrom" wrote in message ... Te Canaille wrote: Fact is this hull is a loaner used in fla****er instruction clinics and it needs to look sharp. Honestly, if I ever saw an instructor with a super shiny boat, I'd go elsewhere. Instructing, by its very nature, is hard on equipment. I don't see how an instructor could keep up with dealing with daily dings and scratches, and keep a boat looking pristine. For that matter, I don't know why one would want to. Nothing personal, but it strikes me that your priorities (or those of the instructor involved) may be a bit out of line. I have to agree with the others here, form follows function. |
#2
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replacing gel coat
On 9-Jun-2004, "Te Canaille" wrote:
a scratched up hull is a sign of poor control An unscratched hull is a sign of someone who doesn't take his kayak anywhere. Or a paddler who has his priorities wrong. At the infamous kayaking school in Anglesey, they have paddlers do a surf launch and landing on rocky beaches, just to get folks away from the fear of putting the kayak into real life situations. Flat water and lovely sandy beaches represent a small fraction of real paddling venues. Gel coat gets scratched and is easy to repair. Most of the folks I know that think like you paddle expensive strippers. Those of us that paddle real kayaks (and not showboats) don't worry about minor dings and scratches. That gets in the way of real paddling. I'm teaching a session on gel coat repair in a couple of weeks (June 26 to be precise, around 9:30AM) Parry Island in Georgian Bay - where sandy beaches are usually man-made. If you want to know how to deal with reality, drop by. your priorities are a bit narrow. This from a guy that thinks his kayak's looks are important. Mike |
#3
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replacing gel coat
Very macho, but not very revelent in the world beyond your niche. I'm only suggesting that you take a look at the larger world
of paddling, the vast majority of which is not what you and your circle are into. When I started out in whitewater canoes ( the kayak had not yet come along ) it was the same way. Boy were we deflated when we found out that only a small percentage of those who took paddling instruction were in ww canoes. It is hard to accept but there it is. Try to expand your field of knowledge past just what you do and understand that the huge majority of paddling students are not on a fast track to be a stud paddler or an instructor. They just simply want to learn a few basic things to have fun on the waterand that's where the large majority of instruction takes place. My original post was simply a question about re-gelcoating a hull. It had nothing to do with motives. I received several direct answers that told me what I needed to know. Why is it that boys like you need to bring this macho, hey dudes I really can scratch up a hull so I must be a stud, attitude into the mix. Could it be that you need to prove something ? I mean really, judging a paddlers talents at instruction or technique based on the number of scratches on their hull ? Grow up. Te "Michael Daly" wrote in message ... On 9-Jun-2004, "Te Canaille" wrote: a scratched up hull is a sign of poor control An unscratched hull is a sign of someone who doesn't take his kayak anywhere. Or a paddler who has his priorities wrong. At the infamous kayaking school in Anglesey, they have paddlers do a surf launch and landing on rocky beaches, just to get folks away from the fear of putting the kayak into real life situations. Flat water and lovely sandy beaches represent a small fraction of real paddling venues. Gel coat gets scratched and is easy to repair. Most of the folks I know that think like you paddle expensive strippers. Those of us that paddle real kayaks (and not showboats) don't worry about minor dings and scratches. That gets in the way of real paddling. I'm teaching a session on gel coat repair in a couple of weeks (June 26 to be precise, around 9:30AM) Parry Island in Georgian Bay - where sandy beaches are usually man-made. If you want to know how to deal with reality, drop by. your priorities are a bit narrow. This from a guy that thinks his kayak's looks are important. Mike |
#4
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replacing gel coat
On 9-Jun-2004, "Te Canaille" wrote:
Very macho, but not very revelent in the world beyond your niche Nothing macho about it. Just don't assume that paddling a pretty boat in calm water represents some wide view of the world. I've paddled lots of places and as I said in my previous post - calm water and sandy beaches doesn't represent much of real paddling locations. In the real world scratches happen and it doesn't represent bad boat control as you foolishly claim. Why is it that boys like you need to bring this macho, hey dudes I really can scratch up a hull so I must be a stud, attitude into the mix. Could it be that you need to prove something ? I never did anything of the kind. I'm not proving anything either. I said that kayaks get scratched and can be fixed. I also fix them and don't get worked up over having them look pretty. I mean really, judging a paddlers talents at instruction or technique based on the number of scratches on their hull ? Never did - I just question whether someone that frets over scratches has his head together. Grow up. Don't call me boy, junior, and stop talking down to us. It's your attitude that needs adjustment. Mike |
#5
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replacing gel coat
"Michael Daly" wrote in
: On 9-Jun-2004, "Te Canaille" wrote: a scratched up hull is a sign of poor control An unscratched hull is a sign of someone who doesn't take his kayak anywhere. Or a paddler who has his priorities wrong. At the infamous kayaking school in Anglesey, they have paddlers do a surf launch and landing on rocky beaches, just to get folks away from the fear of putting the kayak into real life situations. Flat water and lovely sandy beaches represent a small fraction of real paddling venues. Gel coat gets scratched and is easy to repair. Most of the folks I know that think like you paddle expensive strippers. Those of us that paddle real kayaks (and not showboats) don't worry about minor dings and scratches. That gets in the way of real paddling. I paddle a cedar strip kayak. I've used it in lessons but I actually prefer to teach in a plastic boat like a Prijon Seayak. Most of the lessons I am involved in teach self and assisted rescues. Even on a t-rescue (not a full t-x rescue) there is quite a bit of boat to boat contact. That said, my cedar strip kayak has quite a few dings and scratches, some of them long and ugly. I didn't build a kayak to be used as a piece of furniture. I built the kayak to be paddled and it shows it. When I built my first boat I spent the last couple of weeks putting on several coats of varnish so that it had a nice glossy finish. On the day that I launched it I paddled for 15 minutes then came back to the dock to get something and the stern slide under the dock and hit a metal pipe, putting a 5" long, 1/4" wide scratch on the rear deck. "OK", I thought, "my boat is finally finished". It's had lots of scratches and dings since but they're easy to repair. |
#6
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replacing gel coat
Good point John. Fact is the boat I want to repair has a similar history. Even though a hull gets scratched there's nothing
wrong with wanting to re-do the exterior. It shows a certain degree of caring about one's gear and personal look. Students hear about 10% of what you say but absorb about 90% of what you are. I agree, hulls shouldn't be treated as furniture. I have some nice hulls that are used and dinged but I keep them looking good regardless. Te "John Fereira" wrote in message .. . "Michael Daly" wrote in : On 9-Jun-2004, "Te Canaille" wrote: a scratched up hull is a sign of poor control An unscratched hull is a sign of someone who doesn't take his kayak anywhere. Or a paddler who has his priorities wrong. At the infamous kayaking school in Anglesey, they have paddlers do a surf launch and landing on rocky beaches, just to get folks away from the fear of putting the kayak into real life situations. Flat water and lovely sandy beaches represent a small fraction of real paddling venues. Gel coat gets scratched and is easy to repair. Most of the folks I know that think like you paddle expensive strippers. Those of us that paddle real kayaks (and not showboats) don't worry about minor dings and scratches. That gets in the way of real paddling. I paddle a cedar strip kayak. I've used it in lessons but I actually prefer to teach in a plastic boat like a Prijon Seayak. Most of the lessons I am involved in teach self and assisted rescues. Even on a t-rescue (not a full t-x rescue) there is quite a bit of boat to boat contact. That said, my cedar strip kayak has quite a few dings and scratches, some of them long and ugly. I didn't build a kayak to be used as a piece of furniture. I built the kayak to be paddled and it shows it. When I built my first boat I spent the last couple of weeks putting on several coats of varnish so that it had a nice glossy finish. On the day that I launched it I paddled for 15 minutes then came back to the dock to get something and the stern slide under the dock and hit a metal pipe, putting a 5" long, 1/4" wide scratch on the rear deck. "OK", I thought, "my boat is finally finished". It's had lots of scratches and dings since but they're easy to repair. |
#7
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replacing gel coat
"Te Canaille" wrote in news:_U_xc.1$MO3.0@lakeread01:
Good point John. Fact is the boat I want to repair has a similar history. Even though a hull gets scratched there's nothing wrong with wanting to re-do the exterior. It shows a certain degree of caring about one's gear and personal look. And for some that amount of degree is very low, for others very high. If I thought any of the scratches on the hull of my cedar strip boat significantly impaired performance or would compromise the integrity of the hull I'd bring my boat up from my friends shop and refinish it. As long as they're only cosmetic I'll leave it the shop where it's readily available for a paddle anytime I want. I'll probably use it for the lesson I'll probably help with this weekend. Students hear about 10% of what you say but absorb about 90% of what you are. Probably some truth in that. I hesitate, however, to buy the notion that student equate instructor competance with the physical appearance of the boat they're paddling, or whether they're decked out in new high tech clothing. In fact, my experience has had an opposite effect. I also have been a student many times in classes over the past few years. In one case, one of the instructers was wearing an old sun faded PFD. Unlike the clean shaven pretty boy ski instructor image with a french accent, he had a full beard and a british accent. I listened to everything he said though because of who he was. His name was Nigel Foster. In another lesson at a sea kayaking symposium a few years ago I took a refining your forward stroke class. After introductions we got into our boat and the instructor hopped into a loaner plastic boat (a Dagger). He attempted to put on the nylon spray skirt a couple of time before asking me to help put on the poorly fitting skirt. Once he started paddling though he danced with that kayak like nothing I had ever seen. The class was very well structured and my forward stroke improved significantly from that two hour lesson. I was paying close attention to what he said, as he has probably made more forward strokes than anyone in the world over the past five years, including the circumnavigation of all of the British isles, the South Island of New Zealand, and most recently Iceland. Chris Duff is a remarkable paddler, even is a cheap plastic boat with a poorly fitting spray skirt. |
#8
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replacing gel coat
John : I tend to agree with a lot that you say. When you wrote :
I hesitate, however, to buy the notion that student equate instructor competence with the physical appearance of the boat they're paddling, or whether they're decked out in new high tech clothing. I think you're putting words in my mouth that were never there. Competence is either there or not. A certain degree or caring is only that and it means that some folks care about that others don't. The problem with some of the other posters here is that they were implying that they would judge an instructor on scratches rather than competence. In one case, one of the instructers was wearing an old sun faded PFD. Unlike the clean shaven pretty boy ski instructor image with a french accent, BTW a faded PFD is a sure sign that it should be replaced. PFD loose floatation over the years and by the time they're faded have generally lost enough to require a new one. Te "John Fereira" wrote in message .. . "Te Canaille" wrote in news:_U_xc.1$MO3.0@lakeread01: Good point John. Fact is the boat I want to repair has a similar history. Even though a hull gets scratched there's nothing wrong with wanting to re-do the exterior. It shows a certain degree of caring about one's gear and personal look. And for some that amount of degree is very low, for others very high. If I thought any of the scratches on the hull of my cedar strip boat significantly impaired performance or would compromise the integrity of the hull I'd bring my boat up from my friends shop and refinish it. As long as they're only cosmetic I'll leave it the shop where it's readily available for a paddle anytime I want. I'll probably use it for the lesson I'll probably help with this weekend. Students hear about 10% of what you say but absorb about 90% of what you are. Probably some truth in that. I hesitate, however, to buy the notion that student equate instructor competance with the physical appearance of the boat they're paddling, or whether they're decked out in new high tech clothing. In fact, my experience has had an opposite effect. I also have been a student many times in classes over the past few years. In one case, one of the instructers was wearing an old sun faded PFD. Unlike the clean shaven pretty boy ski instructor image with a french accent, he had a full beard and a british accent. I listened to everything he said though because of who he was. His name was Nigel Foster. In another lesson at a sea kayaking symposium a few years ago I took a refining your forward stroke class. After introductions we got into our boat and the instructor hopped into a loaner plastic boat (a Dagger). He attempted to put on the nylon spray skirt a couple of time before asking me to help put on the poorly fitting skirt. Once he started paddling though he danced with that kayak like nothing I had ever seen. The class was very well structured and my forward stroke improved significantly from that two hour lesson. I was paying close attention to what he said, as he has probably made more forward strokes than anyone in the world over the past five years, including the circumnavigation of all of the British isles, the South Island of New Zealand, and most recently Iceland. Chris Duff is a remarkable paddler, even is a cheap plastic boat with a poorly fitting spray skirt. |
#9
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replacing gel coat
Te Canaille wrote: John : I tend to agree with a lot that you say. When you wrote : I hesitate, however, to buy the notion that student equate instructor competence with the physical appearance of the boat they're paddling, or whether they're decked out in new high tech clothing. I think you're putting words in my mouth that were never there. Competence is either there or not. A certain degree or caring is only that and it means that some folks care about that others don't. The problem with some of the other posters here is that they were implying that they would judge an instructor on scratches rather than competence. YOU are the one who said "a scratched hull is a sign of poor control"! In one case, one of the instructers was wearing an old sun faded PFD. Unlike the clean shaven pretty boy ski instructor image with a french accent, BTW a faded PFD is a sure sign that it should be replaced. PFD loose floatation over the years and by the time they're faded have generally lost enough to require a new one. More nonsense. Depending on the color (some fade faster than others) and the conditions it's used in (such as clear, tropical, lots of sun) a PFD can fade badly in a single season. It means nothing other than that the dye in the fabric has given up the ghost. Padding in a PFD doesn't degrade that quickly. It's quite obvious that a shiny image means a lot to you. It makes me wonder if you carry a mirror and a comb in the pockets of your PFD, instead of a VHF and flares. |
#10
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replacing gel coat
"Te Canaille" wrote in news:Wx4yc.18$MO3.8@lakeread01:
John : I tend to agree with a lot that you say. When you wrote : I hesitate, however, to buy the notion that student equate instructor competence with the physical appearance of the boat they're paddling, or whether they're decked out in new high tech clothing. I think you're putting words in my mouth that were never there. I don't think so. If I recall the beginning of this thread correctly you were asking for information on repairing/replacing gel coat on a boat and that the primary reason was that the boat has to look good because it was going to be used for teaching. My impression of that was that you felt that an unscratched hull would instill an impression of confidence or professionalism in the students regarding the instructor. My contention (and Brian's, I believe) is that for many students it can have an opposite effect. For me, if an instructor is using equipment that appears to be well used, it indicates that the instructor likely has a lot of experience. Competence is either there or not. A certain degree or caring is only that and it means that some folks care about that others don't. I agree with that. The problem with some of the other posters here is that they were implying that they would judge an instructor on scratches rather than competence. In both cases, there is an implication that the students would have a first impression about the instructor based on the appearance of the equipment he/she is using. In one case, one of the instructers was wearing an old sun faded PFD. Unlike the clean shaven pretty boy ski instructor image with a french accent, BTW a faded PFD is a sure sign that it should be replaced. PFD loose floatation over the years and by the time they're faded have generally lost enough to require a new one. A friend of mine just sold an unused PFD that was beginning to fade. It had been sitting on the rack closest to the window. It was yellow and made of a fabric which seems prone to fading. My purple Serratus PFD doesn't appear to have faded much even though I've used it quite a bit for 4-5 years. An unfaded PDF that appears to be brand new is a sure sign that it has had little use, which to me, is an indication of less experience. |
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