I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139 XL...which the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me and did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town kayak but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both legs and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a bit but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I am not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle float as a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a lot and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better handle on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

Barry

"Barry" wrote...
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both legs
and
feet.

First, move the foot pegs forward a notch or 2. Someone borrowed my kayak
and moved one of the pegs back, and my first trip after that was agony!
After I re-adjusted them, no problems...

John....

I tried adjusting the foot adjustments (I have a rudder so I don't really
have foot pegs as such...just adjustable straps that change the position).
I tried just laying my feet out straight, moving around a lot to keep the
circulation going...but nothing seemed to help. It's the one thing that
limits how long I can paddle right now. In fact, I had trouble getting out
of my kayak on one occasion as my legs/feet were so numb. I'm thinking
about trying one of my paddle floats as a support for my thighs to see if
that helps.

Thanks for the feedback.

Barry

"John R Weiss" wrote in message
news:zy9Pc.63452$8_6.30609@attbi_s04...
"Barry" wrote...
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both legs
and
feet.

First, move the foot pegs forward a notch or 2. Someone borrowed my kayak
and moved one of the pegs back, and my first trip after that was agony!
After I re-adjusted them, no problems...

On 1-Aug-2004, "Barry" wrote:

I'm thinking
about trying one of my paddle floats as a support for my thighs to see if
that helps.

This is a topic that comes up at regular intervals on this forum. Try looking
back thru the google archive to see other answers.

As you realize, you have to provide better support for your butt and upper
thighs. The paddle float idea is ok, if temporary; play with different
degrees of inflation (i.e. height). For a more permanent solution,
consider some kind of outfitting. You can replace the seat with a better
one or make a seat out of closed-cell foam (like minicell available a
good paddling shops). Fooling around with paddle floats and other
things will point you in the direction of what kind of permanent mods
you'll need.

I haven't looked, but given the frequency of this, there might be something
in the Sea Kayak FAQ.

Mike

I just solved that problem with my Necky Chatham...20 minutes max for legs
to go completely. I ended up with two minicell wedges already made precut
by Sealine specifically for that purpose (to raise your thighs). I put the
2 inch rise right at the forward edge of the seat (under it) and can do
hours with no problem. Cost was $15 I think.
Dan
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139 XL...which
the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still
within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me and did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town kayak
but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both legs
and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a bit but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I am
not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle float as
a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a lot and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better handle on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

Barry

Mike..

Thanks for the feedback...it's appreciated

Barry

"Michael Daly" wrote in message
...
On 1-Aug-2004, "Barry" wrote:

I'm thinking
about trying one of my paddle floats as a support for my thighs to see
if
that helps.

This is a topic that comes up at regular intervals on this forum. Try
looking
back thru the google archive to see other answers.

As you realize, you have to provide better support for your butt and upper
thighs. The paddle float idea is ok, if temporary; play with different
degrees of inflation (i.e. height). For a more permanent solution,
consider some kind of outfitting. You can replace the seat with a better
one or make a seat out of closed-cell foam (like minicell available a
good paddling shops). Fooling around with paddle floats and other
things will point you in the direction of what kind of permanent mods
you'll need.

I haven't looked, but given the frequency of this, there might be
something
in the Sea Kayak FAQ.

Mike

Dan...

Where did you get the minicell wedges? Did you order them on the Net or
find them at a shop? I'll do a search for Sealine products and see what I
can find.

Barry


"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
news
I just solved that problem with my Necky Chatham...20 minutes max for legs
to go completely. I ended up with two minicell wedges already made precut
by Sealine specifically for that purpose (to raise your thighs). I put
the
2 inch rise right at the forward edge of the seat (under it) and can do
hours with no problem. Cost was $15 I think.
Dan
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139 XL...which
the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still
within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the
local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me and
did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town kayak
but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both legs
and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a bit
but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I am
not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle float
as
a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a lot
and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better handle
on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket
seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without
making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

Barry

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...P_PADDLING_TOC
Sorry I got the brand wrong...but REI has them. I trimmed the top flares to
fit better
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
Dan...

Where did you get the minicell wedges? Did you order them on the Net or
find them at a shop? I'll do a search for Sealine products and see what I
can find.

Barry


"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
news
I just solved that problem with my Necky Chatham...20 minutes max for
legs
to go completely. I ended up with two minicell wedges already made
precut
by Sealine specifically for that purpose (to raise your thighs). I put
the
2 inch rise right at the forward edge of the seat (under it) and can do
hours with no problem. Cost was $15 I think.
Dan
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139
XL...which
the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still
within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some
experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the
local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me and
did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town
kayak
but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both
legs
and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a bit
but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I
am
not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle
float
as
a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a lot
and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better handle
on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness
problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket
seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without
making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

Barry

Put some minicell sheet under your heels too. Amazing how much better it is
without the nerves in the heel of you foot getting pinched.

--

"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
ink.net...

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...P_PADDLING_TOC
Sorry I got the brand wrong...but REI has them. I trimmed the top flares
to
fit better
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
Dan...

Where did you get the minicell wedges? Did you order them on the Net or
find them at a shop? I'll do a search for Sealine products and see what
I
can find.

Barry


"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
news
I just solved that problem with my Necky Chatham...20 minutes max for
legs
to go completely. I ended up with two minicell wedges already made
precut
by Sealine specifically for that purpose (to raise your thighs). I
put
the
2 inch rise right at the forward edge of the seat (under it) and can
do
hours with no problem. Cost was $15 I think.
Dan
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area
in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139
XL...which
the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still
within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some
experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the
local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me
and
did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town
kayak
but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both
legs
and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a
bit
but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I
am
not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle
float
as
a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than
the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a
lot
and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better
handle
on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness
problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket
seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without
making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks

Barry

Dan...

I'll check the REI Web site. Thanks !

Barry


"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
ink.net...

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...P_PADDLING_TOC
Sorry I got the brand wrong...but REI has them. I trimmed the top flares
to
fit better
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
Dan...

Where did you get the minicell wedges? Did you order them on the Net or
find them at a shop? I'll do a search for Sealine products and see what
I
can find.

Barry


"Dan OConnell" wrote in message
news
I just solved that problem with my Necky Chatham...20 minutes max for
legs
to go completely. I ended up with two minicell wedges already made
precut
by Sealine specifically for that purpose (to raise your thighs). I
put
the
2 inch rise right at the forward edge of the seat (under it) and can
do
hours with no problem. Cost was $15 I think.
Dan
"Barry" wrote in message
nk.net...
I'm a large paddler (6'3" 260 lbs) and live in a rather remote area
in
Northern California. I purchased an Old Town Adventurer 139
XL...which
the
dealer told me was the best choice for someone my size and yet still
within
my price range (I wanted to stay under $1000.00). I had some
experience
prior to that with a relatively inexpensive kayak purchased from the
local
Costco store several years ago. However, it was too small for me
and
did
not have bulkheads. I gave it to my daughter. I like my Old Town
kayak
but
on my first all day trip, I had real problems with numbness in both
legs
and
feet. I suspect that I need to have the seat bottom tilted back a
bit
but
the seat is mounted with screws through the sides of the kayak and I
am
not
sure how I can accomplish this. Someone told me to use my paddle
float
as
a
pad to put under my thighs but I've not tried it yet. Other than
the
numbness problem, I'm happy with the kayak. I plan on using it a
lot
and
then making another purchase down the road when I have a better
handle
on
what I want. My question is how to best deal with the numbness
problem.
Should I remove the seat, plug the holes and purchase an aftermarket
seat?
Is there any way that I can tilt the seat that it came with without
making
more holes in my kayak? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks

Barry