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Jayno55 wrote:
I agree with Peter that the Valley Avocet RM offers a lot for someone w= ith my brief. In fact, I may eliminate the Vela from my list (and instead include the Easky or Capella RM) because it is a composite and I think = all the evaluating I am doing here and elsewhere tells me a good plastic bo= at would be more sensible than a composite for my first purchase, given so= me of the inland settings in which I expect to paddle.=20 I threw in the Avocet as just another option to show it's rather=20 difficult using paper to narrow things down. Add it to the list to try, = don't take things off until you try them. But I wouldn't put the=20 Capella on your list, it's a big boat and a bit of a tub unladen (TSKC=20 has one). Plastic boats are great for rocky landings. OTOH they're difficult to=20 customise much if you want to change things in future (which you might=20 as you don't know what you want yet) and they're also harder to maintain = and repair. A white water boat getting furry doesn't matter much, a=20 tourer will get slower and harder to paddle. I realise I need to go for as narrow a boat as I can fit into comfortab= ly (to make the regular paddling angles as easy on my arms and shoulders a= s possible). It's not that simple. A broader boat will probably be more stable and=20 until you have more experience keeping it up with your hips you'll have=20 to do more work with braced strokes to keep a narrower, more tippy boat=20 upright. So if the conditions are less than perfect you may end up=20 doing /more/ work in a narrower boat. I realise some of you might think I'm being too 'theoretical' and need = to get in a damn boat!=20 No, you need to get in several damn boats and find out if what you like=20 in theory is the same as you like in practice. For example, the broad=20 vs. narrow issue. Glass boat vs. plastic. etc. this thought process of mine is taking place. Plus, I like working thin= gs out as well as I can before buying things. So do I. but over the years I've come to learn that what I want on paper = does not necessarily work quite as well for me in practice. I bought=20 the boat I did because it was a steal and I knew it would do what I=20 wanted, even if it wasn't my perfect boat "on paper". I'm very glad I=20 bought it, because paddling it showed there were things I'd decided I=20 wanted that turned out not to matter, and things I hadn't thought about=20 that did. Getting out there and paddling different boats is the best way to select = them. And don't rule out second hand. My gf bought a nice McNulty sea boat=20 for =A3200 earlier this summer. A bit of gelcoat filler and sanding cure= d=20 a leak and some cosmetic damage, and this winter we'll glass in an oval=20 hatch. Then she'll have a good glass touring boat for less than half=20 the price of a new plastic one. Pete. --=20 Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ |
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