C-Forum

Forgot to say that you should assess the overall stiffness of the hull where the strap anchor will be glued in place. My Millbrook Edsel has massive Spheretex stiffening on the bottom, so a strap anchor will not distort the hull contour. I have not seen a Schacho, but perhaps the bottom is not reinf...

Thanks, Bob P. That note about artificial courses.... Whenever I see a race on a natural course, it makes somewhat more sense. Even old Augsburg looks more "natural" than the latest Olympic wonders.

Huh! And here I thought Estanguet was leaning back to control his descent, like a space shuttle pilot! Maybe there will be some redesign. Fishform revolution hasn't hit decked slalom yet. Why have such bow pointiness if it's just going to wave in the air? I want to race a sturgeon, for the very firs...

Kneal, I am thinking of doing a video or two, but my 71 year old left knee says it cannot be in the Zealot. Maybe the Wide Ride or my Millbrook Edsel.

It works at high speeds for me, but those might not be high speeds for others. That's why some still tack a quick little J on the end of the stroke, without dragging the blade. Endicott's description of the evolution of Hearn's and Lugbill's strokes notes that sometimes the J just disappeared. But H...

Is everyone else out paddling, or are my contributions too incoherent or obscure to draw responses?

If I can link properly*, these links to a UK slalom paddling series will show c2 paddlers who are sharp and smooth. Their torsos move upward a bit to help with blade extraction. Otherwise they are pretty steady. The boat is slanted up some because of their effort. http://www.slalomtechnique.co.uk/vi...

There should be, must be, some forward lean, but it is possible to overdo it. A boat is designed for a certain weight distribution for speed and for spinning or carving. Just as leaning too far back can make it harder to control the hull optimally, leaning forward too much of the time or to an exces...

The paddler should feel, should clearly perceive the torso rotation during power delivery. But the rotation is not gigantic, and to an observer on the bank it may be difficult to see. I think some teachers like Bob Foote show an exaggerated rotation that if used routinely, would distort the stroke a...

Here's an invitation to opinion. Can a c-1 or oc-1 paddler get maximum speed by his torso going forward and back? Do most hulls get and keep good speed if they bob up and down with the paddler's efforts, or if they run more or less level? Recently I saw British videos, one of a slalom c-2 that ran w...

Bob P, I've studied your videos extensively. You do J stroke, but you do it properly with the paddle shaft still vertical, so that the blade doesn't dddrrraaaaggg the boat like a goon stroke. Bob Foote also recommends a J with the shaft still vertical, or no J at all, whichever is needed for the str...

Maybe because I'm big, tall, and stupid, I can stroke cab-forward on either edge and the boat will run straight. Zealot, Synergy, Millbrooks, MR Guide, any of them. I might needd a J correction every 10 strokes or less. I must be doing something seriously wrong. The trick is that a firm catch shoves...

Only my older bags have dump valves where soapy water can be easily inserted.

And, once you have the inside of the bag soapy and wet, doesn't it delay the Seamgrip or Aquaseal application somewhat?

I think some of you just lack sensitive cheeks.

Good point, JimW. There are any number of seam terminations or corners that may hide a leak.

Also, if one drives around with bags flopping, the stress may separate the cloth from the urethane. I have been able to fix some such by painting the cloth with Seamgrip.

I just blow the bag up in a quiet room and listen, feel for escaping air currents. Small leaks can be sealed with Seamgrip without a patch. Larger leaks can be done with a patch and Aquaseal. I put two old Voyageur bags back into service after patching *many* leaks.