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Length Help.
Getting the precise length paddle you want takes time and experience. But getting a general length that will work for you and fit you comfortably is a little easier. Overall paddle length should reach around midchest if you are standing and are of fairly normal proportions (legs vs. upper body). If you paddle Outrigger canoes and have used different paddles, there's probably one length that feels better than others; find out what it is, and see if it measures out somewhere near the mid chest measure. If you have a longer torso, then you are sitting higher in the canoe, and need a little longer paddle, as well as visa versa. Higher reps usually mean a shorter paddle; slower reps a longer paddle. Recreational canoers might want a paddle that is a little longer, with less blade.
Also, if you are paddling on a team, you should not have a paddle that is too long or too short; it should be compatible with the length of the other paddlers, so you aren't short stroking or getting excessively fatigued because your paddle is too long, and your stroke too long as well.
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Width Help
Most outrigger paddlers are about 9" wide. Some paddlers use paddles with wider blades, some even as wide as 11 inches. I'm more of a less is best sort of paddler, who thinks if you plant the blade right, which isn't always possible in waves, you anchor it solidly, and pull yourself to it -- you don't need a lot of blade for that function, and 9" is usually enuf (for outriggers). Bigger blades, especially on long shafts, mean a lot of work, and unless you are superman/woman, carrying on for 2 hours with all that will be fatiguing -- very much so. And for the most part, there isn't any reason for it. The top flatwater marathon paddlers (or really, pretty much all of them), use 8" max. Now they paddler canoes on rivers and lakes, and these aren't as fast as outrigger 6 man canoes, so there is more resistance on the blade. Paddling a 6 man outrigger on the ocean is an entirely different feel on the blade, with less resistance, so more blade is required.
Recreational paddles don't need anymore than 8.5" width.
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Angle Help
Double angle dorkiness:
I was reading an ad in Pac.paddler by a well known paddlebuilder about a new woman's paddle; he had 'kicked out' the angle on the double bend to 16.5 degrees after watching lotsa videos on women paddling. This apparently allows the 'paddle' to stay perpendicular in the water longer...seriously? --- 16.5 degrees? Could you imagine pole vaulting with an angle at the bottom of the pole that is 16 degrees? It doesn't make any diff if the paddle is a ...double angle or a single angle if it's a guy or a girl, 16 degrees is way too much -- and what possible diff could it make what sex the paddler is? The correct way to imagine what angle a paddle should be is to imagine the paddle as a plant/anchor in the water that you are pulling yourself too. Too much angle (like over 12 degrees) doesn't give you a good plant: the blade is too angle in the water, so your plant is compromised. This probably wouldn't show up so well watching extensive videos, but it would be something that is extremely capable of being felt -- something that pretty much wrecks the first part of your stroke, which is the most important part. If the purpose of the extra angle is to allow the female to pull the paddle back further, this is just a distortion that leads to bad technique....10 -12 degrees, max....and some of the top flatwater marathoners use 8 degrees...and believe me, these guys are at the top of the technique pole.
The most popular angle is around 10 -12 degrees. This is the angle range that provides the most efficient leverage for anything resembling a race pace, or cadence (50-75 spm). Pure steering paddles (outrigger) are generally 5 degrees, some straight. These paddles aren't so effective for stroking, but provide more leverage or power for controlling the canoe. If you steer and stroke a lot, then 7 degrees is perfect. (see S/2 steer).
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GRIP HELP
I make a very nice, contoured T grip that fits nicely into your hand. For most outrigger racers, this is a perfect fit, giving them lots of control and comfort. Some paddlers like a palm grip more; it flows out of the shaft and a nice palm grip requires more work than a T grip -- and also costs more when I make them. The palm grip is more suitable for those who don't race but are serious touring/recreactional paddlers. Either way, mine are worked out by hand, so they fit well into the hand.
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Tip Help
If you really beat the crap out of the tip, I suggest a solid phenolic tip -- this is a multi- laminate of epoxy and stuff like canvas!! -- it's super tough. My default tip (the one used most of the time) is a thinner laminate of phenolic and red maple, embedded into the powerface of the blade.
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Shaft Help
I offer several different types of shafts....
Braided carbon fiber shafts are the strongest shafts, weigh about the same as the carbon fibre, and have more flex (not a lot, but more). These won't shatter under extreme duress, as some carbon fibre shafts do.
Carbon Fiber Shafts are strictly carbon fiber. Lightweight, no flex.
The Standard wood shaft is made from select Tulip, which all of these: great to work with, suitably light, very strong for it's weight, and highly durable (so if you don't like refinishing your paddle every year, it won't rot away!)
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Price:
$185.00
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