I once spent the better part of a day fitting out a kayak with pedal controls and a rudder. They also require periodic inspection to make sure all the parts, especially the cables, are in good working condition. Rudders are mechanical things that can fail. Let’s dig deeper into the topic and carefully look at both the disadvantages and the advantages of rudders. I’m pretty sure it’s just a “guy” thing.īut there must be more to it than that, you say. It seems that if we don’t have anything to debate about we can’t prove how dominant we are and life becomes boring. So… why all the fuss about rudders? Human nature, I guess. On the other side of the debate are rudder lovers who say “ Additional steering? Sure! I’m in! Where do I get one”. But essentially, they say “no” to rudders. On one side there are the kayaking purists that say “A well designed kayak should be easily steered by hull steering and paddle strokes, and that kayak makers add rudders to their boats simply to compensate for design flaws.” Basically, “A real kayak doesn’t need a rudder.” Many of these purists do however acknowledge the benefits of using a retractable skeg (a non-turning fin located near the stern) in certain conditions to improve tracking, especially on rockered kayaks, in quartering seas and on off-the-wind legs. In case you are not aware of it, I’ll fill you in on the issues. There has been a crazy rudder debate going on among certain kayakers for decades.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
June 2023
Categories |