Review: carbon-fibre skeg by Norbert Gancarz

A carbon-fibre skeg is the ultimate bling aftermarket accessory for any kayak.
If however one considers a kayak just a tool and has little affinity with his/her craft then I don't think this skeg blade would excite them.
Just as some consider a car just a car and see no point in retrofitting it with performance accessories I am sure that to some a carbon-fibre skeg might seem an unnecessary replacement.
I don't care that much about my car but I will not say the same for my kayaks.

As all of my kayaks are rudder-less and incorporate an adjustable skeg for directional stability, I often wondered if the deployment of my skeg had as much effect on drag as when I would lower a rudder (it has been a few year since I have paddled an over-stern ruddered kayak).
In my Impex Kayak the skeg is a rather chunky HDPE blade (same material as the common kitchen chopping board); if I fully lower that skeg my kayak seem to slow down a bit and become a tad sluggish.
When Norbert Gancarz ( norbertga@o2.pl from Poland) offered me to test his latest creation, a carbon-fibre blade to retrofit the Valley skeg, I was keen to try it.



The skeg blade is of the exact outer shape as the VCP factory standard grey plastic one but this carbon skeg has features that the Valley skeg does not.
The blade is foil shaped like the wing of an aircraft with the leading edge thicker than the back of the blade. This shape minimizes turbulence and promotes an easy flow of water over the blade when the skeg is deployed. Less turbulence equals to less drag that leads to less effort and possibly more speed.
While speed has never been my goal, less effort is certainly welcome.



The skeg blade is a real work of art and the finish is incredible.
Somehow I felt that such a beautiful accessory looked out of place on the basic finish of the Nordkapp LV's skeg box but I was keen to find out if the blade would actually fit and how much effort the retrofit required. After all the existing skeg blade was still working fine...



I inserted a 2.5mm Allen key (like the one you get with IKEA furniture, but smaller) into the skeg's control knob found next to the cockpit and tried to undo the grub screw. Initially it would not budge but a squirt of water dispersant (WD40) and a few minutes later the key turned and the pinch on the skeg cable was released.


salt built up under the skeg control knob,washes away easily...
The knob was free and now I could pull out the skeg blade past its normal maximum deployed setting; the wire came out easily.


factory VCP skeg blade removal



Norbert supplied me with the stainless steel wire that I had to cut as each kayak model has a slightly different wire length .
The carbon skeg has a very neat grub screw that pinches the cable that is inserted into blade (not show here).  I measured the length of my existing Valley skeg wire and cut the new one to length with a pair of diagonal cutters (a decent pair of plier would have done the same job).
I fastened the grub screw on the carbon blade onto the wire, inserted the blade into the skeg box and easily wiggled the wire back into the housing all the way to the control knob. The skeg blade was sitting flush with the hull, all the way in the skeg box, before I aligned the knob over the hole in "slider tube" and secured it tightly with the Allen key. I made sure that the knob was in the "retracted" position or I would not be able to deploy that skeg all the way like before.



Norbert's skeg blade sits in the skeg box without any wiggle and the two little rubber washers on the pivot point offer just enough resistance to keep the blade in position preventing the skeg blade from creeping back up when the kayak is at speed (one of my kayaks does that and I am yet to fix it...).

But how does the skeg perform in the field, err water?
It seems to have a crisper feel with the lowering amount precisely translating to directional changes. There are no wobbles and no "skeg hum" as I have in some of my other kayaks when I speed down the face of a wave.



As for increased speed?
I can't attest to that as I don't have a GPS to measure precisely the speed of the kayak.
All I really want is to have the kayak on the beach, belly up, with the skeg standing up proud showing off that sexy carbon weave :-)

Norbert Gancarz can be contacted at norbertga@o2.pl
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SHOP: removable sail rigging

In my previous post I have detailed how I install cat rigged style sails (Flat Earth Sails for example) onto the deck of my kayaks.
The anchors, cleats and mast base are permanently secured to the deck and require several holes to be drilled through the fibreglass deck to have the bolts secure the items.
Some people cringe at the idea of drilling holes in a brand new kayak especially when experimenting with equipment that they are not familiar with.
My early sail rigs had the cleats mounted too close to where my hand would occasionally brush when paddling in a low angle style.
A few hits of the knuckles on the sharp edges of the cleat made me relocate them and plug the holes left behind by the fasteners.
My friend Jim has not done a lot of kayak sailing before and was unsure if he would like it on his Nordkapp LV.
He decided to minimize the damage that an ill fitting sail rig would do to the deck and devised a system that would keep his deck clean when he did not want to use a sail.

For the mast he used the existing recess where normally a 70P compass would be fitted. He fabricated a base out of fibreglass that has the identical hole location as a compass. He does not use that type of compass but he believes the recess and the complex fibreglass profile of the deck in that area is a very solid location for the mast base. He did not need to reinforce the deck since no flex is detected when the sail is deployed, even in heavy winds.


Jim had to drill holes for the stay anchors; unfortunately a Nordkapp LV does not have perimeter-line anchors suitably located to double as stay anchors.
The rest of the cleats and pulleys (blocks) are mounted on a custom made piece of fibreglass that contours the deck of the kayak.


He simply waxed the deck of his kayak with mould release compound (even grease would work in a pinch) and laid up several layers of glass cloth and resin. Once the laminate cured he padded the underside with a thin layer of closed cell foam to prevent scuffing of the deck and installed the necessary hardware to secure the uphaul and trim the main sheet. He used sections of stainless steel welding rods embedded into the laminate to create guides for his lines but stainless steel saddles could be used as alternative.


His "plate" is held back by a thin line that loops around the coaming of the kayak, and in the front, under the deck bungee cord. The coaming line takes most of the load, the front bungee just keeps the plate close to the deck.

Jim's system can be removed in seconds when he does not use his sail. The base for the mast remains attached up front but there are no cleats and pulleys to clutter his deck.


PS 02DEC
Owen Walton has sent me these images of his sail set up.
It requires one more stay (back stay) but the sail can rotate freely 360 degrees.
The plastic cleats are low profile.

Photo: balanced brace

Adveturetess just floating and stretching her back.
The balanced brace is the foundation to many Greenland rolls.
Once a paddler masters the balance brace he/she can roll with so much more grace using the body to turn the boat, not the resistance or momentum offered by the paddle or hand.
Unfortunately I am not flexible enough to balance brace and  my Butterfly rolls are performed with force and momentum with plenty of support from the paddle.

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VIDEO: Surfing with Northern Light GP

After a few weeks of initial testing in calm waters, I finally had the opportunity to take the Northern Light Greenland paddle sea kayak surfing. I have been very impressed with my first trial with the paddle, and following a weekend camping trip I was eager to see if the Northern Light three piece Greenland paddle would be a good paddle for dynamic water.
Adventuretess, Stevatron and I wanted to see how that paddle compared to the traditional paddles we usually take for surfing.
We took along the Northern Light, the Black Stick (by Greg Schwarz) and the laminated Aleut WRC by Vanstix.

The Vanstix Aleut paddle is a solid performer when short bursts and powerful strokes are needed. I am used to it, while Stevatron found the loom a bit thick for his liking. Adventuretess didn’t use the Aleut that day.
Stevatron usually paddles with a Mitchell GP where the loom is small in diameter compared to a typical traditional paddle, not unlike the shaft of a Euro paddle.
He initially felt that the loom on the NLP was a tad chunky, and concerned with its comfort due to the pronounced squareness of the loom. However, after an hour of surfing his initial impression changed, comfort no longer a concern, and he thought that the paddle gave him a very positive and solid feeling. He thought that surfing with the NLP was great and the paddle gave him enough bite to catch even small waves. He was not keen to give up the paddle and hand it back to me for my trial.



I felt immediately at ease with the NLP.
I was now used to the loom’s oval shape and I was just concentrating on catching small waves that didn’t have much power in them requiring furious stokes to catch. These are the types of waves which require a very fast cadence and lots of continuous stress on a paddle! Then I moved on to bigger waves for nice long runs.
Before I acquired the Northern Light paddle, I have been using the Black Stick as my main GP and I was apprehensive that my “taste” was spoiled by such a perfect example. The paddles are different. But it is difficult for me to say that one is any better than the other.
The Northern Light seems to have just a little bit more surface area and perhaps made catching waves a fraction easier but it’s hard to quantify such perception…
I noticed that I could be a bit lazier with my technique to get full power out that blade. Again I think that those small longitudinal inverted ridges reduce the need for a perfect canted stroke to have maximum benefit and avoid flutter. The NLP under power feels just as good as the Aleut and the Black Stick. It is close enough that it would be very difficult to say that one paddle would be any better than the other in conditions.

Powering on the paddle felt solid and I certainly I didn’t feel any alarming flex that some thinly laminated commercial GPs have.
I didn’t have to hold back with this carbon paddle!
High braces when broached felt supported. The advantage to me of a Greenland paddle in the surf is that I don’t get my arm forced into a hyper extended position in a possible dislocation move. In the surf, where my arms just seem to get ripped away from my body when hit by the full force of the wave, I believe that a GP can be safer creating less of a damaging uplifting force. In my opinion the GP is gentler on my body compared to a Euro.

The NLP got it’s “baptism by fire” and the 3 piece joints held up very well. I feel no wobble in the paddle. From what I have seen, not all Greenland paddles can be used for surfing. The NLP certainly can. Only a long test will determine if the paddle will survive a season of trashing. Hopefully I will be able to report that this paddle is really bombproof.
Since my initial review on Northern Light and my enthusiasm for this 3 piece Greenland paddle, Paul contacted me and asked if I would like to be an “Ambassador” for Northern Light Paddles. When asked what this means exactly Paul responded and I quote:

“I would like to have someone in Australia with no commercial interests with a couple of my paddles. Use the paddles as you would any other paddle. Give me honest and detailed feedback. Make them reasonably available to anyone who may be interested in trying one out. I do not and would never expect you to alter your opinion of the paddle to anyone who asks. Does this sound like something you could live with?”

Someone wants to give me a couple of paddles and does not mind if I trash them (and in fact encourages it: treat them like "rentals"), and wants me to let others use them if they wish. In return he asks for nothing more than an honest opinion about the quality and strength and wants to list me as someone who has the paddles in Australia if someone in the area wants to try one out? Yes I think I can do that :-)
Anyone wanting to try one out can contact me and arrange a test paddle. 

In the future I will report on my findings on the Northern Light Aleut.

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PHOTO: paddling at sunset

Half of me was saying: is not worth it, the other half: don't be lazy...
I only had less than an hour of light left before darkness and I was not sure if getting the kayaks to the water and dressing myself was going to pay off the effort.
The motorboats gone, it was an almost windless evening. A couple of eagles were still soaring hoping to get dinner while small fish were jumping out from the golden water, in front of our bows.
The sky turned slowly a faint pink to later fade into a deeper purple.
There was nothing to disturb this idyllic moment.
All I could hear was the rhythmical, almost silent, gentle splash of my paddle.
The perfect way to finish the day.


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Photo: Misty morning

A chilly morning paddle, just before sunrise.


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VIDEO: Feeling good in Moreton Bay

It ain't always gnarly paddling with MEI.
Relaxed Sunday outings in Moreton Bay offer plenty of opportunities to just kick back, enjoy a fun paddle and do some rolling.
Queensland summer heat can be oppressive, especially when there is little wind. We often prefer rainy days which also happen to be when most motorized crafts don't go out. Rain doesn't bother us and getting wet is a given. We regard kayaking a wet sport.

The softer side of G-Dawg

Stick use spreading

Another “victim” of the “Stick Cult” Stevatron finds the Greenland paddle to his liking.


It appears that the stick is stirring emotions among some paddlers.
Initially ridiculed as not much good other than to show off with when rolling, a couple of sprint challenges with big Euro bladed local paddlers and a few surfing sessions have really put a damper on the laughter.
On the other side of the world the use of the traditional paddles has better acceptance.
Local interest in the stick is growing and after short trials followed up by persistence in learning the technique, more kayakers are now using the stick for most of their paddling.
But, as I've said before: it’s not for everybody and not ideally suited for racing. Just like different kayaks are best suited for a given purpose, the stick excels in recreational paddling.
Learning how to properly use a traditional paddle takes time. Initially I felt inadequate with a paddle that offered so little resistance in the water. I feared that it would not give me enough support for my high braces in the surf.
Stevatron with the Euro paddle
I also thought that I would lag behind when paddling in a group of kayakers with Euro paddles.
Those reservations seem to be common among the paddlers that borrow our traditional paddles for the first time.
Proficient rollers that have been using the explosive power of a CtoC roll suddenly find themselves failing and swimming when using the stick for the first time.
Just like paddling, rolling with the stick is “low impact” and requires a better technique.
Last Saturday two proficient kayakers new to the stick learned the finesse of sculling and rolling with a GP.
Greg Schwarz was again happy to coach the fine points for using the stick.
Summer is looking very busy sharing knowledge with people interested in trying the stick.

Surfing with a stick_part 2

While the "Mexicans" (South of the Queensland border) paddlers have to contend with much colder waters right now, we "banana-benders" are graced with sunshine and ocean temps that don't require much more than a Reed top.
Some locals however still regard the conditions too "extreme" and most popular surfing spots are much less crowded than in summer.
That leaves me so much more room to enjoy sea kayak surfing:

Adventuretess in Sialuk (Nordkapp LV)



Smiles all around.
Ah, I forgot, they were right: those "sticks" are not good for much else than kindling :-)

Winter rolls with Adventuretess

Here in the Southern hemisphere we are in the dead of winter.
It's the time of the year when the water of Moreton Bay is the clearest but also the coldest.
Most powerboater don't venture out in Queensland relatively mild conditions (ocean temps around 20C) and leave a lot of popular spots free of traffic.
On any given summer day my favorite destination is buzzing with the noise of the engines; in winter I can often enjoy solitude.

Dressed in little more than a light fleece and a windproof top I like to roll in the clear waters.



This post marks the 100th article for this blog, now at over 80.000 hits.
I would like to thank you, the reader, for your contributing comments.

Opinions on sea kayak's maneuverability

I read with great interest a post from Douglas Wilcox on his Seakayakphoto blog.
In his pictures it is clearly demonstrated that a given kayak will behave very differently with a lighter or heavier load (read: paddler).
Obviously the biggest difference will be felt in kayaks that don't use rudders.
A skegged kayak is often designed to be more maneuverable when edged.
When I transitioned from a ruddered kayak to a skegged one I initially observed how a skilled paddler could spin my kayak so quickly around by edging it aggressively.
No amount of extended sweep strokes (without edging the boat) could make it turn as fast as what I observed.

Instructor Craig McSween aggressively edging
If I was not edging my kayak the stern would firmly remain deep below waterline preventing a quick turn.
Eventually I learned that for effective fast maneuvering of a skegged kayak edging was essential.

However that is not always true.
If a kayak was designed to optimally perform for a given load, a heavier kayaker might hinder the maneuverability when edging.
As demonstrated in Douglas images it seems that a heavier kayak will not allow that stern to release and spin.
The same could be said about a too light person/load in a kayak.
The stern might be not buried enough in the water creating a "loose tail".
Weathercocking could be a typical consequence of a larger kayak that is not loaded sufficiently.
I know of some kayakers that deem a Nordkapp hard to paddle when empty.

Could be that the their weight is not sufficient to fully engage the intended waterline?
Therefore is a Nordkapp LV less maneuverable for a heavier person?
I believe so.
The Nordkapp LV is designed with a particular weight in mind.
A heavier person will be pushing that hull deeper in the water and when the kayak is edged maybe the stern is not released as much as with a lighter paddler.
Two different kayakers will give the same boat a very different opinion!
Needless to say that skill level will probably be a very important factor when hearing a report on a given kayak but weight should certainly be just as an important element.

testing edge maneuverability
And just because your friend says that his/her kayak is really good for him/her, will that boat will be as good for you?
If you weigh substantially less/more then him/her, chances are that the kayak in question will behave very differently.

Technique: low deck rolling

Finally I am moving forward with my technique.
I am not sure why my kayaking skills learning is rather slow: is it that "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" or is it that my coordination is not that great (I still laugh at myself when I tried to dance, once :-).
Recently I have progressed from my basic sweep roll to a Greenland roll.
While I get the idea of that roll, I would not exactly call it performed flawlessly.
I watch Greg Schwarz dance in his Nordkapp LV; such grace.
I also know that Greg does a fair bit of yoga, something that I stay away from.
He is much more "bendy" that I am and it shows in his balanced brace.
While Adventuretess does not do much yoga she still rolls much nicer than me, any day.
Am I destined to be a klutz roller for the rest of my paddling life?
Maybe, but there could be a reason that Greg and Adventuretess can pull off some rolls with such finesse.

Greg performing an "elbow crook roll"
I can not lay on the back of my kayaks!
Since my legs are rather chunky I tend to fit production kayaks with higher decks.
Higher in the front for my legs and feet usually translates higher in the back.
Greg and Adventuretess mainly paddle lower rear deck kayaks: a Nordkapp LV.
While Adventuretess has so far rolled any kayak that she has sat in (including some real barges out there) she definitely prefers rolling her low volume Nordkapp.
I have recently removed the factory seat from her kayak and replaced it with a custom made one.
Yesterday, I tried her kayak again: I now can almost fit in it.
My legs can jam under the thigh braces very snugly.
While I would not want that fit for hours on end I thought I would try some rolls in her kayak.
Hello Dubside!
What a difference! No longer am I hitting my back square in the middle while trying to lay lower on the deck ( I still can't get out of the seat and totally lay low on the deck though).
My rolls were easy. Compared to my NorthSea, the Nordkapp LV just seems to roll by itself.
So while I was at it I wanted to try the elusive butterfly roll.
And after a few tries I understood the paddle position needed for that roll and pulled off a couple of decent ones (I know: more grunt than style, but hey, gotta start somewhere :-).

I am now looking for a low rear deck kayak.
I was hoping to fit in the Tahe Marine T but the importer assures me that it is smalled than other kayaks that I don't fit.
Would a custom skin on frame be my only solution?

SHOP: replacing a Valley seat

Valley has recently changed the seat in their sea kayaks (2010).

The previous kayaks were shipped with the above seat.
Some paddlers found a problem with the shape of the seat and the configuration of the back band.
The seat shape did not suit a lot of kayakers that would spend long time on the water and the backband would hinder some rescues.

As shipped from factory the back band would tend to fold down under the paddlers bottom when a rescue (assisted or self) is performed.
Some kayakers have modified the retention system to make the back band more secure and prevent dislogment and nuisance when reentering the cockpit.
But the more important concern is that the shape of the seat seems to cause severe rubbing with some users.
The "slope" of the pan on the rear is too gentle and when the kayak is paddled efficiently with pressure on the footpegs and consequently the body of the paddlers pushed back, the seat would rub the tail bone.
On long crossing some kayakers would rub all the skin off of the end of the spine area and consequently be in pain.
Comparing the Valley seat to other sea kayaks' seat I notice the pronounced difference and tried to rectify the problem.
The Valley seat seems to be made from polyethylene and I tried to use a heat gun and reshape some of the seat and create a better pan.
Unfortunately such solution only alleviated the problem but did not really fix it.
A new seat pan had to be made.

I was lucky to borrow Greg Schwarz's mold that he has made for replacing an ill shaped seat on a different kayak.
In a conventional lay up of double bias glass and 4oz cloth, I used epoxy as resin.
In some areas of high stress I used additional layers of carbon/Kevlar cloth to reinforce possible weak spots (something I have learned by repairing other manufacturer's seats).
A hung seat sees a lot of stress in the "bracket" area.
I did not want to carve a simple but effective closed cell (minicell) foam seat because it prevents the flow of water to the electric bilge pump located behind the seat.
Foam seats are great: easy to fabricate, very comfortable but don't allow water flow to the rear bulkhead.

Greg's mold allows for a channel to let water flow though the middle, under the seat.

Visible in the image above is the front of the new seat installed in a Norkdkapp LV. Expanding polyurethane foam was used for supporting the front of the pan.

The new seat has a much longer pan and offers outstanding thigh support.

This is the second seat that I have fabricate from that mold and to date is the best sea kayak seat for me. While some other seats would offer reasonable comfort others would give me the dreaded "dead legs" on long outings.

This seat however addresses the compression of the sciatica nerve problem and eliminates discomfort that some seats bring.

seat installed in Nordkapp LV, rear bulkhead with electric bilge pump

I decide to remove the back band all together and go for a foam block instead.

A well shaped foam block offers support where needed but eliminates the problem of back bands falling under the paddlers bum in a rescue.

Fabricating a foam back block required the lamination of 4 pieces of coarse closed cell foam (type of foam used for industrial packaging) and carving the centre section to allow for the bilge pump.

foam sections laminated with contact adhesive _ underside of foam back block

The back block is shaped to the contour of the rear bulkhead and fits snugly behind the seat.

To prevent accidental dislogment I used a bungee retention cord (with olive) threaded through the block.

The section of the back block that contacts the body has a softer last layer of quality minicell.

Shown here before final the layer of neoprene that will cover the block.

The new seat installed.

I used a simple anodized aluminium bracket fashioned from a 2" L section.

Stainless steel nuts and bolts to secure the seat to the bracket.

Nordkapp LV stability

stix or Euro paddles: it's all good
On a recent paddle of 25 Km we had two Nordkapp LV in our pod.
Adventuretess and Greg Schwarz love those kayaks for different reasons.
Tess loves how it performs in rough waters (video here) and she prefers it to other kayaks for surfing.
She also can roll that kayak very well (although she admits a Tahe Marine Greenland would be the ultimate roller, for her) and finds it very reassuring.
Greg Schwarz on the other side does not seek out the surf.
His preferred game is rolling.
He is happy to spend a few hours just playing around in the bay in front of his house.
He does that regularly. He also has admitted to me that he gets "pumped" watching Dubsides's DVD and he learns a new way to roll just about every other week.
Needless to say I ask him to show me his new tricks every time I see him.
Greg also is very happy to teach other kayakers interested in Greenland rolling technique, not formally but from the pure joy of spreading this amazing feeling when rolling.
But what I find interesting is that both Greg and Tess deem the Nordkapp LV as a "stable" boat.
I have tried to paddle the Nordkapp LV once (had to shoehorn myself into that tight cockpit) and did not find it excessively tippy.
I often hear and read that the Nordkapp LV is a kayak that a lot of paddlers find "demanding".
So, when Greg suddenly got out of his seat and stood up in the LV, I was amazed.

Therefore, I understand that what might feel very tippy for one person obviously is not for an other.
When a paddler would praise a kayak (often his/her own ride) and discard another one (sometimes one that they have not even paddled) I now view their opinion with caution.
If I want to value their opinion I ask them what other boat they paddle and what is their skill level.
What might appear as rather "tippy" to a novice it could be regarded as "dead" (too stable) by other advanced paddlers.
On that note I have to admit that a kayak that I purchased (sight unseen) a few months back and found very "demanding", is now warming up to me.
Not sure if I will even have the balance to be able to stand in a narrow kayak but practice can only make me a better paddler.

PS: a very good article on understanding stability was found at Hunter Kayak Klan.
Article here

SHOP: foot pegs modification

Now, really, what's there to talk about foot pegs?
Modify foot pegs? com'on...
Actually yes.
I am not interested in foot pegs that control rudders; it's the static foot pegs for skeg boats that I want to write about.
For proper efficient paddling one needs solid foot pegs.
While most novices will think that kayaking involves a lot of arm strength they eventually discover that I kayak is propelled by the torso rotation and legs.
Your feet must make decent contact with the pegs.
Too far away and a lot of your potential power is not directed to boat propulsion.
Pegs that are too flimsy and flexible also aren't much good.
Most high end kayaks have Werner (also called Yakima) foot pegs.
Those pegs are probably the best that are commercially available.
I can hear the purists say that a proper kayak should have a bulkhead as point of contact for your feet; that option is usually feasible for custom built boats.
For the rest of us that want to use adjustable foot pegs there are two solutions on improving the standard pegs.
If you are a rather tall person and your pegs will sit close to the bulkhead I think that a bar spanning across the width of the kayak to the other peg is a good option.

The above solution allows me to have more positions for my feet that are often jammed under the deck (size 12 US) wearing paddling shoes.
I can still adjust the reach of the bar by sliding the pegs.
An aluminum curved and profiled bar is cut to length and attached with stainless steel bolts onto the plastic pegs. Since most kayaks are tapered and the hull shape is converging, the hole on the aluminum bar will have to be slotted to allow reach adjustment.
If your pegs are however positioned somewhere half way on the rail you probably want to utilize the room left in front of your feet and the bulkhead.
Having a bar there will probably prevent positioning of items (dry bags, water etc) if space is at premium on a long trip.
A lot of expeditioners have to use all available space on a kayak to carry the necessary food, water and gear.
Therefore the Werner pegs have to be individually modified.
The surface area on a Werner peg is rather small with sharp edges.
A lot of people lament sore feet when paddling in booties with rather soft soles.
Greg Schwarz, a kayaker that can see improvement in all stock items, has modified his Avocet LV pegs.
Using foam core (expanded polystyrene) fiberglass and epoxy he has shaped a perfectly fitting modified Werner peg.

color matched (to deck) epoxy with slip resistant finish

SHOP: eye candy

Have you ever been to a motorshow?
I have not since cars are not my thing, but I know that some folks are bent on nice cars.
So bent that they like to customize them.
For whatever reason (sometimes to improve performance, other times to improve looks and occasionally just to stand out of the crowd) there is on display work that makes a car lover just drool over.
Meet Greg Schwarz.
He loves kayaks.
He does to kayaks what people to do to cars.

Retired boat builder he has traded his sailing boat for a kayaks (he got some spare change out of it... :-)
His love is for British style boats; small ones.
Well, Greg Schwarz's work is simply worthy of admiration.
He can fabricate out of epoxy, glass and carbon items that are just out of this world.
His work is impeccable and often innovative.
The latest work is his Nordkapp LV's coaming.

The standard coaming has been modified just slightly and covered with carbon cloth.


Nothing is more (technoporn) sexy than clear coated carbon.
The finish is so pefectly smooth and shiny.
A real pleasure to look at.


Just for the record: it took Greg 3 weeks to create this coaming.

British style kayaks

One aspect of sea kayaking that excites me at the moment is playboating.
It offers all the right elements to keep me interested: skill building, adrenaline rush and fun with friends.
While the immediate waters of Moreton Bay usually don't evoke thoughts of rough waters on occasions you can come across some clapotis where, with the right kayak, a lot of fun can be had.
As most sea kayakers, I was introduced to the sport without knowing much about kayaks.
I am not the type of person that would endlessly research something before I commit.
I learn along the way.
If at the time I would have had a mentor or an experienced person to guide me I could have gained my skills faster and probably I would have avoided learning bad habits that later take so long to change.
I might have even started with a rudderless kayak so I would be forced to understand that a kayak is steered with the whole body, not just the pedals of a flimsy rudder.
Eventually I realized that for sea kayaking in demanding waters using my rudder was not the best solution. ("boner" on paddling.net comments: ....My previous kayak had a rudder, which hindered me from learning good paddling skills; very much like training wheels...)
I was intrigued by the virtues of a skegged boat but held back too afraid that it was all too hard.
Little I knew that the learning curve is not as drastic as feared.
Slowly I started to use my paddle not just for forward travel but also for directional adjustments. Eventually I started to lift the edge of my kayak and lean the boat when surfing down a wave.
How much more fun it all became once I understood what sea kayaking in rough waters was.
Kayaks were meant to go in all direction, not just forward.
Broached by a wave, skidding along sideways, spinning around and going backwards is now all part of the endless fun that the surf zone can bring me.
While expedition kayaking is just one aspect of my time in the sea I really like to play in confused waters.
Just like this:

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