8 ms·
90 degrees reduces the wind pushing the upper blade. Feathering the blades to 60-80 reduces wrist strain (in novice paddlers, who aren't used to the movement) b
by stevesimmons 4y ago
90 degrees reduces the wind pushing the upper blade. Feathering the blades to 60-80 reduces wrist strain (in novice paddlers, who aren't used to the movement) but makes the top blade more susceptible to catching the wind.
And if you play canoe polo, you'll want it to be exactly 90 degrees so the ball rebounds predictably when you block the ball with the paddle.
- tomrod 4y agoMy words will fail to describe how much I love your comment. Not only is your comment accurate, but also characterizes your background knowledge in ways I doubt a master author could accomplish in so few sentences.
- stevesimmons 4y agoHuman memory is a strange and wonderful thing. Reading the article and comments brought back floods of memories. Of the exact circumstances when I bought each of the paddles I've owned [I've been kayaking for 35 years, in most disciplines, in 3 countries. So I have bought a lot of different paddles...]. Likewise all the trips, marathon races and canoe polo tournaments in bad weather when wind gusts tried to snatch the paddle out of my hands.
- hef19898 4y agoAs a kid I used a non-offset paddle (it was paddle you could disconnect, so that was easy enough) and then switched to 90 degrees. Having picked up some paddles two years ago that can be attached with variable angles I found something less than 90 degrees to be more comfortable. My kids and wife all prefer the 90 degrees. I guess it comes down to personal preferences. I never did real long distance sea kayaking so, mostly lakes and rivers and some easy white water when i was a lot younger.