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Here at last
are some photos of my 14 foot long "SnowShoe 12". I’m
relieved to tell you that it is a superb boat. The hull is so
ridged that it feels like a much larger boat, it tracks as if
on rails, and is fast enough to keep up with 18 ft. kayaks. Perhaps
the light weight helps with the speed.
My total weight
came in at 19 pounds, even though she’s built like an Airolite
icebreaker. We laminated the stems out of white oak, the ribs
are white oak, and the stringers are old-growth Douglas fir. The
breast hooks are oak, and the thwarts are also old tight grain
fir. The floorboards and inwale are sitka spruce. I put a 3/4
inch spruce keel on her, wanting to track more than turn. Even
in strong cross-winds, she goes where you point her.
I
used a back-strap for back support. This piece of seatbelt webbing
is tied to the gunwales and sits on the upper part of my pelvis...very
comfortable. |
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9/21/2001 |
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I've
been paddling Lighten-Up quite a bit since those photos were taken.
She does take wind and waves with ease. The other day I paddled
back to shore in a strong westerly breeze. The boat felt solid as
could be... until I stepped out. The next wave lifted her, and the
wind turned her instantly into a kite. I'm thinking of a tether
line for exiting on windy days.
I would suggest you do make a set of drawings for this design.
I have looked at the offsets for MacGregor's original "Rob
Roy", and they are nearly identical. As you know from the
book about Henry Rushton, adding spray skirts to the bow and stern
would give you a fair replica of the boat that introduced the
world to canoe/kayak cruising 150 years ago.
A lot of people who live on Vancouver Island own kayaks, but
they rarely use them because the damn things are so heavy and
complicated. I'm out on the water paddling while $3000 kayaks
take up space in garages. When I do encounter the odd kayak, I
notice that I'm usually traveling faster with less effort. About
an hour ago I was watching a man get into his Greenland skin-on-frame
kayak at our nearby launching ramp. He needed a shoehorn and a
weekly yoga class to get himself jammed into the cockpit. This
is worth the trouble if you are a Greenland seal hunter who must
paddle in high winds and rough seas. If it had been a Geodesic
Airolite kayak, he would have torn the fabric on the barnacles.
To get into Lighten-Up, I walk into 8 inches of water, float the
boat between my legs, sit down, and paddle away.. When I come
to shore, I do the above sequence in reverse. Sometimes I wait
for a friendly wave to help lift me to my feet.
PS I haven't had a chance to try paddling Lighten-Up with my
wife. I'll let you know how the boat goes as a double. My plan
was to simply turn the boat around, hoping I have the thwarts
in the right place to give us both back support.
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10/01/2001 |
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I
went for a paddle with my wife in the boat this afternoon. All went
well. The little boat seems as happy with two aboard as with one.
Paddling on my own recently in high winds, I found that Lighten-Up
seems to track well no matter what the wind direction. She rises
lightly and surely over waves.
I've been experimenting with turning techniques. It seems more
and more that a sculling stroke is the answer. With a European
style paddle, the technique for a right turn would be as follows:
1)Move your right hand out to the place where the loom meets the
blade. 2)Move your left hand to the center of the loom. 3) Take
the necessary number of long sculling strokes on the left side.
4) Re-center the paddle and carry on in your new direction. The
sculling stroke is only necessary for tight turns. Anyway, it
works effectively with this arrow of a boat.
Maybe that could be the name you are looking for.... The "Snowshoe
Arrow".
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10/06/2001 |
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The
more I paddle this thing, the more certain I am that "Arrow"
would be a good name for it. I weigh 170 pounds. With me in it,
Lighten-Up has between 7 1/4 and 7 1/2 inches of freeboard. Therefore,
she draws about 2 1/2 inches of water. No wonder the boat goes so
fast.... it's hardly touching the sea. I'm sorry I can't tell you
how much she draws with my wife and I in her. We'll try to find
out this week. re your note: I would say that anyone thinking of
Long Island Sound in November better have a sea kayak, and a good
one.
I was out today in 6 to 8 knots of wind, with waves at one foot
height, and swells running to two feet. Lighten-Up seemed to think
the whole thing was damn good fun, tracking flawlessly on every
point. Going directly into the waves, she just rises up and lets
them pass. Today I discovered how much she likes to surf. Paddling
down the face of two- foot swells, she accelerates into planing
mode with two hard pulls on the paddle. Not a hint of a wish to
broach. It was such fun I laughed out loud.
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11/01/2001 |
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Last
weekend I had "Lighten-Up" out in strong winds (12 to
20 knots) and waves up to about 2.5 feet. The surfing was very good.
I noticed that she is harder to control with wind on the stern quarter
than on any other point of travel. On that quarter she wants to
slowly turn her beam to the wind. I was able to compensate with
stronger paddle strokes on one side than on the other. This is where
the boats with a rudder have an advantage.
I'm using my forward thwart as a footbrace. I like having something
very solid to push against with my feet. This allows me to produce
a strong powerstroke that comes up from the leg, through the torso,
and out along the shoulder. Boats with rudders have squishy foot-braces,
so they win in easy steering, but lose in ergonomics.
Since it turns out that the boat is such fun in a blow, I've
been trying to figure out the best way to install some flotation.
I'll send photos when I figure something out. I doubt there is
any way to get back aboard if I'm dumped, so the biggest part
is probably going to be survival by wetsuit. I may carry flippers
and just be sure I can swim ashore.
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12/30/2001 |
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I was just out
yesterday, paddling on the Courtenay River with two friends. It was
one of those soft gray pacific northwest days, very calm. Once again,
my Snowshoe Arrow proved she can keep up with longer faster boats,
and track her way through swift flowing water. We explored some shallow
side-channels, and my shallow draft allowed me to go where even kayaks
dare not seek passage.
I'm still trying to figure out how to rescue myself if I should
flip the boat. My latest thought is sponsons that can be clipped
onto the gunwales. Here's a link to a Canadian who invented a pair
that can be inflated: sponsons for canoes and kayaks Contact Tim
Ingram (tim@sponsonguy.com)
Sincerely,
Don Deese
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Copyright 2002-2018 Geodesic Airolite Boats
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Geodesic Airolite Boats
1327 Bud Davis Road
Newnan, GA 30263 |
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