Canoe racers: I have a question

I bought a 1988 Crozier J200 over the winter. Ive paddled it 4 times now, and while I love it, it turns like a cargo ship. The stern only breaks when you’re leaned over within a couple degrees of the ultimate stability point. I see a 1996 J-202 for sale and am tempted to trade boats.



My question is, does anyone know the difference between a J202 and a J203? To me, both have the tucked in profile at the paddling station but the bottom profile looks slightly different to me. The J202 bottom looks slightly more round?



Does anyone know of a page that explains the difference between a J-200,1,2,3? Or more specifically, does anyone know the difference between a 202 and 203?



Or conversely, should I just spend more seat time and get comfortable near the edge of final stability?



Thanks

I have a J-200
I can’t answer your question, but every time I ask about turning the answer I get is: “Lean and pray” !!



Jack L

J202
J 202 never caught on with the racers. It has a lot of rocker turns very easy. 202 is not as fast J 200. 1988 J 200 is a fast boat but it wide where the paddler sits. In 1989 the gunnels where pulled in which made the 200 a much better boat. J 200 is still a competitive boat today.



Bruce Barton

Whats a respectable speed?
Thats exactally what I was looking for. Thanks Bruce.



Jack, I took your advice and will just be uncomfortable near a swim at any moment. I noticed that the seat on my boat is 1-2" higher than on my last solo which probably contributed to some of the instability. I sanded down the seat risers and removed a layer of foam, lowering the seat by about a half inch.



Now, it feels a little more stable. My question is, do you think its worth me buying a new sliding seat assembly that is an inch or 2 lower?



Im thinking about it because I want a sliding footrest (currently its fixed). I would need to cut out the seat mount and install a new one if I want to lower the seat anymore. Im tempted but think a new assembly will be close to $200. In anyone’s sage opinion, does a lower seat help stability that much? Or should I just trust that Everett knew what he was doing and that Im still green.



Lastly, I went out for a paddle yesterday in my J200. I went 7.5 miles or so and averaged 4.815 mph over a 105 minute paddle. My question is, whats a respectable cruising speed sustained for 1-2 hours? I know top racers can do close to 7mph, but thats what I averaged down stream with a 1.6mph current pushing me =( Just train more? what do you think I could realistically aim for as an end of summer goal?

6 MPH
6 mph for the end of this summer, 6.5 mph for next spring.

I was loading the J-200 on the truck…
this morning and noticed that it is now 27 years old.

It’s kind of like Old Man river and myself. We all just keep rolling along!



Jack L

That would be awesome
6.5 mph is roughly the hull speed for that length of boat. I don’t think many people can reach hull speed in a general-purpose canoe, so the performance of this boat must be pretty sweet!

6.5 MPH is the slower paddlers in
C-1 racing canoes.

I can attest. I averaged 6.4 in todays race and was last.



Jack L