@Bobthebuilder97 I agree completely. I have plastic Tsunamis from the SP through the 175. Members of my falimy have used them, including my 12 and 15 yr old grand daughters in the 12 ft SP and 140 Tsunami. My 76 year old sister has a rudder equipped 140. None of the rudders in those three kayaks have ever been deployed. If you need a rudder then use it, but that doesn’t mean its worth the extra $300 to serve as a stern sail. The 175 needs a rudder at times, especially under certain wind condition and in cross currents. The 125 Tsunami is very nimble, even when overloaded by my lard butt. I crossed the 10.75 miles of the upper Chesapeake in it several times. Don’t defile a 125 Tsunami with a rudder. Please! It’s important to realize, however, that what works in my relatively protected paddling environment may not be true in areas subject to greater extremes, such as the ocean, Great Lakes, San Fransico Bay or areas that experience extremely fast moving weather systems or large tidal fluctuation.
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There is no hype about a premium Werner paddle like the Ikelos or Kalliste. Aqua Bound frankly doesn’t make an equivalent paddle. A competent paddling friend recently acquired a Kalliste, but he still prefers the Aqua Bound Eagle which is a fraction of the cost. However, with his input, I was able to get an extra .5 mph out of the paddle before it started to falter. Incidentally, my nephew feels the same and he prefers the Manta Ray. Another paddler just told me he was getting flutter with the larger blades on the Ikelos, in a longer kayak, and at a slower cadence. Nothing is cut in stone and much comes down to learning the specific paddle.
The Manta Ray, Sting Ray, Whiskey and Eagle are similar in paddle design to the red Camano pictured above. The Aqua Bound paddles and Werner Camano are great paddles, but they are nothing like the Premium Werners. That doesn’t make the less expensive models bad paddles - it does make them better values. At 3.5 mph, most paddles work fairly well. Paddle issues evolve as boat speed increases and the stroke become harder to manage accurately. Control triumphs over power as distances increase.
I recall a discussion with another experience member who valued the Ikelos for power, but occasionally used and preferred the 94.5 sq in Cyprus for both high and low angle, over the 99.7 sq in Kalliste. Perhaps it’s similar to lifting free weights past an individual’s ability to maintain efficient control and proper form. That’s part of the challenge with kayaking - its about doing more with less effort. There are other brands that equal or excel when compared to the Werner, but so far, the Kalliste is still outperforming other paddles I’ve used.