hull heel
also I’m not convinced that footwear is the best solution to “hull heel” either, though it can work
I dont think ACA does
but your instructor may have had his or her own requirements.
Long ago sandals were generally frowned on. The theory was straps could get entangled around foot pegs.
ACA does allow barefoot in canoeing.
Why are ski foot wells so narrow?
There’s usually a couple inches of boat on either side of the well, so they could be wider.
Narrow foot well is one of the reasons I rarely paddle our Epic V6, because I wear my size 8 Chota Mukluk Lites and they’re a bit of a tight fit in the narrow well.
shoes are a good idea
but not always a reality. The ww crowd that squirt boats or play boats often doesn’t wear shoes. Locally I see kids walkin’ across the red dog barefoot and I think how can they do it?
Buried a squirt boat under an undercut in TN (obed river) at high flow in the 1980s- My shoes were in the back of the submerged boat- so I borrowed some booties that were 3 sizes to big to hike out of the canyon-I was really glad for those clown booties my buddy loaned me!
footwear very important!
another buddy of mine had the bright idea of throwing his boots across a stream crossing in the Smoky Mts- wanted to keep his boot dry. His throw came up short and his boots washed away out of sight. He backpacked out barefoot. A different bud froze his boot solid in cranberry wilderness. I don’t know why he didn’t build a fire and thaw them out but he hiked out sock footed.
In general I avoid barefoot boating but I get lazy most of the time and don’t zip the zippers on the booties- a good way to lose them if I swim