Not using
I have more than one GP, but at this time I’m not using them at all. I’ve thought about building another one, but so far I can’t find the time–too much paddling to do.
Extending the paddle…
…for specific maneuvers is quite normal with a GP. However, extending so you can paddle harder on one side than the other is bad form with any kind of paddle. That’s something you learn in “boat control 101”. Paddling harder on one side turn your boat or adjust your course is strenuous, ineffective and very inefficient. Edging is a much more effective and efficient technique.
Endorse that
I have a half dozen sea kayaks and the 16x is usually the one I rack up. Epic nailed the design and dimensions.
Low angle works much better
– Last Updated: Jun-18-15 12:43 PM EST –
because the design truly is made for low angle. I have tried both. If you feel forced to go high angle in order to go fast, it means your GP is too short, a common mistake among the unenlightened ;-)
Of course "high" and "low" are relative terms which we haven't defined here.
a common mistake among the unenlightened
~sigh~
GP and paddle height
GP works equally well for low or high angle depending on the length of your paddle. As with any paddle design, if your paddle is much too long you will favor a lower stroke and too short will favor a high stroke.
With a shaft that fits you and your kayak well, both a high or low angle stroke works well.
I was very curious about paddle height for GPs when I attended my first Greenland training camp (in Greenland), in 2000. At that time in the US, Greenland-style paddlers were taught to use a very low stroke and “scrape the deck”. I was surprised to learn that for regular touring most of the Greenlanders held their paddles at about a 45 degree angle to the horizon. For racing they held them more vertically. Maligiaq Padilla also introduced me to canting the blades for more power.
I tell students to think of the paddle-height as your “accelerator”; high when you need to go fast, 45 degrees for most touring, and lower when you are in skinny water or you just need to slow down for your friends using Euro blades 
(yes that was a joke).
With a good fitting paddle my cadence with a GP is very similar to my Euro (spoon).
You can use either a true wing stroke with the GP, with all the rotation you can muster, or the more traditional “crunch stroke” (common in Greenland) that uses little rotation and a strong abdominal crunch.
The narrower hand position of the GP is one of its strengths, it allows you to use a very vertical stroke without having to lift your arms very high. I have a blog posting on this at http://www.gregstamer.com/2012/02/12/greenland-paddle-wing-paddle.
Greg Stamer
high low narrow
Just as the gp is not ‘meant’ to be either high or low, it is not meant to be used with a narrow hand position. Many prefer wider hand positions and longer looms. To choose a narrow grip in order to get a more vertical stroke makes no sense.
GP versus Euro hand spacing
Narrow hand position as compared to what? Have you measured your GP grip as compared to a Euro grip?
I actually prefer “longer looms” than average with a GP, and for a GP that means in the 24-26" range. Maligiaq, and many of the racers in Greenland use a fairly wide loom for a GP as well, about 24 inches. Most commercial GPs have a loom around 19-22". By comparison, my grip with a Euro/Wing averages around 34". That is a huge difference and it affects the arm lift required to plant the paddle vertically at the catch.
Hand spacing for a Euro/Wing is most commonly determined by placing the center of the shaft on your head and then moving your hands so that your elbows are at right angles or slightly less. This works out to be much longer than commonly used with a GP. You will find some fairly common sizing information for a GP loom at http://www.qajaqusa.org/Equipment/paddles.html.
Greg Stamer
comparison to Euro
I have measured my hand spacing on my Euro paddles, and use the same spacing on my gp paddles. This resulted in a hand spacing and loom length of 23 or 24 inches on my purchased paddles (Novorca and Lumpy). Previously I had followed the advice on sites such as the one you quote and discarded several gp’s with too short looms for me.
All advice referencing kayak width, shoulder width, holding your arms at your sides, etc., is poor, except possibly as a starting point for a first paddle. The only sensible way to choose hand spacing/loom length, and other paddle parameters is trial and error in your own boat in the type of paddling you do.
For myself, such experimentation has led me to use the same hand spacing on Euro, wing and greenland. YMMV.
Ha!
serenity now
My point precisely
"GP works equally well for low or high angle depending on the length of your paddle. As with any paddle design, if your paddle is much too long you will favor a lower stroke and too short will favor a high stroke."
Long and skinny = low angle, short and wide = high angle
GPs are long and skinny, therefore…
Don’t fight it!