I received two free 10' kayaks from my buddies old neighbor. That part is cool. I have 3 kids and we play on a little lake up north. The problem is that they are Dagger river kayaks and I don't think they are intended to be used as still water kayaks. They wash out and spin around if you get up even a little speed. Is there some inexpensive way to add a keel strip to help the kayaks track better? Is so what size, where to put it? These kayaks are just for fun so I don't want to put much money into them.
You might try googling “tie on skeg”. It is a simpler, though not as versatile, option compared to a rudder. There are some commercial ones avaiable (from Feathercraft I think) and lots of do-it-yourself ones. Not sure what exactly would work best for your kayaks, but worth looking into.
It is true that river kayaks don't track well, but you can paddle them straight with good technique. I used to help teach a beginning whitewater class -- on day 1 nobody could go straight for more than 30 feet, but after a couple of sessions everybody was doing well. We did a lot of straight paddling on the calm stretches between rapids.
Use a paddle that's the correct length. A paddle that's too long makes it harder to go straight.
Sit up straight or with a slight forward lean.
Use a high-angle stroke and keep the blade next to the boat.
Put the blade in the water as far forward as possible, and don't pull past your hip.
Look where you're going, and make small corrections as soon as the boat starts to turn. If you wait too long it's harder to correct.
Kids and paddles Ditto on paddle length and technique. I bet the kids need shorter paddles (planted more vertically and with more torso rotation), as well as lessons and practice.
WW boats take some getting used to to make them go straight but it can be done. The kayaks were free, so spend a little on lessons to get more enjoyable use out of them.
Take a piece of 1"x1" wood (hardwood will last longer) and bolt it to the bottom of the kayak. The deeper the skeg and the farther back it’s position will increase the tracking the greatest. I would start with a piece 4’ long that’s beveled on the ends for a smooth transition, positioned in the center of the hull and as far back as the waterline, and use a 10/32 screw every foot. Drill the holes in the bottom of the kayak a little bit smaller than the screws so that they’ll seal the hole. You’ll be amazed at how much this help. You can always start out by using duct tape to hold the wood in place and see how it works.
Take a piece of 1"x1" wood (hardwood will last longer) and bolt it to the bottom of the kayak. The deeper the skeg and the farther back it’s position will increase the tracking the greatest. I would start with a piece 4’ long that’s beveled on the ends for a smooth transition, positioned in the center of the hull and as far back as the waterline, and use a 10/32 screw every foot. Drill the holes in the bottom of the kayak a little bit smaller than the screws so that they’ll seal the hole. You’ll be amazed at how much this help. You can always start out by using duct tape to hold the wood in place and see how it works.
The kids will work it out on their own. Their strokes need to start well forward, not way out to the side, and finish before they go by their butts. WW kayaks can be made to track wonderfully straight by “pulling the boat forward by the nose.” If you help them think that way, rather than powering the boats with sweep strokes, they’ll get it.
You could glue a skeg on the stern, but then they won’t learn a thing. Rudders on river kayaks and canoes are a complete joke. I took the rudder off my sea touring kayak. Any ww kayak paddler can manage a touring kayak without a rudder.
not It might seem like the boat, but it is more the paddlers. Even the shortest flat-bottomed whitewater boats will go in straight lines. It’s all in the paddle stroke.
any ww paddler? They might be able to handle the boat in calm conditions without a rudder or skeg. Anyone can. Some of the ww paddlers i’ve gone sea kayaking with get real tired when they have to actually paddle into or across the wind. They’re not used to paddling hard for hours on end. Different muscle useage. They’re happy to have that rudder.
I suspect the ones you observed did not know how much energy they would have to expend, continuously. Having a rudder either didn’t, or wouldn’t have, helped them if they weren’t conditioned to long, steady effort. WW paddlers get by with intermittent output. I was an oarsman and sculler—single sculls also get by with no rudders, though there’s a big fin underneath.
When I got a Necky touring kayak, I found it instantly easy to keep it running straight in all conditions using the paddle and boat lean. Maybe it’s because I’m heavy and the boat sits deep? Were Eskimo kayaks skegged? I know they had no rudders as we know them.
If I were doing long runs in a long sea kayak, I would want a rudder. But not in a 14’ 5" touring kayak.
Anyway, going back to my original point, there is no good reason to put a rudder or skeg on a whitewater kayak.
I understand the dilemma. Your kids want to paddle around and have a good time and not become white water paddlers. You can put a small rudder towards the back where it rises back up. Maybe 8" long and a wedge shape that fits the contour or the boat. Don't have it drop lower than the belly of the boat - that will just slow down the speed. Try a glue gun for starters and if it works well you can use epoxy. Epoxy coated plywood would work fine.
Bottom line… Bottom line here is that this guy wants to get his kids out on the water to have some fun. Whitewater kayaks paddle like crap on flat water. Well experienced paddlers will be able to paddle straight but at the cost of lost energy. It’s just not efficient. You can order screw on skegs which are made for surf kayaks. Put them on and go have fun. If they really catch the paddling bug then upgrade sometime down the road. Teach them some safety rules and enjoy.
Sell em Sell the whitewater boats and buy some used rec boats that are made for the lake. Kinda silly to mess up a functional whitewater kayak to try to make it work when you can essentially trade for what you want.
