I’m participating in the Hope Floats NC paddle which requires paddling on some open water.
I’m planning on using my GRB Classic XL, and looking to make it a little safer for the possible wind and waves I could face. Would flotation be better than a cover or should I consider a combination?
Whatever solution how do I attach it to the carbon fiber hull of the Classic XL?
Thanks,
Dave
I’d recommend float bags and a cover
I’m not certain you want to do the normal modifications to your fine boat to add float bags and a cover, but if you do most any outfitter can sell you the bags and tell you how to do it or do it for you.
Maybe you would want to just glue a lot of d rings to the inside of the hull to make the bag net instead of the standard method of drilling the boat just below the gunwale every six inches.
For the cover you may want to try a velcro cover rather than through bolt snaps all around the boat.
On the other hand, if you plan to use your canoe in open water a few times a year, then it may be worthwhile to rig it the standard way.
If I use a snap-fitted cover,…
would floatation bags be secure underneath it, or would I still need tie-ins?
Still need tie ins
They would likely float up with just the cover.
my solution for a kevlar boat
For the bags in my RapidFire, I used Bell’s Daisy Chain system (a vinyl strip with a longer nylon strip sewed to the vinyl, such that the extra length of the nylon gets converted into inchworm-style loops). I used Vynabond to attach the vinyl strip to my kevlar-vinylester boat.
Some folks here have said they wouldn’t trust Vynabond-vinyl-nylon, and probably they are right for whitewater. My paddling is of the tidal-windy variety, and I am reasonably comfortable with the security of my system. I can pull on it hard enough to deflect the hull – deflect it enough to make the hull start creaking – and the Vynabond shows no signs of giving way. Also, contrary to what some have posted here, the Vynabond people do recommend their product for use on composites.
I used three strips at each end of the boat, two under the gunwales and one on the bottom of the boat, nearer to the center. I made a cage from cord strung through the loops; I never got around to adding the longitudinal strap that whitewater paddlers use.
I chose this system because it seemed like the minimum-weight way to get a secure bag system. Pictures and answers available on request.
Mark
Mark, I’d love to see the photos
If you could send them to my email, I’d appreciate it.
Thanks, Dan
If anyone is interested, I have some very personnel reasons to participate in Hope Floats NC and the attempt to raise money for cancer research.
ALmost every woman on my maternal side has had a fight with cancer, and my cousin who would have been 50 this month died from ovarian cancer.
And then, there is my own fight with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. I was first diagnosed with Stage 4 in 2008, and after extended chemotherapy it went into remission for 21 months. I then went into relapse, spending 60 days this summer in Walter Reed undergoing more chemo and a stem cell transplant.
So my participation is my small effort to fight back, if you’d like more information or want to donate please visit www.hopefloatsnc.com.
You can tie most bags
to your handholds and foot braces and thwarts, or consider bungies…
Glen larson
If he is reading,or if you can contact him somehow.he has done 1000’s of miles in the ADKs in one.
turtle
I have no idea who he is, …
but I’d love to have his input.
The paddle includes some open sound water which could get very windy and decent sized waves.
Answer
I don’t feel free to post his address,but had the pleasure to meet him in person on an Oswagochie traverse 2 years ago. He has been the first to do this challenging trip every year for some time. I was imperessed that he made no big deal of navigating the multitide of switchbacks on this trip wit what is a hard tracking boat. Try posting on the paddling in the Adarondacks board.
Turtle