Voyager/Mad River once offered a contoured one-piece mini-cell yoke pad.
http://www.rei.com/product/636523
Dose anyone know of a source for this product? I have attempted to sculpt my own but am not entirely satisfied with the results.
I have one. It’s OK. Check Harmony
to see if they have it.
Thanks!
Yes, they had exactly what I needed. I forgot that Harmony was part of that Mad River, Voyager and everyone else merger thing. Thanks again
When you’ve stuck it on your yoke,
see if it projects in a way that will allow it to catch on your car rack crossbars. If so, to avoid damage, modify your loading technique a bit.
Won’t be a problem
The pad is for a removable carry yoke on solo canoe, it will only be installed when on a carry. It sounds like you may have learned about objects that protrude above sheer-line in the same unfortunate manner that I have.
Yo Conk check these out
And for the record I am an unabashed schill for this product after going through bare yoke, foam bouncy pads and the product you are looking at. The comfort got slightly better with each iteration, but when Wes turned me on to these comfort went through the roof.
Chosen Valley Canoe Accessories
http://www.gear4portaging.com/yokepads.html
I’ll never go back. BTW I think others make copies of these, but Kevin is the originator and a dang nice guy running a very cool family business centered around portaging and paddling.
See you this spring?
Randy
They probably work great, once the
canoe is up on your shoulders, but I would have two problems with them. First, one has to throw the canoe a little higher to get one’s shoulders under the slings. Second, I occasionally paddle solo, just behind the center thwart, and the slings would be in the way. The foam stick-on pad doesn’t pose these problems, and the padding is sufficient, at least with our 48 pound Bluewater.
Not the best solution for
Tandem sometimes solo boat. I use these on my solo boat with removable yoke, which I thought is Conk’s intended use. Agree you need to through it 3 inches higher, but you get three inches of additional clearance which means if you want to carry a portage pack and a boat you got all kinds of clearance and don’t have the bow of the boat forced downward so you only get 5 feet of view.
Agree those foam pads are good enough, I just happen to like the additional comfort on those extra long portages during multi-day trips.
Randy
I have and use CVCA sling yoke pads
Just because I like cush.
And what Pyker said.
Jim
Foam vs. Sling
– Last Updated: Feb-17-10 4:30 PM EST –
While I do not own the sling style yoke pads I have experienced them on short test carries with other people’s canoes. Those canoes have been Royalex or fiberglass tandems of considerable weight. I found them to be quite comfy and would probably own a pair if I ever carried a tandem more than a hundred yards. For use on a lightweight solo I have concerns that the weight of the canoe would not be adequate to peg the pads to my shoulders. I like to control movement on the yaw axis through this connection with my shoulders. Pitch is controlled by a line connected to the bow and stern, which passes through the right hand at my waist. Hopefully excessive movement on the roll axis will never be a part of the portage experience.
Another reason I have gravitated to the mini-cell pad is that I like the way the foam can be modified (sculpted) to fit around the shoulder straps of my Portage pack, further improving that important yaw control connection. Perhaps it is because of the thick padded shoulder straps of my pack but I can’t say I experience any unbearable discomfort at the boat-body, yoke connection.
I much prefer the weight of mini-cell foam to that of the sling pads; the difference is equal to one can of beer. The thought of having an extra beer at the end of a long day gives me more comfort than any pad.
Good thinking. I also think that sling
yokes are mainly beneficial to those portaging heavier canoes. Our first tandem weighed 85 pounds, and getting set to portage by backing into the yoke was a practical necessity. Slings would have helped, and a packframe with a hip belt would have helped even more. But for canoes under 55 pounds or so, I’m not convinced that sling yokes are an advantage.
I understand your reasoning Conk
and you of all people should know what you want.
For others out there who are looking though take a good look at the slings. I use them on my 32 lb kevlight Bell Magic. The boat sits solid and did not experience any yaw as the slings adjust about 2-inches each. Heck I tend to walk a hundred yards at a time with my hands on the portage straps cause it’s so comfortable.
PS I chose the light canoe route just so we can carry extra rations of wine, beer and all purpose brown. Why do you think Wes traded his white gold in for carbon. 
Hope to see ya soon.
Randy