Interesting
– Last Updated: Nov-22-08 2:57 PM EST –
You'll all have to forgive me. My mother passed. I've been dealing w/ estate issues; drove back to Illinois to do some of that, and missed the center of this discussion.
In the meanwhile, someone using an alias has decided my thoughts are BS and that I need a tutorial on heeling and a reality check on experience. Every dog has its flees. That said please check my columns in Canoe Journal ~88 r.e. heeling. I still have a handle on that.
What I was trying to say in too few words is that intermediate paddlers gravitate towards "tripping canoes". The original expression of that genre, with ~ minimal rocker, was DY's Curtis "solo tripper", which evolved into the Curtis vagabond, nomad, Sawyers, autumn mist and starlight, Swift's loon and heron. Wenonah's wilderness is a recent example of the genre, sized for today's guys who've "supersized" themselves.
Other Manufacturers also weighed in; Bell's early merlin, Blackhawk's starship, zephyr and ariel and Mad River's slipper, independence and liberty.
John Winter's landed in the mid 80's with scientific proof that bow rocker had minimal control over tracking. Bell's merlin II and Swift's osprey and shearwater reacted to that startling information.
All these "tripping boats" are really generalist products. They were designed to get intermediate paddlers across lakes and to survive class 2 WW. The length/width ratio is generally slightly under 7.
The concept among designers was/is, that entry/ intermediate paddles will diverge and stratify as their skills improve. Some into river boats, others into dedicated touring boats, many into both.
River boats are a different beast from the general use tripper. They need more rocker at both ends to clear the stems when heeled to improve turning. Early river boats include Hahn's, but soon turn to Curtis's ladybug and dragonfly, both updated in Bell's, now Placid's, flash and wildFire. Other, in genre, models include Mad River's freedom, Merrimack's baboosic and Mohawk's solo 13 and 14. All have length/ width ratios around 6.
Lots of folks had trouble keeping those river boats going straight. Several Mfgs skegged the sterns to improve tracking which also limits turning for them's as don't paddle the inside circle. Bell's rockstar and yellowstone solo and Wenonah's argosy are salient examples.
At the other end of the spectrum are touring boats - de-tuned, more seaworthy, USCA racers that allow skilled paddlers to cover miles fast; sitting with a bent paddle. Sawyers Summersong and Wenonah's advantage are early versions; Bell's magic and Wenonah's prism are the outstanding modern models in the genre.
Let's discuss cross sectional shaping. Bob Demoret, sp?, with whom Ted Bell worked, was the first to use extreme tumblehome in a solo canoe. Yost used the concept in his early Sawyer and Curtis hulls.
DY developed "shouldered tumblehone" in 82, and used it on his later Curtis and almost all his Bell designs. Flare was carried higher to a double radiused shoulder. The narrow, tumblehomed, paddling station was preserved while the increased volume in the shoulder improved lift when heeling and proved almost as spray resistant as a flared hull. Galt borrowed the concept for his Lotus caper, maybe the prettiest solo ever made.
Comparing tumblehome shaping; the early BD/DY bubbles increased stability when heeled until lake level reached the widest spot on the bubble. Heeling beyond that point decreases stabilty as less volume is presented to the water. Hence the "some er swim" moniker for the Sawyer summersong. Bubbled hulls can be made in split molds, which have a tendency to hog over time, then break, and are impossible to seal for vacuum construction.
Dy's shouldered tumblehome raises the widest point in the hull's cross section. This allows increasing heel angle with greater stability. The stems can be lifted higher with security. An obvious downside is the requirement for two piece molds; more time per hull built and obvious issues for vacuum construction. Another is the nee for extra fiber content to reinforce the double radius so it doesn't Z fold when weight is applied to the rail.
Wenonah's/Kruger's bubbles are significantly lower, to allow the hull to be drawn from a one piece mold if significant lay-out is included in the hull shape. As the hulls are heeled past that low bubble, less volume is presented to the water, so stability decreases pretty quickly past a slight heel. But, one piece molds have several construction advantages; cheaper to build, faster to cycle and easier to vacuum seal among them.
With all that said, we need to address "supersizing". Lots of folks have become too tall or too wide or have acquired large dogs, and the standard 15' by 29' tripper gets a little tender so loaded. The answer is in slightly wider hulls to improve stability, particularly when seated "Wenonah high". While Sawyer's autumn mist seems an early variant, Wenonah's wilderness addresses this need for trippers and Bell's rockstar for those paddling moving water. All good!
I post under my name. My experience[s] in the community, more than most, less than many, is fairly well known, so my biases can be fairly noted. Recently, in this posting, my opinion has been dissed to the point of using profanity.
I welcome open discussion, and readily admit my biases, including Yost hulls, Wolf cookstoves and a visceral dislike for plastic hulls. I am also fairly profane, having worked my way through college peeling paint off houses with the spoken word. That said, gentle folk do not print profane abuse, especially when lacking the courage to identify themselves as they get personal.
charlie
