Fast was back in the day when I was paddling my WSBS RPM. The only boat I was able to
pop the hull going thru shallow water!
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You can goggle the pro’s and con’s of products to use on the bottom. Carnauba car wax or TurtrleWax “Wax&Shine” works well. Scrub and clean bottoms well first. And don’t pile it on.
Chuck Guy
Roy, Utah
As far as short time speed accuracy it can all depend on the frequency that a GPS uses to calculate its measurements. The longer the time that it makes between measurements the less accurate the actual speed at any one time will be. Some of the more expensive GPSs will let you choose the interval. The reason that most GPSs limit how short of an interval you can set is to preserve battery life. Theoretically, you could have a GPS that took measurements every 0.1 seconds, but the battery life would be very short. I imagine that a GPS on a large power boat that did not depend on a small internal battery, the interval could be close to zero, although the wear on the electronic would be greater and maybe not worth it for what the GPS is being used for.
Our time trials are always done via stop watch and a measured distance, too many factors impacting a gps speedometer
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Rstevens15, agree. I actually covered that topic above. The apps fsstes sample rate is one second, and it measures distance to the hundreth. The result is that max speed recordings are clipped compared to the GPS. I believe I reset my the replacement GPS to .01 so they sample at different rates. Quicker reporting vs more satellite triangulation. The GPS reports accuracy estimates as it processes. Distances are very consistent depending on track taken, also discussed above.
Agree with darkstar that racers have an accurate assessment of speed for straight line course. If there is a diversion from straight, the paddler knows how long it took to cover the measure distance, but not the actual speed, yet its closer to actual speed than a WAG. Before the GPS, my chart measurements were estimated as 8.5 miles vs the 8.46. Depending on where I turn around or round the turns and deviate from course, the GPS records distance ranging from I believe 8.36 miles to 8.60 miles. Using 8.45 miles and the stop watch time in minutes, I get the same answer as the GPS.
Based on shortcoming pointed out, I accept that the GPS hasn’t progressed much beyond a WAG. The app is free. The GPS was worth it for my purposes. Appareny it isn’t accurate enough to sample speeds to compare performance or to compare things like paddles. There’s always perception. It still interests me enough to enlarge the charts and figure out the meaning of the lines. Maybe I’ll figure out how far off the readings are. Accurate or not, I do know that it helped me to recover enough during the past two seasons. I’m almost able to cover the distance in the same amount of time that I could 12 years ago. I credit the GPS and the app with helping me get there.
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WAG is?
You’re measuring .1 mph improvement on trips but you can’t compare paddle performance, I’m lost?
Wild A## Guess.
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I’m confident with what I found. I’ve checked, compared, cross checked, used different methods, looked at stacks of graphs, plan on enlarging the graphs to better understand whether the variation are GPS error or normal glide variations.
I compare speed readings off line with someone who use the GPS in racing and compares the accuracy of the GPS over actual measured courses; however, that’s based on conversations, not eye witness or personsal experience. Hearsay, so I don’t reference it, even though I trust the information and the person.
I still believe the information and my findings. I’ve written far to much on the topic and now only repeat what I already wrote - clearly not able to make the case. Mostly because I can’t explain with confidence how a device that has a built in error can register consist readouts.
I shared the findings to elicit scrutiny from members; I got valid reactions, and agree with the explanations. It would be unreasonable for me to waste anyones time to argue what can’t be validated based on a handful of logs and graphs. The difference between reading my explanation of graphs and logs is that I physically experienced it and studied it following a trip. You only have vague interpretations.
Arguing the point erodes my credibility so I’ll no longer discuss GPS issues or use it to validate claims. Those who race already figure out what they need to know. Many other members don’t measure their time on the water by how fast they can go, because they’re surfing, touring, sight seeing, photographing, socializing or if they want to get somewhere faster, they just paddle harder. That’s respectable. I just now realize how unusual it is that my interest in kayaking is so unique. That’s why I paddle alone.
Everyone who wants to go faster paddles harder if they have any technic. Maybe not with a sail onboard. 
That’s what I’m trying to say. I’ll still use it, but I won’t share it.
What’s on their bottom?
I don’t know. They have to stand up.
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220 lb hull 60’ long.
Whaaat? Yeow! I wont be taking that to the pond.
Even with a top of the line GPS you can still get the occasional anomalous 15mph reading between a couple of the thousands of points on a 20 mile paddle when your average speed is around 4 mph.
As told me by a buddy who’s into racing “If the goal is to go fast, get yourself a Saturn V rocket. Otherwise all you’re doing is going fast with respect to self-chosen, arbitrary caveats.”
My goal is to go as fast as I can average on most solo paddles. I know it’s not fast at 4.5 mph average or what ever it ends up.
If I was to race another paddler and go say an unattainable 15 mph it is still not fast. Goal is to be faster relative to him or my last solo outing.
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@PaddleDog52 that’s a good goal. Everybody has a plan. Mine was two-fold. Recovery after an injury, and testing equipment. That included figuring out the value of the phone app. In the process, I now understand the difference between the two paddles and my preference. I learned more about breathing. I’m more comfortable with my paddles stroke. I have a better understanding of energy management strategy. By quartering the course, I know the impact of wind and current and figured out better ways to manage the effect. Unfortunately, I don’t know how I can translate what I learned to help anyone else. On the other hand, what works for me may not work for anyone else. I alway benefited from forum dialog. Maybe it motivated someone else to experiment.
I’m not competitive by nature. I prefer sharing and seeing everbody make gains. It doesn’t matter if your goal is to go faster, roll better, ride a better wave, find a better boat, seek a new destination, make a friend, or look at pretty picture. Everybody is a winner. One example is in these posts. Someone asks a question, and it stimulates interest. A select group goes out to find the answer, then the information goes into a giant fur ball where its mulled over. Exposure to a question also raises a mental flag, which makes that topic stand out in general published media. Doesn’t really matter who is right. Its how you decide to use the information.
If I had been exposed to this type of forum 15 years ago, my kayaking would have taken a different direction. Regarding GPS and apps, my take away right or wrong, is that the inherent shortcomings are consistent. That makes the readings relative from trip to trip and from the begnning to the end of a trip. By quartering the travel legs, I paddle into given condition, then with the condition, twice in each trip. Next season my goal will see how I apply the knowledge on longer trips.
I can say with confidence that compared to 12 years ago, I can match speeds over moderate distances, but I dont have the ability to match sustained speeds I did in the past. It also takes me longer to recover. Back then I could improve if I went out two days in a row, but regressed on a third day. Recovery between trips was about two to three days. Now its closer to five days. I can accept that and plan to take observation trips to just enjoy the ducks and flowers between the power trips.
Regarding wax, I happened to see an article yesterday. Plastic boats benefit from UV protection and gel coat boats benefit from a soap and water cleaning followed by a thorough rinse. A coat of wax helps preserve the gel cost and keep the hull clean. As far as speed, it supports the initial discussions above about that boundary layer.
As far as automotive use is concerned waxes aren’t there for UV protection, it’s there to protect the clear coat which is the primary source of UV protection for the paint. Granted some waxes do claim to provide UV protection, but it’s not it’s primary purpose or likely to be very much. Now that may not translate perfectly to poly boats, but I’d reckon it does with most painted composite boats. It’d probably be better to use a product which is primarily dedicated/formulated for UV protection (303 comes to mind). Might’ve been stated here already, but waxing a boat may hinder the ability of other products (ie UV protector) to stay applied evenly and remain on the boat when use.
@DeepBarney I was under the impression that wax did provide UV protection, but can’t think of why it would. I omitted a step in the article where they recommended 303, over top of the wax, for UV protection. You reminded me of that step, which seemed odd when I read it.