Hi, recently i’ve entered the Kayaking sport and the first time i used my CD Storm, on the beach entering in the shore, everytime i tried to start paddling the kayak was so unstable…so i ended always on the water!!!
Could be my weight…250lbs.???..or maybe this kayak is not suitable for beach!!
Do i need to change the Kayak or it can be resolve with a Kayak stabilizers…to start learning to gain stability??
please, help me with this…i really like this sport!!!
Huh?
You really like kayaking but you have yet to make it any distance from shore without capsizing? It sounds as though you are spending more time at the sport of swimming than kayaking.
Real suggestion - you should probably consider lessons before worrying about the boat.
MhMhM!!!
Sorry, i did not make myself clear,…i’m trying to say that i have always used SIT ON TOP kayaks!..this is my first time using SIT IN Kayak…
beach
can’t tell what you mean by beach, but if there’s a lot of wave action maybe that gets you off to a bad start. Don’t worry, lots of paddlers have launched in surf and done their “beach rolls”
Try paddling in calm waters, and take some lessons: a school or club or with experienced paddlers. They can see what you’re doing - right and wrong - and help you with technique. Kayaking is a lot about technique.
Also learn what your options are when you capsize so that you have fun and paddle safely.
Storm is a good boat
The CD Storm is a good boat, especially for larger paddlers.
Launchng into surf is a skill. Lessons help, practice is important.
Start in calmer water
to get a feel for the Storm. Most sea kayakers would consider it to be fairly stable and a good boat for larger folks. Save the beach launching in surf until you’re more comfortable in the Storm.
The problem that many beginners have is that they’re too tense to let the boat move under them. If you’re tense, it doesn’t take much to knock you over. Once you learn to be loose let the boat react to the waves, staying upright becomes much easier. learning to brace would also help.
Many folks here have reported that their boats magically became more stable after they’d spent a few hours in them.
Stabilizer
Thanks!!!..a Kayak stabilizer can help to achieve some skills and confidence???..
No
Time in calmer water and learning how to paddle the boat, whether by trial and error or lessons, creates confidence.
“Stabilizers” get in the way of learning to handle the boat.
Sponsons???
– Last Updated: Apr-14-08 5:55 PM EST –
Kayak stabilazers are a waste of time and money if you want to actually paddle your boat in lumpy water. You will be amazed how quickly your boat feels stable after spending time in it relaxed.
If you have access to either coaches or skilled paddlers, you will be surprised how much difference even an hour or two of instruction can make in your comfort and confidence.
Beach Launches In Sit Inside Kayaks
– Last Updated: Apr-14-08 7:19 PM EST –
I don't know what beach you're talking about, but I spend a lot of weekends on Monterey Bay. Even a nice calm summer day is going to have 2-3 foot surf.
I have to admit I have been entertained many hours watching sit inside kayakers try and launch thru even small surf.
I do know guys who can do it, and even make it look graceful, like TChuck, but they are the exception to the rule.
Out here, most sit inside kayakers will start out from a more protected area, like a harbor.
Anything but Calm!!
Hi, the beach i’m talking about, has anything but calm…!!!
So, if you were in my place you suggest, that if im not near a Harbor try to change my Kayak to a SIT ON TOP version??
thanks for your help!!!
SINK launching into surf
– Last Updated: Apr-14-08 8:15 PM EST –
People launch sit inside kayaks into surf pretty regularly on the East Coast.
It is a skill. The photo linked and its kin were from a training day wherein most of the participants had no previous experience launching into surf:
[URL=http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/1478702432048488250nXhAdD]
Many on this board have launched SINKs into much bigger surf than in these photos.
What I See In Northern California
What I commonly see around Northen California is that most paddlers who regularly launch off the beach into surf paddle SOTs.
Most paddlers who paddle SINKs most often launch from harbors, or protected coves, or on very calm days.
SOTs are easier to launch into surf, and not as painful if you wipe out coming back in. You just jump out.
But here are many other considerations, beside the beach launch.
If you start every trip off the beach into surf, its something to think about.
I won’t pretend that I make it out the first time, every time, when I launch into big surf, either.
I just wade out to about waist level and hop in between waves and start paddling before the next on hits.
I watch guys like Tsunamichuck, it seems to be about patience. Waiting for a wave to come up and float you away.
Huh, That Looks Cold…
– Last Updated: Apr-14-08 8:57 PM EST –
That's why I framed my response specific to my area.
Obviously, SOTs are not suited for cold water. I got a feeling I would not want to wade out waist deep into that water wearing nothing but a skimmpy little 3mmm Farmer John. I don't think the boys would like that.
Since the OP stated he is used to SOTs, I assume he doesn't come from a cold climate.
The Atlantic is a smaller body of water that gets cold in winter and warm in summer. The Pacific is a pretty constant temp. A little chilly but nothing a 3mm farmer john can't handle
That's not real big surf by west coast standards. I've seen TsunamiChuck launch into much bigger, but then not everyone can handle a kayak like Chuck
I mostly launch through surf
rather than paddling out. If I can do it then anybody can do it.
Re: What I See In Northern California
I don’t think it is easier to launch a SOT in big surf than a SINK. A SINK has greater accelaration and hull speed which are critical to holding your position in the soup zone, accelarating at the right time to get through the impact zone between wave sets, and punching through breaking waves. In a SOT, if you get knocked over by a wave, you will end up swimming back to shore and start over. In a SINK, you can perform an Eskimo roll and be on your way in a few seconds. Actually if I see a really big wave about to break on me when I’m paddling out, I would roll down to avoid getting hit on my upper body and let the bottom of my hull take the hit, wait until all the rumbling whitewater subside and then roll myself back up. This technique is frequently used by surf kayakers.
Where are you located MartinG?
I get the sense you are not native to the US.
Believe it or not folks, seakayaks were designed for paddling on the ocean. It’s likely some of us here may be able to help you out —if you give us an idea of the place where you are trying to paddle.
The advice to find a sheltered bay first is good to get confidence in your boat … then take a lesson, paddle with some experienced friends who can beach launch or get this video …
http://www.paddling.net/store/showProduct.html?product=213
Yup, dry suit waters
Yeah it was autumn off Rhode Island and the water was a bit cool. Actually, the rain and winds were worse in some ways than the sea.
As I mentioned it was a training day with most of us wholly inexperienced with sea kayaks in surf. Some of the breakers were 5.5 ft which is pretty good on the east coast for non-storm seas. I not so much learned to surf a sea kayak that day, but to not be afraid of being in a sea kayak in the surf.
West Coast surf is normally bigger than East Coast.
More seriously…
– Last Updated: Apr-15-08 3:13 PM EST –
I would be surprised if you couldn't get used to the Storm and get it thru surf once you figure out how to sit comfortably in the boat and manage it. It's a heck of a stable boat for a sea kayak.
I strongly suspect that some of your issue is that the Storm is longer than the SOT you had, so is getting knocked over by the waves because you are ending up more broadside to the waves than you were in the SOT. (The waves are catching the bow of the boat more than in your SOT.) If that's it, you need to learn to counter the lifting wave action and edge so that you are actually getting up close and personal with the wave face. But until you are comfortable with the boat in a calmer environment, it's going to be hard for you to do this. You'll likely tend to under or overshoot the balance point you need.
Is there a place that you can spend some time in relatively flat water just getting accustomed to taking the boat over on edge?
In Southern California we routinely
launch through surf. It requires some flatwater practice to learn the skills and then there is a definite learning curve to handling surf launches and landings. We talk about “kelp awards” whenever someone crashes and burns. A friend snapped a picture of me on a successful surf launch in my Nigel Foster Shadow - BTW, I was just a little lighter than you at 225 lbs. http://gallery.ckf.org/displayimage.php?album=251&pos=5