> With the discussion on intergral rudders (very nice design by the way) an
> similar topic comes to mind.

> Any great ideas on steering systems that do not require footbraces? For
> example I've considered

> 1. a toe mount above the foot brace that would give a solid base for
> support and a moveable upper section for rudder control (not sure how to
> make this adjustable but I understand one company makes and installs this
> type of system in it's production kayaks)

Seaward Kayaks makes one like that, I made the mistake of purchasing it. My complaints are that #1, the company's customer service was ABSOLUTELY TERRIBLE! I would recommend NOT doing buisness with them for that reason alone. But on the technical side, It was too expensive ($75), and it flexes way too much for my tastes. I plan to retro fit my boat with another scheme ASAP.

Out here in Hawaii, most boats (more outrigger canoes than kayaks, but still both) have a fixed heel cup for each foot and extending from the top of it (in the ball of the foot area) is a stainless steel hinge. Half of it is mounted to the heel cup and the other half is free to swivel forward and back. With a bungie to hold it forward and a rudder cable to hold it back, it seems to work pretty well, since that is the standard design out here.

As I said, the heel cup is fixed permanently in the boat. and the sitting position must be moved to accomidate boaters of different leg length. That could be a problem if you want to accomidate people with drasticaly different leg lengths.

P.