Nice perspective on the current WW scene. Coincidentally, I quit being an active WW boater about 8 years ago. Guess I shouldn't have assumed there wouldn't have been changes in that period - esp. given the evolution of play boats since then! In my time, a 90* feather was "old school," and most of the folks on the river used 60* or less. No one was using unfeathered paddles, at all, and there didn't seem to be any reason to change that.

: So, I'm a very active whitewater paddler. This is a discussion that ww
: paddlers have all the time! I can say that the vast majority top freestyle
: ww kayakers ARE using unfeathered paddlers (0* feather, in ww parlance).
: It makes many playboating moves easier, especially flatwater moves where
: both blades are engaged. It makes quick braces much easier/quicker, and
: allows you to back deck/styer/rodeo roll from either direction. I find
: rolling in big, crazy bus-eating hydraulics easier with no or little
: feather. Heck, Ken Whiting extolls the virtues on unfeathered paddles in
: his playboating videos. 0* feathers started catching on only about 6 or 7
: years ago.

: BUT...there's a slight biomechanical disadvantage to pure 0* feathers...it's
: not quite as natural a motion when you're paddling to cover distance.
: Those oriented around "river running" and creeking (as opposed
: to freestyle playboating) generally use a little bit of feather, but not a
: lot. I know of two paddles that have been designed to achieve the
: "optimum" feather for straight up paddling without regard to
: wind. I personally paddle with an H2O paddle with a 12* offset. The blades
: are relatively flat, good for playboating, but there's enough twist that
: it works with the rotation of your body, without having to loosen your
: grip on your non-control hand. I can REALLY crank on the paddle, get a lot
: of power (these are seriously large blades that torque joints), and I feel
: great at the end of the day. The second paddle was designed by legendary
: ww paddler Jimi Snyder. After building ww paddles for 20 years, he decided
: that the optimum in bio-mechanical, downriver comfort for him is 40*. He's
: written up a his own thoughts on the matter, linked to below. They are
: slightly dated in his assessment of what's current, but the thinking is
: solid. I would say that the most popular offset for ww paddlers in general
: today is about 30*, but it's continually decreasing as people get more and
: more comfortable with the idea of less feather. It's a cultural issue, and
: the average feather angle has slowly been dropping on the river over the
: past few years as people try them out and find them more comfy over the
: day.

: It IS true that a few years ago all ww paddlers were using 90* offsets. Why?
: Slalom racing. I think now the racers are using around 75* feathers
: mostly, as it's not *quite* as harsh on the wrists when really cranking
: all day. Having the offset blade makes it easy to clear gates, but it
: really torques wrists. In the world of Olympic racing, they'll do anything
: to their paddles or boats to get gates easier....often trading safety to
: do so (very low volume boats). One of my ww paddling friends (who's about
: to build a stripper!!) competitively races slalom. He recently did 2
: back-to-back "marathon" paddles (26 miles) on the Gauley River
: with his 75* slalom paddle. He said after that, his tendonitis was so bad
: he couldn't paddle for two weeks! He also races flatwater--I'll have to
: ask him what the feather is on his wing paddle. I know they usually have
: quite a bit, and I think that's for aero reasons, but don't quote me on
: that.

: What do I used for sea kayaking? Well, a greenland paddle...that I probably
: feather 15* while paddling (ie, I pull the blade through the water at an
: angle). When not using that, I've got a 230 cm Mitchell that I usually
: keep at 45*. It's most comfortable for me, and does well with moderate
: wind. I paddled in a 30 knot wind once, and adjusted it up to 90*. I'm
: glad I had that ability!

: My take: what do YOU find COMFORTABLE for what YOU are doing?

: ------WebKitFormBoundaryCg1JNknuAcMS+s6A