: I tentatively step my foot up to the plate after having loitered around for
: awhile. Im relatively new to canoes and kayaks having only rented
: fibreglass ones from the local sports shop here in Mandurah Western
: Australia... so Im no real brain when it comes to these craft... ie: be
: gentle :o)
: My questions are quite simple

: 1) Im 45yrs 5'7" weigh in at 11 stone (?? other measurements) have
: reasonably good carpentry skills (furniture) intention is to paddle in
: rivers estuary and streams around Western Australia. help needed regarding
: what design would be best for my present "novice" status.

: 2) Does anyone know of any Western Australian builders and or kayakers? I
: need to meet up have a yarn and maybe a paddle to figure all this out up
: close and personal... or any clubs maybe?

: 3) The style and look of sea kayaks appeals over other designs, what impact
: if any would that have for me? ie: would it be better to build a more
: simpler design to learn with or look at the long term? (surely im not
: gonna be a novice for that long?)

: 4) Are there any designs being created within Australia? I ask this simply
: because our $ is so lousy here and the conversion is huge in many cases.

: 5) Final... I have spoken with other spinal injured people who are into
: canoes and the idea of rebuilding my back, neck and upper body strength
: (no indepth questions or responses I dont know that that would be right
: here?) doing it this way appeals over daily sessions in the gym, spa and
: hydrotherapy pools.. am I right in this aim? I have movement although
: restricted mainly over left side, arm, leg, back and neck through
: industrial and motor vehicle accidents.. (the rest of me is fine!)

: Okay if you can help me here it would be great if not I will keep looking and
: probably get the lightning 17 from Waters Dancing in Canada... great mob
: by the way quick and helpfull email contact.

: Shane

Hi Shane,

There's a few other aussies here, I don't know of any over your way though. You could try Canoeing WA ( http://www.canoewa.asn.au/ ). Canoeing WA is the state body responsible for the management, co-ordination, development and promotion of paddlesports in Western Australia, or so they're website says. They've got a bunch of links that should keep you busy for a while.

There's plenty of people here who know a whole lot more about chosing the right kayak than I do so I'll leave that to them. But before you go paying $200 for a set of plans, check out your local library for the books by Kulczycki, Schade, Putz, Morris, and Dyson (have I left any out?) these books contain the plans and all the info you'll need to build your own kayak. They all cost around $40, you can buy them from: http://www.boatbooks.com.au . They are in melbourne but will ship to west oz.

If you decide to build a plywood boat ask for gaboon not Okoume, it's the same thing, but the sales guys give you a bit of a blank look when you ask for okoume. Okoume is a marine grade ply and it's expensive, I've built two kayaks out of cheap external grade luan ply with no problems, though it's not as pretty as okoume, and potentially not as strong it's about $12 per sheet compared to around $80 for okoume. Read up on the pros and cons before you decide.

For epoxy check out bote cote at http://www.boatcraft.com.au/ . It's a locally made epoxy that's said to be as good as anything else on the market, a bit cheaper though. They'll have a distributor in WA.

Check out your yellow pages for fibre glass, buy from either the importer or a manufacturer. Also try http://www.lbie.com/ they're in western oz and may sell in the small quantities you'll need. Try not to buy materials from the local marine accessories megamart sort of store. They place a huge markup on just about everything, avoid them if you can.

It might also be a good idea to get an assesment at your local sports injury clinic, they'll have a good understanding of the new sorts of stresses and strains you're body will have to cope with if you take up paddling. And they can tell you whether it's a good idea or not. You don't want to do your self further injury.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions, or just post them here, there's no such thing as a stupid question in this place.

Cheers,

Paul