: Tracking is a relative thing. It means something different to
: different paddlers. One of the joys and curses of the Night
: Heron is its ability to turn. You left out some information,
: though- how did you modify it?

: I went from a kayak that doesn't really turn at all to a Night
: Heron, so here's what I can tell you.

: The NH is extremely responsive to leaned turns. If you sit with
: your weight a bit to one side or another it will turn. Most of
: us don't sit straight- like in a car how only one foot works the
: accelerator. If your seat is a bit off center the same thing
: will happen. If you are sensitized to the kayak's movements it
: will get worse. Once it starts to turn in one direction, it
: takes a hearty sweep to correct.

: If your paddle stroke is not of even strength on either side, the
: kayak will turn correspondingly.

: Don't cut anything yet. You've barely paddled it.

: First of all- practice steering with your butt- subtly shifting one
: leg forward by squeezing your butt cheek. You kayak will turn in
: the opposite direction. Straighten out, and do it in the other
: direction. That's how sensitive it is on flat water. Just like
: having a rudder, but butt control rather than foot control.

: Second- work to even out your paddle stroke from side to side.
: Here's how. Stop looking at your bow. Don't look at your bow any
: more. Pick a point and paddle to that point. If I look at my
: bow, I get fixated on every little wiggle, and I paddle all over
: the place. It's hard to paddle straight when you're looking a t
: your bow.

: Third- this was mainly an issue for me on flat water when I was
: getting used to the kayak. It disappeared as soon as there was
: even a bit of chop. I think this is because maybe the kayak
: tracks a bit better in a bit of chop, or because I stopped
: fixating on my bow because I had other things to do.

: m

Hi Allen,Mike; I weigh 167lbs 75.7k the modifications are- I reduced the length from 18ft. to 16ft. enlarged the cockpit length to 36in.
and raised the front deck about 3/4in. this was all due to me being 83 years old and having lost strength and flexibility the 16 footer
is easier to carry and get into. It was Nick's design and I called him, he suggested I scale it down, The hull is basically the same the
forms were calculated a little closer, It was the placement of the cockpit that was the challenge so I opted to place it about 3in forward
of form 11 which was the location on the original plans and that is why I trend to ballast, if I'm wrong( and I'm sure not a marine eng.). please correct me, onThe original plans the forms were 12in. apart so I kept the forms the same just reduced the space between them and just now the bomb went off in my head---- I should have reduced the placement of the cockpit by the same
percent.I just hope the problem can be resolved simply by weight. Thanks for all your help. Nick R.