kayak vs rowboat
dale
Northwest eventho people have been taking rowboats to sea for eons? Is it
a fad, a cultural thing of the N.W., or is there a technical advantage.
My research so far indicates that a rowboat will carry as much, if not
more, gear; can be more comfortable; and is faster with more economical
use of power.
What am I giving up (besides facing backward!) in a rowboat over a kayak?
Thanks for all of you that have already responded..............dale
Ken
a beamy row boat. Rather, rowing lets you apply more power. IMHO,
you will tire more quickly rowing than paddling.
The principal advantage of a kayak is that it is sealed. In a touring
row boat you must continually bail in rough conditions or risk being
swamped. A kayak just keeps going, assuming the paddler has the
necessary skill and is not too tired to use it. Also, if the kayak is
capsized by the occasional rogue wave, the paddler can do an Eskimo
roll and just keep going. The rower must exit and do a more difficult
self-rescue, if that is possible at all.
OTOH, answering nature's call is problematic in a kayak. But that is
another topic.
Ken
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mir
1. Going backwards is annoying when you have to navigate around other
boats or in narrow water, unless it's a two-up boat with one steering or
at least directing.
2. The width of the oar spread limits you if you try to explore really
narrow water - I sometimes go places where I have to back out a kayak.
3. Rowboats with sealed decks and self bailers (like some recreational
shells) need no more bailing than a kayak, and have the advantage that
they can't flood (assuming they're structurally intact).
4. A 17' long, 24" beam rec shell has no more drag than a kayak of
similar dimensions. You can put more power into the rec shell for a
while, but eventually the cardiovascular limit on power helps to even out
the power input.
5. In rough water, it's harder to keep two oars in the water and working
well than one paddle blade at a time.
6. I can discreetly answer nature's call in a kayak, with careful use of
a bailer. Not so easy in a rec shell (well, easy enough, but a lot more
exposed...).
For my use, on the average trip of an hour or two, I find that the shell
is faster and I can cover more ground and get more exercise, but the kayak
is more versatile for sightseeing while I get some exercise, and it's what
I take if I'm not sure of the weather.
FWIW.
Mike
In article <39509748...@news-server.optonline.net>,
cprst...@optonline.net says...
Ken
or 17". Their max capacities are not much above the rower's weight.
OTOH, a typical touring kayak has a 23" beam and can carry over 100
lbs of gear. The only rec shells I know of with beams and capacities
like that are open and subject to swamping.
mir
off-the-shelf boats that offer the capacity of a touring kayak combined
with a closed deck with self-bailing cockpit. I've owned a Little River
Sea Shell with a 20" beam and sealed deck and cockpit that was seaworthy
as far as swamping, but it had limited stowage. I've had open cockpit
slidng seat rowboats with 24" (or more) beam which can carry more, but
they're back to the original swamping problem. For anyone willing to
build a kayak, it wouldn't be much harder to build a boat with a closed
cockpit - or for that matter, to modify an existing kayak kit design (CLC
or Pygmy?) to have a closed cockpit and accept a drop-in rowing unit.
(Easy Rider has a convertible kayak/rec shell, but no closed cockpit as a
rec shell.) There was once a "Dolphin" kit boat that fit the bill, but
that was a while ago; probably not around any more. Seems that with the
interest in open water rowing, there'd be more available.
Mike
In article <39555665...@news-server.optonline.net>,
cprst...@optonline.net says...
J. Michaels
I'd send a message to Chris at CLC (or post it at their message board)
and see what they say. Their lapstitch wherry would lend itself to
having a false floor above the waterline for self bailing and enclosed
fore/aft compartments for your goodies.
Jim