Quote:
Originally Posted by buddha
Ross I have been a critic of the pedal kayaks as well as my FB Group gave me a lot of crap since I was able to borrow a Hobie on this trip for a week.
Interesting article. http://wavewalk.com/blog/2010/10/11/...ishing-kayaks/
What are your criticisms of the pedal kayaks other than possible breakdown of parts? |
I scanned and read the a portion of article on the link above but stopped after I read this:
Stability and Control
First of all, a kayak being such a small and inherently unstable craft demands that the person who operates it take care of balancing and controlling it actively, using their own body for this purpose.
It is important to remember that while pedal drives may be used solely for propulsion , paddles are useful for propelling as well as balancing the kayak. This is particularly difficult for kayak pedal drivers, since they are required to move their feet away from the footrests, located low and on the kayak’s sides, and place their feet on the pedals, located higher, and on the kayak’s center line. This repositioning of one’s feet severely reduces their ability to control and balance the kayak, and for this reason pedal kayak drivers are often seen holding the sides of the kayaks while pedaling them – By holding the kayak’s sides with their hands in such a way, they try to compensate for the loss in balancing capability as a result of their repositioning their feet to a less stable position, and no longer being able to use them for either balancing or control.
First of all, moving your feet a few inches will not necessarily cause your kayak to lose its balance, I've sat and slept on my kayak with one leg sitting on the side of the kayak slightly hanging over and I wasn't the least concerned about flipping over. I've seen kayakers fight fish on Hobie revo's while side straddling the kayak, the kayak never flipped over.
Why do I hold the sides of my pedal kayak? ummmmm......probably because I'd look really silly if I had my arms crossed over each other. when you drive your car/truck and you only have one hand on the wheel where is the other arm? Chances are its sitting on the center console or lodged on the door right near the window, I really doubt you're driving your car with the other arm in your pocket, that is if you're not driving with both hands on the wheel.
The real reason I have both hands on the side of my kayak is because pedal kayaks have something called a rudder control and its located, Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?..............you guessed it!!!! on the side of the kayak. My kayak has two rudder controls and both perform the same function. However, if I only had one rudder control I can assure you I would not be using my other arm to try and balance my kayak.
I didn't read any other parts of the post it but I'll have to assume(my apologies in advance if I'm wrong) that the writer is pro-paddle and hates Hobies or anything with a pedal/propulsion system.