New Paddle

Woohoo!

I just received my new paddle from Mike Fekete (AKA "Coach"). It is sweet!

I had been debating getting a new paddle for two reasons. First, long paddles are usually the preference of sprint kayakers and very strong paddlers. I watched a video of Hank McGregor in an endurance event (surfski). Hank is very tall, powerful, and is an ex-sprinter. He apparently uses a paddle with a length of about 215 cm. I am shorter, less powerful, and am using a paddle that is much longer. In short, I owed it to myself to try something shorter. I was also concerned about breaking my old paddle and not having a spare.

So, I originally ordered an exact replacement. My old paddle was a Kajner 6, but Kajner no longer makes this paddle. Instead, I learned that it has been updated! Fantastic!! In its updated form the paddle is referred to as the Kajner 2. It just came in the mail. It is the XL version with plenty of surface area at the tip for a strong catch.

It also has a very high rate of twist, which should allow the paddle to track easily away from the side of the boat and exit cleanly. I expect it will exit more cleanly than my Kajner 6.

Another nice addition to my new "spare paddle" is the locking mechanism. It is far better than the plastic lock on the Epics. Like my K6, it remains rugged, but is very quick to change feather and length on the fly. My Kajner 6 had a small tool that I could use to lock the feather angle, but could never *really* adjust it on the fly.

I can't wait to try it! Stay tuned ...