Ashley raised this interesting topic in an email and i thought it would be good info to share, so here it is.
Hello Rambo, I enjoy your blog and check it every daily for new postings. I saw in one of your postings where you came in .5 seconds from gold and it made me wonder what paddle you are using and whether you have ever tried a ZRE. I have paddled with Kialoa (wood, hybrid, and graphite), Gillespe, etc. In my opinion the ZRE is so far superior that there is no comparison. In my experience the only people who don’t like it are the ones with closed minds and those that have never used it. I can’t help but believe that a ZRE would easily give you more than .5 seconds. Also because the shaft is stiff and the Power Surge face grips the water so well that in my opinion it takes less effort to get that explosive power needed to catch a wave. Also the light weight (mine is 10 oz.) makes it easier to get a high stroke rate. I find that a heavy wood blade uses so much energy on the recovery phase of my stroke that my power phase is reduced. Anyway, have you ever used a ZRE Power Surge blade? What are your impressions? Looking forward to your reply. Ashley
And my Reply
Hi Ashley, glad you enjoy the blog as much as I enjoy sharing the info and my experiences. I currently paddle Oc1 with a 50inch Kialoa Axel series 2 and I’m working my way up to a longer shaft length, as I believe you should paddle OC1 with the longest paddle possible without causing injuries. I do like the feel of a blade heavy paddle in the conditions I mainly paddle in (windy and downwind). It allows me to feel where to place the blade accurately at the point of entry without having to sight it all the time.
I have tried the ZRE PowerSurge with the flexible carbon shaft and hope to use it in an OC2 for the 404km Red Cross Murray River Marathon Race at Xmas. I think you will agree a flexible shaft ultra lite weight paddle will be ideal in still conditions over that distance, and much better for the old body.
I’m not convinced changing paddle types will make you faster in sprint races, as any correctly planted suitable paddle should anchor you to the water and allow you to pull the canoe past it with no or very little slippage. (see attached time lapsed photo)
Changing blade sizes during a long (3 hour+) race is something different altogether.
Checkout this trial Al Ching did with his son Danny Ching during a race.
Interestingly we conducted several tests over the course of a one-man season. Four tests were done with Danny Ching using a different size blade in successive races. The average test was an hour to hour and a half. The results were mixed, since we could not switch paddles in the middle of the race and each was not the same distance.
However, in a five hour Catalina relay race Danny and his partner Dan Barbosa both started with a 9 ¼” blade and averaged a little more than 8.5 knots for an hour. After one hour the average speed began to drop by a half knot, accompanied by the onset of shoulder pain. Switching to a smaller 9” blade, both paddler’s speed went up by more than a half-knot for the next hour, but slowly began to drop. At three and a half hours, they switched to 8 ¾” and both paddler’s speed went up by almost a half knot. At four hours fatigue took over and they could not change speed.
Using three sizes, 9 ¼, 9 and 8 ¾, we found that with the larger blades, two things happened. First the acceleration was good only for about an hour, then the speed slowly dropped. Switching to slightly smaller blades the speed went up, also only for an hour. After four hours, switching sizes didn’t matter.
What we did not test were the effects stroke rate as compared to size of blade. We suspect blade sizes are like shoes, which will tend to regulate your rate to where you can handle it. Some teams are extremely strong with great endurance and can use larger blades. Big blades pull more water, but I always suspect who is doing the pulling? If you plant your blade cleanly, start up front, without cavitating and maintain race pace through out, you should do the best you can for your condition and your strength.
End Document
Very interesting isn’t it.
You might also be interested in these paddles (see attached photos) by Michel Levasseur … Levas Paddles. I believe they are 9 inch wide and 7 – 8 OZ.
It’s good to experiment with different paddles, as it is with canoes, it broadens your knowledge and feel for what is available. But eventually you should settle on what you like and what works for you, swapping and changing too much will not allow you to adapt to the paddle.
Cheers Rambo
For a very detailed analysis of long vs short go here
http://rambos-locker.blogspot.com/2006/07/long-or-short-you-decide.html
Anyone else have thoughts on this?? Click Comments below.
A very Detailed Analysis of Long Vs Short paddles ... by Leo Young MD Bsc.
Part 1
From a biomechanical point of view, I believe it's a major, but unfortunately deeply entrenched misconception, to assume that a taller paddler should automatically use a longer and/or bigger outrigger paddle.
Generally speaking, tall and short people have relatively similar torso heights. Overall height differences occur primarily in limb lengths. Accordingly the average height person has a wing span that closely approximates their height, whilst shorter people generally have wing spans less than their height and taller people normally have wing spans longer than their height.
A taller paddler's shoulder height above the canoe seat is usually going to be very similar to that of a short person, but because of their longer arms, their hands will be much lower relative to the waterline. Accordingly, a taller person actually needs a shorter paddle to reach the water effectively.
Furthermore, the effective gearing you are working with when you paddle, at any given blade size, is determined by the distance from the medial center of your scapula (the middle of your shoulder blades) to the tip of your paddle, when your arm is stretched out straight at the catch. The longer this distance, the longer the work lever is and higher/harder the ge you are working with, that is the more work you are doing for any given angular range of motion.
The length of that lever is primarily determined by the size of your wing span and how far up the shaft you grip. So any paddler can increase their working lever, by simply moving their hand up the shaft. But obviously, at any given grip position, taller paddlers are working with a harder gear (longer lever) and doing more work for any given angular range of motion. A taller person using the same size paddle as a shorter person and gripping the paddle in the same position, will feel more load on the end of their paddle.
So a taller paddler can not only get away with using a shorter paddle to get to an effective catch position, but can actually use a shorter paddle to achieve a given amount of work. I believe a lot of taller paddlers unknowingly put themselves at a significant disadvantage by using longer blades that effectively have them way over geared.
I'm 196cm tall, with a 208.5cm wingspan and normally use a 51" paddle, but even feel quite comfortable with a 50" paddle, gripping closer to the blade than shorter paddlers.
Remember, just because using longer paddles for taller paddlers is what everyone normally does, doesn'tt make it correct.
Now before everyone starts enthusiastically challenging these heresies by quoting established kayaking paddle length norms, be aware that whilst exactly the same principles apply, taller paddlers potentially will need longer kayak paddles to give them the appropriate and comfortable spacing they will need between their hands. However, some of this extra grip spacing required by taller paddlers should be achieved by them gripping the shaft slightly closer to the blade, to compensate for the longer lever gear created by their greater wingspan.
Part 2
I need to clarify a point with regards to my earlier post on paddle lengths and gearing. All my previous comments really only considered how heavily the bottom arm is being geared for the primarily important pulling action of the stoke.
For a given paddle length, moving your bottom hand further up the shaft, increases the gearing on both the bottom hand (where creating a longer lever below your hand gears things up), as well as on the top hand (where a shorter lever above your hand increases the gearing effect).
A longer paddle only gears you up more heavily if you move your bottom hand further up the shaft. If you use a longer paddle and keep your bottom hand in the same position, nothing changes directly with regards to the gearing of the pulling action of the stroke, however, you effectively lower the gearing effect for your top hand and consequently the pushing component of the stroke.
Conversely, using a shorter paddle and keeping your bottom hand the same height up the paddle, still gives you the same bottom arm gearing, but automatically increases the gear your top hand is working with.
So Al, before you change paddle lengths, first play around with your hand placement on your existing paddle and differentiate between how heavily geared your bottom and top hands feel. First, find a hand position up the shaft that feels correctly geared for your bottom hand, which is the most critical of the two. At that position, only then decide how appropriately geared and positioned your top hand feels. If things feel to light for your top hand and your hand position is relatively high with reference to your shoulder, you need a shorter paddle. Alternatively, if your top hand is too heavily geared and your top hand is well below shoulder height then you will need a longer paddle. I'd suggest that if in doubt, err towards a shorter rather than a longer paddle.
Of course, the surface area of the blade itself is also critical in determining how heavily geared you are. Once again, I'd suggest using the smallest blade size that you can effectively paddle with, without cavitating through water, even when sprinting. The better your technique, and consequently your catch, the smaller the blade you'll be capable of using and still be effectively catching plenty of water to work against.
If you're producing big puddles that pop out behind the back of your stroke, it means you're missing a lot of water and dragging down a lot of air on the catch. A good catch should be creating either no splash, or a tiny splash in front of the paddle away from you, rather than a back splash towards you.
