Rock n Roll Over

[brad mcpherson]

RnR 2009 is now over and I have to say I had a great time. I'm glad half the clan caught up with each other there although I don't know what happened to Owen. Someone said you were there but when I looked I couldn't find you on either day.

I got a trip in with Gibbo and Selim but though I spent plenty of time with John, we didn't paddle together. For me, having you clansmen there made a big difference compared to RnR 2008 where I was very much alone except for some casual acquaintances.

When next year is announced, I think we should book in early and get either some cabins or adjacent campsites and set up a clan HQ where we can make a statement about ourselves. By that time I hope to have clan livery sorted so we can have shirts and logos on as well as a flag.

I can say that our clannish efforts are being noticed by key members of the club and by 2010 I expect we will be the benchmark clan and will have influence over training and events in our area.

One area of concern is that we should have as many of us getting to Grade 3 ASAP. We need to have at least one Sea Leader in the clan so we can host club trips and get some of the top instructors coming up to help out. I will be focusing on my Sea Skills assessment in the next 12 months and my longer term aim is to be a trip leader however, I think John and Simon are more advanced than me and I can't speak for you clanners I haven't met yet.

So finally, thanks for the clansmen who were at RnR making it very enjoyable. Congratulations to Simon for buying a brand new Sea Leopard II. Check photos for the grin on his dial. I ordered the last of the Impex Assateagues and will pick it up in a week or so. It looks like the clan fleet is being upgraded.

[Owen Walton]

Klanners, Balance Stool: 2 days ago I didn't know what one was, today I built one. Using Graeme's model and an idea I got from the net, I have built a much simpler/rougher unit from bits of wood I found round the place. The rockers were 12" x 6" raidiused up 1.5" at the sides. I have added an adjustable foot rest. The height of Graeme's scared me, so mine is much lower to the ground. When I'm confident with the current set-up, I'll increase the radius/height of the rockers. I have attached some photos.

[John Anderson]

Thanks Graeme, I'm glad I'm not the only one. It was such a bizarre reaction, I wasn't sure whether it was just me. The removable rockers are a really nice touch. I'll get out the glue and screws and give it a go.

[David Gibbins]

My R&R 2009 take home (cost = $0) --- There is more to Kayaking than Lake Macquarie! (Dreaming of Grade 3 for 2010)

[John Anderson]

Oh Baby, where have you been all my life. :) That's a fine looking boat Selim ! 5.45 m of Estonian beauty.

50cm beam, I don't know if my arse would fit in it though !

[Graeme Auld]

John, Yes it is home made from 12mm ply and pine scraps. Inspiration came from Building the Greenland Kayak by Chris Cunningham.The first set of rockers I made were too low and too large a radius and the stool was too stable, so I got the idea of making the rockers removable so I could vary the stability of the stool. Basically the higher the stool and the smaller the rocker radius the less stable it is. If you go to the trouble of making the rockers a shallow parabola you can get the centre tippyness with better support as the stool rocks,however my rockers were very carefully plotted by drawing a line around a convenient large paint tin :)

[Selim Tezcan]

John >> "An upgrade definitely in the wind in the next few months. The Aquanaut is nice, but I haven't entirely ruled out the Nordkapp yet."

John, I found the Kayak you are looking for : http://www.tahemarine.com
Selim :) LOL, now you are in love I mean in trouble :)

[John Anderson]

Owen, Graeme has explained it better than I could, thanks Graeme. I love the look of the Q boat and the Anas Acutas, both beautiful boats. Sadly my budget at present only runs to tupperware, and my tendency to hamfistedness makes the indestructible qualities of that material very attractive.

Graeme, I'm delighted to hear from someone who has used the greenland paddle stool and found it to work. Did you build it yourself ? Do you have any plans for the stool. Particularly the radius /type of curve for the rockers ?

[Owen Walton]

Graeme, Thanks for the info and photo of the balance stool. Must be painful though when you "loose it" as those pavers look a lot more solid than salt water!

[Graeme Auld]

Brad, It looks like you have beaten me to the assateague!! Which is good because it removes the temptation when I shouldn't really spend the money. Congratulations on the new boat

[Graeme Auld]

Owen, a greenland balance stool is a device used for training your sense of balance. It exercises the small muscles used for corecting minor changes in stability. It really does emulate the feel of a tippy kayak and does improve balance . Mine has rockers of different heights so "tippyness" can be varied.