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The next technique article should be about:

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Freestyle C1 outfitting

Hi again,
Since I have some time today I will post the promised articles... The first on the list is Freestyle seat design.

Firstly before you start the conversion you have to know that there is a simple rule: The better you fit into the boat the less comfort you have and the more difficult is to get into the boat. There are, however, few tips how to break the rule.
Almost everybody knows, how to make a good C1 seat and there are articles on this subject all over the internet. So let me just mention all these little improvements I made to my boat, which finally made it a snug while still keeping the performance.

1. Most saddles the C1 paddlers use have a fixed saddle. That means your back leans on a pile of foam that is stuck into the actual saddle. This is the easy way how to do it.

Picture taken from cboats.net
It has a lot of disadvantages.
  1. The knee cups (tunnel design) can´t be deep enough for you to have them in the middle of your thighs, which offers much better control. If they were, you won´t be able to get into the boat because the saddle is fixed...
  2. Thus only the like 10-20 cm of your knees are inside the tunnels and this is not enough...
  3. Second problem is that if you use the hip belt, which you should, the strap straps you to a fixed saddle, thus transferring the strength you apply on it to the hull only.
  4. Your butt tends to go out of its place all the same, if you use the fixed saddle...

The strap setting

My solution is basically that I use almost the same system the kayak paddlers do. I cut the foam pile that supports my back and I use it as a backrest. So the ratchets of the backrest pull against the hip belt thus providing better fit and better strength distribution. Moreover I can get into the boat comfortably and then adjust the ratchets of the backrest.
Thus I get a better fit and comfortable getting in. The kneecups (tunnels) hold my thighs for almost 35 cm so I get better control of the boat...



So this is the basic idea of a freestyle seat. It provides both comfort and performance. The only disadvantage is that there are two more ratchets in the boat, but it is worth it...

So long

6 comments:

Unknown said...

I like your concept of connecting the hip belt to the back block. Seems that it will give you a nice snug fit.

How is is when you are leaning back to engage an edge? Do you feel that there is a delay in between the time your body moves to the time when the boat reacts? In my outfitting I have found that between the paddlers back and the boat, using stiff materials with minimal foam helps make the boat react better. This take a lot of work and mats, I'm interested to see if your method achieves the same effect.

Zoid said...

well...
I think that the reaction time is just a matter of getting used to the boat... I guess the reaction time is ok since the hip belt and the thigh belts are attached to the hip pad thus providing effective strength distribution. The back block position is adjustable by the ratchets... it is attached to the same place as in a kayak version. I recognized a change after I started to use this type of outfitting- the boat reacts more smoothly while carving and I really have to kick it on edge while blunting but that is what I wanted...
The main thing is that this outfitting provides excellent fit... my butt stays in place all the time... and it is also comfortable while getting in- this is provided by the adjustable ratchet system of the back block.

Unknown said...

What's your weight?

Looks like you're tossing that project 62 around pretty well.

Anonymous said...

I weight 100 kg, thats like 220 pounds I guess...
And still a flatwater cartwheel is a REALLY hard work for me...
I heard rumors that Wavesport is going to manufacture a Project 58... this might be better for me... But still I need a HUGE hull surface so I hope they will keep it as it is in the 62...

Anonymous said...

Yo Brothers

Appears like c1freestyle.blogspot.com really could be a excessively great forum for me [img]http://www.aweberl.com/rimages/smiley.gif[/img] I am lucky to have stumbled upon it.

Here's a funny quote to make you smile : With a rubber duck, you’re never alone. :


Lol!

Anybody have an interest in Shark Fishing


Looking forward to a good long sojourn here!

Washington,Davenport

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