IF THE BOAT FITS, JUMP ON, NOT IN.Byline: Jeremy Bagott Daily News Staff Writer As the saying about kayaks goes, you don't ride in 'em, you wear 'em. With a conventional kayak kayak (kī`ăk), Eskimo canoe, originally made of sealskin stretched over a framework of whalebone or driftwood. It is completely covered except for the opening in which the paddler sits. , the lower half of the kayaker's body fits through a ``manhole'' and into a cavity that conforms to the boater's legs, feet, hips and posterior posterior /pos·ter·i·or/ (pos-ter´e-er) directed toward or situated at the back; opposite of anterior. pos·te·ri·or adj. 1. Located behind a part or toward the rear of a structure. . While the arrangement might be superior for heat retention, protection from spray and aerodynamics aerodynamics, study of gases in motion. As the principal application of aerodynamics is the design of aircraft, air is the gas with which the science is most concerned. , it requires knowledge of several recovery paddle strokes, the wet exit and the Eskimo roll - a self-righting technique used in a capsizing. Enter the sit-on-top kayak, aka the wash-deck kayak, upon which one sits in a recessed, self-bailing cockpit. The kayaker can move around, isn't joined at the hip with the boat and doesn't need to know from rolls. Sit-on-tops range from short, stubby stub·by adj. stub·bi·er, stub·bi·est 1. a. Having the nature of or suggesting a stub, as in shortness, broadness, or thickness: stubby fingers and toes. b. ``surf skis'' to thin, 20-foot-long open-ocean rockets. Most recreational models fall in the 12- to 14-foot category with widths of 28 to 32 inches that are generally big enough to accommodate the kayaker, some camping equipment, and child or dog in the cockpit. Most are made from molded polyethylene; pricier models use Kevlar, fiberglass and proprietary materials. ``(Sit-on-tops) have helped the sport of kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across water. Kayaking is differentiated from canoeing by the fact that a kayak has a closed cockpit and a canoe has an open cockpit. They also use a two bladed paddle. Another major difference is in the way the paddler sits in the boat. grow immensely,'' said Doug Schwartz, owner of the South Wind Kayak Center in Irvine. ``They have really brought kayaking into the mainstream.'' With a weight of 50 to 60 pounds, they're easy to transport by car-top. The cost: $400 to $2,300, with most models at around $600. One beauty of kayaking is that no boat registration is required in the state of California. But for all the benefits over traditional kayaks, this doesn't mean that sit-on-top kayaking is for everyone under all conditions. ``The big advantage is that if they tip over, you just climb back on,'' said Schwartz, ``but that doesn't mean they are any safer than any other kayak. Skill, experience and making sure your equipment matches your environment all play a part.'' For anyone interested in breaking into the sport, ``The Kayaking Sourcebook'' by Cecil Kuhne (Globe Pequot Press; $18.95) is a one-stop resource for pricing equipment, comparing models and locating such items as how-to videos, folding kayaks A folding kayak is a direct descendant of the original Inuit kayak made of animal skins stretched over frames made from wood and bones. A modern folder has a collapsable frame made of some combination of wood, aluminum and plastic, and a skin made of a tough fabric with a , flotation devices, build-your-own models, paddling pad·dling n. 1. The act of moving a boat by means of a paddle. 2. A spanking or beating with a paddle. Paddling of ducks: a company of ducks on water—Lipton, 1970. mitts and car-top carriers. It also contains event listings, and addresses and Web sites of manufacturers and kayaking organizations. Other resources include the half-dozen or so magazines dedicated to the sport. Try American Whitewater, P.O. Box 85, Phoenicia, NY 12464, (914) 688-5569; Paddler, published by the American Canoe Association The American Canoe Association (ACA) is the nation's largest paddle sports organization, promoting canoeing, kayaking, and rafting. The ACA sponsors more than seven hundred events each year, along with safety education, instructor certification, waterway conservation and public , 7432 Alban Station Boulevard, Ste. B-226, Springfield, VA 22150, (703) 451-0141; Sea Kayaker, P.O. Box 17170, Seattle, WA 98107, (206) 789-9536; and Canoe & Kayak, P.O. Box 3146, Kirkland, WA 98083, (800) 692-2663. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Marcia Lindahl, left, and Nadia Ghani paddle in breezy weather at Lake Casitas Lake Casitas is a lake in Ventura County, California. It was formed by Casitas Dam on Coyote Creek, two miles (3 km) before it joins the Ventura River. Santa Ana Creek and North Fork Coyote Creek also flow into the lake. in Ventura, employing a sit-on-top kayak. Jeremy Bagott/Daily News |
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