If you took an OC and built a cockpit on it, it would still handle like the original OC. If you took a va'a, sawed off the cockpit, glassed it over and put a seat on it, it would still handle like the original va'a.
Its the hull shape as the water feels it that makes the difference, and obviously a rudder or lack of. A va'a obviously has a longer learning curve and some would argue is a "purer" design just as some would argue that a fixed single speed bike is purer than a 20 speed with electric shifting. Va'a and OC are both paddling just as single speed or 20 speed are both cycling.
200 years ago if a Hawaiian was presented with a 200 pound carbon Mirage or a Tahitian was presented with a new Pueo, would they turn up their noses at them, I don't think so. We celebrate the culture of paddling. Paddling is part of Hawaiian and Tahitian culture, but not unique to them. That goes for outriggers also. They have been used for thousands of years around the world. No one group can lay claim to them, and no one design is the best.
I look at a new Pueo and say,"Very Cool". I look at a new va'a and say the same. I look at one of Bill Rosehill's strip canoes and say, "Very cool". the same for a Koa, or a carbon Mirage.
In the words of that most famous paddler, Rodney King, " Can't we all just get along".
hahahhahahahahahhaha!!!!!!
Rambo asked you a pic of the iako(iato or whateva you call it) and the hull detail.......you linked........i saw pedals........on your linked photo..........pedals for rudder.......whats da scoop`s???????
good waka??????pedals for what in that V1?????
Attachment Size
Te Kopere cockpit veiw 2.JPG 142.65 KB
i dontbelive my eyes......
Mariano, what you see is goodwaka's ingenious footbailer insert, unless i'm wrong. Pretty cool way to partially enclose the cockpit and drop in rudder controls.
Goodwak, that's an interesting way to support the Kiato (not the rubber tie). Is it adjustable to distance the Ama from the hull, or is it the usual that the distance remains fixed?
If you took a va’a, sawed off the cockpit, glassed it over and put a seat on it, it would still handle like the original va’a.
Its the hull shape as the water feels it that makes the difference (...)
It wouldn't handle like the original. The hull shape does certainly makes a difference. But I think you should be aware that the paddler is connected to the hull in different ways.
In an V1, your hips and knees can be used to transfer energy lateraly to the hull (usefull for turns or changing direction whensurfing); you can move on th seat to place your body weight in front or behind the center of gravity of the hull, you can bend your knees and place one foot under the seat...
On a sit-on va'a, I would find myself tryng to turn by pushing lateraly with my knees... with nothing to push on.
just amazing to see everyone give their thoughts on a subject and then unilaterally be told they are wrong, just because.
i honestly enjoy these history lessons.
cool picture rambo. the cockpit certainly looks full of water. although that could be due to the low height of the gunwales.
is this really how the footpump is rigged? if so that's pretty cool cause you can use both feet to work it. How have the Tahitians designed their pumps? Hiro?
Rambo, 2 pedals for a pump????? they look so rudder pedals to me....but ok, of that, that should be, traditional..........pedal pumps.......very traditional.......
Rambo, going back to your linked pics. that oc-1, my club used to own 2 of those, i paddled her and a prior version of Hurricane made by Maui Fiverglass.......i used to love those boats......
http://tuaruavaa.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-dune-pompe-de-cale-da...
Here you can find pictures taken during the installaton of the foot operated pup in my V1. The same pumps are used in north americans kayaks. I think that's what they were designed for and I'm not sure the builder even knows we use them in outrigger canoes !
Jibofo, what Hiro just corrected for you is what i was saying earlier that there is a lot to learn about Tahitian canoes and how they are paddled, we cannot compare the two, they are chalk and cheese. I'm learning heaps and i hope this thread and the flow of info continues.
What appears to us as outdated or arsed about, i'm finding has a very good reason for being, just like the heavy (for us) paddles.
The black object above the peddles looks like a bung to me, or maybe it is a push button pump like in Hiro's Va'a. Why i don't know , footwells look sealed to me. Looks like comfy seat.
Goodwaka , were are you? Come back to us, we need clarification, all is forgiven remember. hehehe.
Rambo, you're right, one is not better than the other. That's my point, we're all paddling. As I mentioned, we have the same nonsense going on in cycling between single speeders and geared bikes. Personally I have both. Just need to get that va'a so I can have both for paddling.
there are actually some interesting design elements happening in that canoe... if goodwaka had started it off with this picture, we could have had a great and productive discussion.
No pedal operated foot pump…….. those are rudder pedals.
The cockpit can be left open like a Tahitian V1, or can have the heel well insert fitted-- as shown in the pic.
The foot-bailer system is not easy to see in that pic so I will post another to show the bailing port. Water coming over the cockpit lip self bails to a level some way down each heel well and a few kick gets rid of the rest.
As Hiro C explains, having the cockpit sides to lock the legs into, helps with control so there are options of cockpit fit-out. Building the canoe without the insert does lose some weight and allow more space to move legs and feet, but then a spray skirt is needed for rough water use.
Fitting a rudder is no big deal when the hull-form can work without it………simply remove the rudder.
By the way, I did not come to this forum to advertise any thing………. This is all freds doing.
I was initially happy to stay anonymous and enjoy the humour, keep in touch with happenings out there (spending virtually all my time in the workshop gets real monotonous) so poked my nose in too far with no specific intention.
The hard @rsed attitude to sit ons began to kick in when in South Africa where I was sometimes seen as a nutter for being into outriggers. Surfski’s rule over there (the top paddlers were kicking butt in Hawaii too, as you know) so I have adjusted my paddling concepts to suit this reality. The South African pride in surfski being as deep as it is, sees no point in messing with it by adding a ’trainer float’.
Perhaps I’m just testing here to find sound reason for a different attitude.
"Goodwak, that’s an interesting way to support the Kiato (not the rubber tie). Is it adjustable to distance the Ama from the hull, or is it the usual that the distance remains fixed?
Rambo"
It is a system based on a principle that I've used on most of my waka, from sailing to paddling or fishing kind.
Lashing can be cord instead of rubber, but the rubber is great for flexibility and quick tying.
Adjustability is the same as V1, is just quicker and easier.
Ok i see in your drawing that it's not adjustable as the Kiato locates into a hole. This not something i have seen before on a Va'a or Oc1, but a cool idea as you still get the shock absorbing effect of the rubber flexing on the other hull mount.
Adjustment for lean = lift nose, tail or complete ama, is effected by chocking under the left side of attachment to the sloping taumanu. Extra turns of lashing can be used instaed of solid chocks.
Ama's distance from waka is adjusted by various means at the ama end. Some kiato have a hotizontal portion at outboard end for about 4 inches of movement, others can have pegs to add or decrease spacing. So minute adjustment is possible in all directions.
Is the sloping taumanu unique to your canoes? Most i have seen are level.
Also I will be paddling Takapuna Beach Cup NZ early next year, I may have a proposition for you if you are around and Aussie Va'a Racing kicks off, if not i could talk to you before. I like your work.
goodwaka,
In French Polynesia, people forget the word "french" too often... and they refer to our country as "Polynesia", as if maoris, hawaiians, samoans,etc. were NOT polynesians. That's just driving me crazy.
I have a sister living in Auckland, I may come someday to see you. Your canoes look like top quality.
Is your sloped taumanu/taamuraa-iato patented ? Or are we free to "copy". I'm thinking about having a similar system on a V6, the iatos can be high above the water, very close to the hull...
Hiro C, Rambo,
Hey, I can’t be a hypocrite and claim to have invented a taamuraa. No there is no patent on the sloping type with a horned kiato, or on the cockpit drain system (a designer needs to do a patent search and make submission with drawings * before * the new thing is built), there are too many out there already.
Use the system by all means Hiro C. -- Recognition as a southernoutriggers design feature is as much as I ask.
If you are in my area then feel free to drop in.
Rambo, when in Raro for the vaka eiva, speak to some of the paddlers from here and get some feedback on my waka, then get back to me……. I am very interested in the Aus va’a developments.
this comment is in regards to the cockpit filling with water^^^^^^^. i talked to a v-1 paddler the other day, and he told me that the cockpit does fill with water. and his solution-SHAMWOW, haha. apparently, the Tahitians bring a dry shamwow to their races and put them inside the cockpit. and when it feels like theres water in it, they just wring it out. some use shamwow's, others use gatoraid bottle bailers.
also, in regards to the pedals, they arent pumps. my coach has a V-1, and the pedals are for his rudder. if the V-1 has pedals, the paddler has the option of using a rudder.
Bailing can be done with feet if footwells are fitted into the cockpit. A water-trap combined with a water-outlet apperture allows water to be pushed out by kicking action, but stops water coming in through the outlet hole.
This is a bit like the foot operated pumps that are fitted to some V1's, except that there is no mechanism needed other than a pumpng action with feet.
Pedals for rudder control........many V1's in Aotearoa NZ have rudders fitted so that they can steer OC style.
This started when an American guy over here made a copy of a V1 and fitted a rudder/pedal system to make them more marketable. Classification for this craft was W1 instead of V1.
Racing in W1 class is open to anything as long as a single blade paddle is used in a seated position...... apart from a few events (like sprint nationals) where rudderless is specified.
just have to add my 2 bits.Been reading all your posts.I live in Tahiti and in Hawaii.When back home in Tahiti,I paddle a modern va'a for fun on the lagoon,but it's total crap for anything else,can't fish with it.When here in Hawai'i,I paddle an oc-1(outrigger canoe = wa'a, right?),I do downwind runs,it's like an extended surf session,I love it,but total crap for fishing or transport.You all don't realize that what you are arguing about are TOYS.I grew up paddling my grand pa's canoes in the early sixties,in Tahiti.I paddled a canoe to go to school.We all went fishing in a canoe,and to the store.The va'a,wa'a,vaka,was our transport,our way to get food.The racing va'a had nothing to do with everyday life.Nowadays,the racing va'a construction has supplanted the tradionnal va'a,even for everyday use,the kids don't know the real va'a anymore.these things you argue about are toys.different toy for different conditions.don't try to compare one with the other,they all have their place,they are not even real va'a,they are only toys I tell you.And they are all good in their own right,in their own way,in their own spot.Aloha, te mau tama hoe va'a.
kava, you are partly right, but it is a bit like saying that all bicycles are toys; Some are still used for transport even if many of them are carbon toys.
When it comes to a sit on craft, then you are correct; they are all toys, and that is why I hold onto those things that connect with the basic va'a............i.e. the lashing and the fact that stuff is carried inside the hull.
Your use of a va'a for transport is the same scenario that got me into designing a craft that is more seaworthy than the primitive thing..........because I spent years using a canoe for transport while living on a boat.
Ideas about seaworthiness evolved because as a kid the only human powered craft for going to sea in that part of the world was a thing called a ski, so the Tahitian style canoe was unfortunately not an option.
By using modern materials I am able to make a craft that can carry stuff in much the same way as a va'a, is constructed like a va'a rather than a sit-on, but can self bail at first and then be completely bailed by the feet.
Sure, a 1-man made for racing will lose a lot of utiltaian function..........specialised use tends to do that to design. So for fishing or carrying of more than one person I have other va'a which have less deck covering and more place to fill with gear, or fish, or whatever. They all are made with a hull having gunnels or at least cockpit sides to keep out most water when at sea. Fabric covers can still be used as additional, but foot bailing facility allows bailing without stopping paddling, and it sure helps with seaworthiness.
Speaking of which ... where is PooPoo and Aqua?
#71 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 10:31am
i don't mind the deep thoughts. just the overzealous my way or the highway speeches grow tiresome.
#72 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 10:39am
About time you blokes trashed the thread, I can't believe we went an entire page without interuption. What's the mafia on holidays or something?
#73 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 10:56am
Couldn't find the photo i had but this one is from Westy's KanuCulture Book
Check out the amount of water in the cockpit / footwell.
This is the 27 footer Jim mentioned.
.
Rambo
#74 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 11:24am
If you took an OC and built a cockpit on it, it would still handle like the original OC. If you took a va'a, sawed off the cockpit, glassed it over and put a seat on it, it would still handle like the original va'a.
Its the hull shape as the water feels it that makes the difference, and obviously a rudder or lack of. A va'a obviously has a longer learning curve and some would argue is a "purer" design just as some would argue that a fixed single speed bike is purer than a 20 speed with electric shifting. Va'a and OC are both paddling just as single speed or 20 speed are both cycling.
200 years ago if a Hawaiian was presented with a 200 pound carbon Mirage or a Tahitian was presented with a new Pueo, would they turn up their noses at them, I don't think so. We celebrate the culture of paddling. Paddling is part of Hawaiian and Tahitian culture, but not unique to them. That goes for outriggers also. They have been used for thousands of years around the world. No one group can lay claim to them, and no one design is the best.
I look at a new Pueo and say,"Very Cool". I look at a new va'a and say the same. I look at one of Bill Rosehill's strip canoes and say, "Very cool". the same for a Koa, or a carbon Mirage.
In the words of that most famous paddler, Rodney King, " Can't we all just get along".
#75 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 11:35am
from goodwaka
You meant Aotearoa, Hawaii and RAPA NUI (Easter Island). Tahiti is somewhere near the center of this triangle.
#76 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:03pm
hahahhahahahahahhaha!!!!!!
Rambo asked you a pic of the iako(iato or whateva you call it) and the hull detail.......you linked........i saw pedals........on your linked photo..........pedals for rudder.......whats da scoop`s???????
good waka??????pedals for what in that V1?????
Attachment Size
Te Kopere cockpit veiw 2.JPG 142.65 KB
i dontbelive my eyes......
#77 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:02pm
Foot operated pump? I was wondering also.
#78 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:07pm
Mariano, what you see is goodwaka's ingenious footbailer insert, unless i'm wrong. Pretty cool way to partially enclose the cockpit and drop in rudder controls.
Goodwak, that's an interesting way to support the Kiato (not the rubber tie). Is it adjustable to distance the Ama from the hull, or is it the usual that the distance remains fixed?
Rambo
#79 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:16pm
from Jibofo
It wouldn't handle like the original. The hull shape does certainly makes a difference. But I think you should be aware that the paddler is connected to the hull in different ways.
In an V1, your hips and knees can be used to transfer energy lateraly to the hull (usefull for turns or changing direction whensurfing); you can move on th seat to place your body weight in front or behind the center of gravity of the hull, you can bend your knees and place one foot under the seat...
On a sit-on va'a, I would find myself tryng to turn by pushing lateraly with my knees... with nothing to push on.
#80 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:19pm
I stand (or sit) corrected.
#81 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:24pm
not attempting to trash anything or anyone.
just amazing to see everyone give their thoughts on a subject and then unilaterally be told they are wrong, just because.
i honestly enjoy these history lessons.
cool picture rambo. the cockpit certainly looks full of water. although that could be due to the low height of the gunwales.
is this really how the footpump is rigged? if so that's pretty cool cause you can use both feet to work it. How have the Tahitians designed their pumps? Hiro?
#82 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:31pm
Rambo, 2 pedals for a pump????? they look so rudder pedals to me....but ok, of that, that should be, traditional..........pedal pumps.......very traditional.......
Rambo, going back to your linked pics. that oc-1, my club used to own 2 of those, i paddled her and a prior version of Hurricane made by Maui Fiverglass.......i used to love those boats......
#83 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:28pm
As i understand it , that canoe goodwaka posted is a ruddered model. Are you saying the peddles operate a foot pump?
You can see a rudder on the black and white Va'a on goodwaka's website
http://www.southernoutriggers.com/home.html
Rambo
#84 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:41pm
http://tuaruavaa.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-dune-pompe-de-cale-da...
Here you can find pictures taken during the installaton of the foot operated pup in my V1. The same pumps are used in north americans kayaks. I think that's what they were designed for and I'm not sure the builder even knows we use them in outrigger canoes !
#85 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:48pm
Jibofo, what Hiro just corrected for you is what i was saying earlier that there is a lot to learn about Tahitian canoes and how they are paddled, we cannot compare the two, they are chalk and cheese. I'm learning heaps and i hope this thread and the flow of info continues.
What appears to us as outdated or arsed about, i'm finding has a very good reason for being, just like the heavy (for us) paddles.
rambo
#86 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 1:51pm
The black object above the peddles looks like a bung to me, or maybe it is a push button pump like in Hiro's Va'a. Why i don't know , footwells look sealed to me. Looks like comfy seat.
Goodwaka , were are you? Come back to us, we need clarification, all is forgiven remember. hehehe.
Rambo
#87 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 2:14pm
Rambo, you're right, one is not better than the other. That's my point, we're all paddling. As I mentioned, we have the same nonsense going on in cycling between single speeders and geared bikes. Personally I have both. Just need to get that va'a so I can have both for paddling.
#88 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 2:10pm
there are actually some interesting design elements happening in that canoe... if goodwaka had started it off with this picture, we could have had a great and productive discussion.
jc9 i can use that ballpeen hammer you offered.
#89 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 2:11pm
I agree Dacho, fred did us a favor posting the site addy.
R
#90 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 2:19pm
No pedal operated foot pump…….. those are rudder pedals.
The cockpit can be left open like a Tahitian V1, or can have the heel well insert fitted-- as shown in the pic.
The foot-bailer system is not easy to see in that pic so I will post another to show the bailing port. Water coming over the cockpit lip self bails to a level some way down each heel well and a few kick gets rid of the rest.
As Hiro C explains, having the cockpit sides to lock the legs into, helps with control so there are options of cockpit fit-out. Building the canoe without the insert does lose some weight and allow more space to move legs and feet, but then a spray skirt is needed for rough water use.
Fitting a rudder is no big deal when the hull-form can work without it………simply remove the rudder.
By the way, I did not come to this forum to advertise any thing………. This is all freds doing.
I was initially happy to stay anonymous and enjoy the humour, keep in touch with happenings out there (spending virtually all my time in the workshop gets real monotonous) so poked my nose in too far with no specific intention.
The hard @rsed attitude to sit ons began to kick in when in South Africa where I was sometimes seen as a nutter for being into outriggers. Surfski’s rule over there (the top paddlers were kicking butt in Hawaii too, as you know) so I have adjusted my paddling concepts to suit this reality. The South African pride in surfski being as deep as it is, sees no point in messing with it by adding a ’trainer float’.
Perhaps I’m just testing here to find sound reason for a different attitude.
#91 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 4:18pm
"Goodwak, that’s an interesting way to support the Kiato (not the rubber tie). Is it adjustable to distance the Ama from the hull, or is it the usual that the distance remains fixed?
Rambo"
It is a system based on a principle that I've used on most of my waka, from sailing to paddling or fishing kind.
Lashing can be cord instead of rubber, but the rubber is great for flexibility and quick tying.
Adjustability is the same as V1, is just quicker and easier.
#92 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 4:45pm
No i meant the actual mechanical receptacle that the rubber attaches the Kiato too. It's angled and is it adjustable?
Cheers Rambo
#93 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 4:52pm
Ok i see in your drawing that it's not adjustable as the Kiato locates into a hole. This not something i have seen before on a Va'a or Oc1, but a cool idea as you still get the shock absorbing effect of the rubber flexing on the other hull mount.
Rambo
#94 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 4:57pm
Adjustment for lean = lift nose, tail or complete ama, is effected by chocking under the left side of attachment to the sloping taumanu. Extra turns of lashing can be used instaed of solid chocks.
Ama's distance from waka is adjusted by various means at the ama end. Some kiato have a hotizontal portion at outboard end for about 4 inches of movement, others can have pegs to add or decrease spacing. So minute adjustment is possible in all directions.
#95 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 5:24pm
Hiro C wrote - "You meant Aotearoa, Hawaii and RAPA NUI (Easter Island) Tahiti is somewhere near the centre of this triangle"
Of course! a silly mistake.
#96 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 5:33pm
Is the sloping taumanu unique to your canoes? Most i have seen are level.
Also I will be paddling Takapuna Beach Cup NZ early next year, I may have a proposition for you if you are around and Aussie Va'a Racing kicks off, if not i could talk to you before. I like your work.
Rambo
#97 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 5:48pm
goodwaka,
In French Polynesia, people forget the word "french" too often... and they refer to our country as "Polynesia", as if maoris, hawaiians, samoans,etc. were NOT polynesians. That's just driving me crazy.
I have a sister living in Auckland, I may come someday to see you. Your canoes look like top quality.
Is your sloped taumanu/taamuraa-iato patented ? Or are we free to "copy". I'm thinking about having a similar system on a V6, the iatos can be high above the water, very close to the hull...
#98 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 6:55pm
Hiro C, Rambo,
Hey, I can’t be a hypocrite and claim to have invented a taamuraa. No there is no patent on the sloping type with a horned kiato, or on the cockpit drain system (a designer needs to do a patent search and make submission with drawings * before * the new thing is built), there are too many out there already.
Use the system by all means Hiro C. -- Recognition as a southernoutriggers design feature is as much as I ask.
If you are in my area then feel free to drop in.
Rambo, when in Raro for the vaka eiva, speak to some of the paddlers from here and get some feedback on my waka, then get back to me……. I am very interested in the Aus va’a developments.
#99 Sun, 10/26/2008 - 11:51pm
Goodwaka, you have PM
Rambo
#100 Mon, 10/27/2008 - 12:16am
this comment is in regards to the cockpit filling with water^^^^^^^. i talked to a v-1 paddler the other day, and he told me that the cockpit does fill with water. and his solution-SHAMWOW, haha. apparently, the Tahitians bring a dry shamwow to their races and put them inside the cockpit. and when it feels like theres water in it, they just wring it out. some use shamwow's, others use gatoraid bottle bailers.
also, in regards to the pedals, they arent pumps. my coach has a V-1, and the pedals are for his rudder. if the V-1 has pedals, the paddler has the option of using a rudder.
#101 Tue, 07/13/2010 - 1:05am
Cockpit filling with water ??
Bailing can be done with feet if footwells are fitted into the cockpit. A water-trap combined with a water-outlet apperture allows water to be pushed out by kicking action, but stops water coming in through the outlet hole.
This is a bit like the foot operated pumps that are fitted to some V1's, except that there is no mechanism needed other than a pumpng action with feet.
Pedals for rudder control........many V1's in Aotearoa NZ have rudders fitted so that they can steer OC style.
This started when an American guy over here made a copy of a V1 and fitted a rudder/pedal system to make them more marketable. Classification for this craft was W1 instead of V1.
Racing in W1 class is open to anything as long as a single blade paddle is used in a seated position...... apart from a few events (like sprint nationals) where rudderless is specified.
#102 Tue, 07/13/2010 - 10:42am
just have to add my 2 bits.Been reading all your posts.I live in Tahiti and in Hawaii.When back home in Tahiti,I paddle a modern va'a for fun on the lagoon,but it's total crap for anything else,can't fish with it.When here in Hawai'i,I paddle an oc-1(outrigger canoe = wa'a, right?),I do downwind runs,it's like an extended surf session,I love it,but total crap for fishing or transport.You all don't realize that what you are arguing about are TOYS.I grew up paddling my grand pa's canoes in the early sixties,in Tahiti.I paddled a canoe to go to school.We all went fishing in a canoe,and to the store.The va'a,wa'a,vaka,was our transport,our way to get food.The racing va'a had nothing to do with everyday life.Nowadays,the racing va'a construction has supplanted the tradionnal va'a,even for everyday use,the kids don't know the real va'a anymore.these things you argue about are toys.different toy for different conditions.don't try to compare one with the other,they all have their place,they are not even real va'a,they are only toys I tell you.And they are all good in their own right,in their own way,in their own spot.Aloha, te mau tama hoe va'a.
#103 Tue, 07/13/2010 - 9:52pm
^^Yes^^
#104 Tue, 07/13/2010 - 10:38pm
kava, you are partly right, but it is a bit like saying that all bicycles are toys; Some are still used for transport even if many of them are carbon toys.
When it comes to a sit on craft, then you are correct; they are all toys, and that is why I hold onto those things that connect with the basic va'a............i.e. the lashing and the fact that stuff is carried inside the hull.
Your use of a va'a for transport is the same scenario that got me into designing a craft that is more seaworthy than the primitive thing..........because I spent years using a canoe for transport while living on a boat.
Ideas about seaworthiness evolved because as a kid the only human powered craft for going to sea in that part of the world was a thing called a ski, so the Tahitian style canoe was unfortunately not an option.
By using modern materials I am able to make a craft that can carry stuff in much the same way as a va'a, is constructed like a va'a rather than a sit-on, but can self bail at first and then be completely bailed by the feet.
Sure, a 1-man made for racing will lose a lot of utiltaian function..........specialised use tends to do that to design. So for fishing or carrying of more than one person I have other va'a which have less deck covering and more place to fill with gear, or fish, or whatever. They all are made with a hull having gunnels or at least cockpit sides to keep out most water when at sea. Fabric covers can still be used as additional, but foot bailing facility allows bailing without stopping paddling, and it sure helps with seaworthiness.
#105 Wed, 07/14/2010 - 11:14am