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skegs vs. rudders
Posted by: schlippg on Jan-23-13 10:14 AM (EST)
First, I am no expert in either but having just completed an expedition in the Sea of Cortez where we hit seas of 8 ft. swells and very high winds I can say I do not like rudders much. We had Prijon rental kayaks with rudders (very barge like). Everytime you are on top of a wave your rudder or skeg is out of the water. Sounds equal but keep in mind your legs are holding the rudder in the correct place and also balancing the kayak. When you go down in the trough rudders tend to also steer much more than a skeg. Try doing that for 6 hours of paddling in those conditions, the rudder starts to flap around because your legs can't keep the tension while also bracing for the sea conditions. Give me a skeg any day over a rudder.
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