WAVEWALK KAYAKS

This is a new blog called Painless Kayak Fishing.

It offers articles, testimonials and links to kayak fishing back pain related information.

This is an article about the kayak L position

It’s very easy to attach a regular kayak seat, or canoe seat, or stadium seat to the W kayak saddle: You can create attachment points by drilling holes in the cockpit rim and top side of the saddle.
Some people have done it, as one can see in on website’s kayak reviews section.

Having said that, most W kayak owners don’t use a seat or a back rest, and even those who’ve added one to their W kayak end up not using it most of the time, because you basically don’t need a back rest in this kayak. This is due to the fact that in the preferred paddling and fishing position (Riding) your own legs support you.
This is true for standing too, of course.

Tim Kerr is a kayaker, and member of a kayaking club in Buffalo, New York. He came to West Newton, Massachusetts, tested the W500, and ordered one right away. Here is his review:

Buffalo, New York. June 29, 2009
The Wavewalk W500 has allowed me to return to the water!

After suffering from sciatica that developed after using my single hull kayak earlier this year, I searched for a more comfortable boat. Not only did I find the Wavewalk, I was immediately taken with its unique design that allows people like me with degenerative disk disease (I’m fifty-one) to lay back and rest, sit up straight or even stand and stretch out.

Kayaking is not for everyone but the Wavewalk opens the door for so many people that may have tried the sport and then gave it up because it just plain hurts their back. I’ve got a crushed disk that hates it when I stick my legs forward and then try to paddle as in a single hulled boat. The “saddle” combined with the twin hulls in the Wavewalk is a great invention.

I took the boat into the inner harbor in Buffalo. I didn’t try to lift it myself, I’ve got to be careful about such things. I brought along two extra items, a little waterproof pad to sit on, and a camera box on a leash. Attached are some pictures taken on my second day out. I spent the entire morning in the boat without back pain. The next day I was fine–no sciatica.

PS, I drove nine hundred miles in two days to try this boat, to be sure it was right. I’m glad I bought it. I’m “back” in the water again…

Tim Kerr

Tim beaching and getting out the W way: From the front, and without getting his feet wet

Added June 27, 2009:

-”Crossed the Niagara River last week. Was I the first in a Wavewalk? Paddling is going well. Going out to Lake Erie to play in some waves for the first time today…. Getting used to carrying it on the car and made a shelf in my garage for winter storage.”

Update from August 2009: Tim’s first movie W kayaking on Lake Erie, Pennsylvania

November 2009: Watch Tim’s Kayak Reentry Movie From Niagara River, NY

The bottom line is that there’s no such thing as a short kayak fishing trip:

Unlike recreational paddlers who don’t fish, kayak fishermen don’t just hop into their kayaks and go fishing for half an hour. Kayak fishing trips are in most cases much longer, and although no one seems to have accurate statistics, it seems like the average kayak fishing trip is longer than two hours.

Why does it matter?

Our website features this article about long kayak fishing trips , which explains how important it is to have an appropriate kayak for them, that is a kayak that won’t get you tired prematurely, and won’t make your legs numb and your back ache, and thus ruin your trip.

It also talks about storing your gear and tackle in your kayak, and other issues that matter in long fishing trips.

But coming to think of it, since nearly all your fishing trips are likely to be long ones (say longer than one hour), it means there’s basically no reason for you to compromise and get one of those hyped, run-of-the-mill SOT or sit-in fishing kayaks that offer you neither adequate comfort nor enough dry and accessible storage space.

I recently purchased the Wavewalk boat for paddling. The Wavewalk is actually a very small catamaran, designed to allow one to paddle while standing up with one foot in each hull, as well as while sitting, with either a canoe or kayak paddle. It’s designer calls it a “W” boat; I describe it as a “catayakanoe.”

For comparison purposes, you should know I am 6’3″, 220 pounds. I mess about in boats year round thanks to the mostly mild South Mississippi winter. I have circulation problems, and also a history of occasional low back pain. In consequence, while I love small paddle boats, until now every one I’ve owned and/or tried (quite a few) has presented me with serious drawbacks to their use and enjoyment. Sea kayaks cause my legs to fall asleep, thus rendering graceful exits not only impossible but occasionally highly embarrassing. Recreational kayaks’ large cockpits, while facilitating entry, exit, and leg movement, are at risk of swamping in the Mississippi Sound where I normally paddle, as are canoes. Sit on top kayaks are wet, and due to their high center of gravity typically have shallow seats which are even less comfortable than those of a sea kayak. All the aforementioned boats also create issues for my lower back after a few hours of paddling.

The W boat has effectively addressed all these problems. Within 5 minutes of taking delivery I was able to launch it at the local ramp and enter dry shod in my office clothing. A half hour of paddling later I exited the same way without even a damp, far less wet, rear end to show for it.My second trip I tried paddling standing up. After ten minutes of careful experimentation I was paddling around in 1 foot waves and 10 mph winds with no problem.

Since then I have had the boat out several times in 20 mph winds and 2.5 foot waves, albeit seated, without taking any water either head on to the waves, or traversing them laterally. Entering the local harbor with its flat protected water I have been able to paddle standing with no issues.

Paddling standing feels remarkably natural, and while the ability to do it is not why I bought the boat, it has been a revelation. There is a qualitative difference to paddling standing, perhaps due to evolution having designed us to take in and process the world from a vertical position. Beyond any qualitative difference the higher standing perspective is also useful to pick out channels, spot fish, retrieve snagged lures from low hanging branches, or simply to see over the marsh grass. Equally important the standing position furnishes a welcome break for one’s muscles and circulation.

The ability to stand also allows one to simply step in and out of the boat without wading in many situations. In the interest of objectivity I must note, however, that one will have to wade if confronted with a shallow shelving beach. Steep banks, boat ramps, finger piers and the like allow one to remain absolutely dry while embarking and disembarking.

The high seat and split hulls so far have kept waves from entering the cockpit. I have now been out without shipping a drop in waves I know would have swamped my 9′ Critter SIK, and which would have been problematic in my 14′ [brand name] SIK.

The same high seat which raises one about 14 inches higher than one’s seat in a SIK necessarily increases one’s torso’s windage. Fortunately, the Wavewalk’s seat is actually a long center bench, almost five feet in length. By sliding fore and aft one can effectively eliminate the boat’s tendency to weathercock due to windage on almost every course. Thus, the Wavewalk is actually less affected by wind than a lower profile SIK, at least one – like the Wavewalk, that has neither skeg nor rudder.

The ability to slide fore and aft also allows one to access the storage in the four (4) hull tips while under way. This was for all practical purposes impossible in any of my other kayaks and canoes. It also allows one to lift the boat’s bow to take on waves, or to facilitate landing and exiting with dry shoes by raising the bow to slide ashore a little distance before grounding
I do not have a GPS, but the boat feels fast for its size. I have been unable to compare it to other paddle craft because – being late November – there are none. This alone is a testament to the Wavewalk’s user friendliness.
I waited a long time to purchase the boat due to its differentness, the lack of dealers where I could try it out, and a few unfavorable reviews (very much the exception) out there on the web. Having used it a few times now I think the few unfavorable reviews resulted from the reviewers’ lack of familiarity with the boat. Paddling the Wavewalk feels very different from a normal yak, in some ways more like riding a horse or bicycle. In this connection the manufacturer calls one’s normal paddling posture the “riding” position, a very apt description. Additionally, one leans into turns, not out as in a traditional hull, and the more experienced one is as a paddler, the more off-putting this feels when one initially experiences it. As one grows accustomed to the boat and its stability characteristics it all starts to feel natural and predictable.

If the boat has a drawback it is its weight. 56 pounds is a lot for a 10’6″ boat. Still, its short length makes it easier to pick up than larger boats of equal weight. Additionally, its twin hulls allow one to center oneself between them when moving it on a dolly, just like pushing or pulling a wheel barrow ( In this connection my dolly was easily modified to accomodate the Wavewalk in 30 seconds by attaching a PVC cross piece with a bungee cord). I think the extra weight is primarily due to the heavily reinforced bench seat, and is probably a good thing inasmuch as it reflects the boat’s heavy duty quality construction.

I now have no reason not to paddle, and have been out each weekend since getting the boat. I am being careful since due to the cold water I have not been able to practice reentry techniques, but the website shows that re-entry is more easily accomplished than in a standard SIK. I look forward to some less extreme weather to try out the boat in “normal” ocean conditions.

No boat is perfect, and the Wavewalk, as a forerunner of what will hopefully be a fleet of progressively refined and specialized designs, may be capable of improvement. I wonder for example whether an inch or two more width in the hulls would not increase stability and decrease draft, and whether a few inches of rocker would decrease resistance. The answer is I don’t know, and that any design change is a compromise with costs as well as benefits. What I do know is that the Wavewalk has made a great improvement to the quality of my boating life, and – as described above – has a number of unique, useful, and enjoyable attributes. Try it, but be careful, you may just find you have to have one.

If you are on the Mississippi Gulf coast and would like to try mine out, shoot me an email at jeremydeisler@gmail . I’ll be happy to take you paddling.

UK researchers recently published an article about the beneficial effect of good posture in the British Medical Journal . According to this work, about half the UK population suffers from back pain from time to time, with up to 15% having chronic problems. They found that back pain is the second biggest cause of sick leave.
These British researchers found that long-term back pain can be relieved through encouraging sufferers to adopt good posture through the Alexander technique, which teaches patients how to sit, stand and walk in a way that relieves pain by focusing on their coordination and posture.

-Why are these findings important to kayak fishermen?
Because it’s likely to assume that most people who suffer from back pain are adults, and the older one gets the more likely he/she are to suffer from back pain. This means that if children and young people can afford to overlook bad posture when paddling kayaks and fishing from them, most adults can’t ignore them, and they should give these issues some serious consideration.
The time you spend paddling and fishing is when your back should get a relief from stress induced by bad sitting postures during long hours at the office or in your car. This time should be used for relaxation and easing your back problem rather than aggravating it.
The traditional L kayaking position is worst for your back than just sitting in the office or in car, which is why most people who fish from kayaks feel uneasiness and often even pain just from staying in this position. Kayak fishermen often experience a strong urge to switch positions, stand up, stretch their legs and ease the pressure in their lower back and the fatigue in the upper back, neck and shoulders. However, regular SIK and SOT kayaks don’t offer any relief for this problem.
This can help us understand why some W kayak fishermen have called their W kayaks ‘back saver’ and ‘back therapy’ – By this they mean that a good posture and the ability to switch between positions makes them feel good, and this is really important for them.

The 2008 W Kayak offers two new positions: Side-Saddle, and the Riding-Over.

The side-saddle position is a stable and comfortable but static position for fishing or resting while your feet are cooling in the water.

It’s possible to paddle in this position, although not in fast moving water or for long distances. You can paddle on both sides of the boat: The one you’re facing and the one behind you. It’s not particularly difficult, and takes little time to learn. Paddling in this position can be useful when you’re fishing and you need to reposition the boat.

The new side-saddle position adds another option to choose from when you feel like changing positions and relieve your fatigue, and it’s fun!

Again, according to Isaac Newton’s Third Law whenever a body exerts a force on another body, the latter exerts a force equal magnitude and opposite direction on the former.

This also means that when your torso’s entire weight is combined with the weight of your thighs, and together this weight pushes down against your seat, your seat pushes back up with an equal force on your posterior and lower back.
One more, instead of having your powerful legs support your body weight, you find yourself in a position where you have to support most of your legs’ weight with a part of your body that already supports your torso’s weight.
This vertical pressure is exerted during the whole time you’re seated in the traditional kayaking position. Furthermore, it is combined with the horizontal pressure that your legs exert on your lower back (see part 1), thus enhancing the ergonomic problem in your lower back.
No wonder cushioned seats and various ‘lumbar support’ solutions don’t change much.

First, some basic mechanics:
According to Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Action and Reaction, whenever a body exerts a force on another body, the latter exerts a force of equal magnitude and opposite direction on the former.

In other words, when your legs push your feet against your kayak’s foot braces (or footrests) they also push your lower back against your seat – and as a result the seat pushes back against your lower back with an equal force.
Your legs have the most powerful muscles in your body, and they constantly generate this force from the moment you sit in your kayak until you get out of it.
The L kayaking position deprives your legs from their natural role, and together with the seat and footrests turn them into a source of ergonomic problems for your back.
All that unnatural pressure is bad for your legs as well, and this is why you suffer from leg numbness, poor circulation and sometime pain and even chronic injuries.

Today Jeff emailed me this short addendum to his fishing report from yesterday:

“I wanted to mention these two things. First not having really to lift much of anything is great. From the time I put my W into my pickup truck until I arrive home I only lift it to put it away. At the launching site in and out it’s only a pull out, lower, and drag the water (one trip by the way with all gear) then reverse when I’m done. No strain at all.
The other thing is the saddle positions you can get. I found that by bending all the way forward while seated you can stretch out the back issues and take off a bunch of strain. Nothing else allows a position like that except maybe riding on a horse, and I would guess loading a horse in my Ford Ranger would negate any gains from the position. Besides the W doesn’t eat much and you don’t have to clean it’s stall.
I had to mention this stuff because today is the best my back has felt in weeks. Maybe it’s the W maybe not.”

Why do I think this is important? It’s because you can’t overestimate good ergonomics since it is critical to the well being of any paddler and kayak fisherman, and because unlike stability and mobility it’s hard to demonstrate in a video or discuss in an article.

Yoav