C-Forum

So it took me a while to get around to taking pictures, but here is what I ended up doing to outfit the front station of my Caption to accommodate my 9 year old son. It's pretty slapdash, made out of random bits of foam, but it works great. My son says it's very comfortable and secure - no more feeling like he's going to fall out of the boat during dynamic eddy turns. We've done plenty of those just to make sure . The setup also worked for a friend of his who is probably a head taller.

The bulkhead-style wings are glued in permanently. The little shims on top of the wings are there to take some of the stress off the main glue joint by transferring force to the thwart - ugly but functional. The big knee cups are attached with velcro to allow easy removal when an adult wants to sit up front. Ditto with the shim at the back of the saddle. With knee pads and rear shim removed, the wings do not contact a typical adult's legs at all, allowing normal thigh strap usage.

Great idea... I'm also in the process of repairing and re-outfitting a Caption, and also want to paddle with my 7 year old son.
I assume when paddling with your son you are in the stern position in stead of the centre position... how is the caption trim with a kid on the bow saddle? Does she still handle oke?

I love what you have done. It reminds me of a kids booster seat -- remove the shims, extra knee pads and back shims and the saddle is back to adult size.

ScenicPaddler wrote:Great idea... I'm also in the process of repairing and re-outfitting a Caption, and also want to paddle with my 7 year old son.
I assume when paddling with your son you are in the stern position in stead of the centre position... how is the caption trim with a kid on the bow saddle? Does she still handle oke?

Yes - stern position for me. It rides a little bit bow light, but not enough to mess up the handling. We do plenty of front surfing and dynamic eddy turns, and I don't really notice the trim. Here's a pic to show how it rides, though that isn't me in the stern. I had both kids along that day, and my daughter only trusts me for stern. My son was fine going with Steven...