One Dead Leg

[The Mad Hatters Assistant]

I've converted a Dagger Super Ego into C1, with a Perception Console and a few tonnes of Microcell. A bit more tweaking and we'll be sorted. Now the old subject of Blood circulation to the old limbs. As I'm new to C1 should I expect one Foot to go to sleep after half an hour? I got 2 - 3" blocks under the arch of the ankle. I might consider raising them. I paddle is shorts to try and maintain circulation and secure myself with Thigh Straps. I suspect lifting the Derriere would throw the centre of gravity into dis-array, and maybe upset any potential Roll. Any other thoughts how I might prolong the blood flow?

[CosmikDebris]

I'd say you should just give up using your legs all together. I was thinking about cutting mine off and installing a pod to my lower body that would fit in my cockpit and somehow be latched down. If that is not an option (ie you enjoy long walks on the beach) then I'd say raise your saddle a bit. I'd say that for a playboat about 7 1/2" is about as high as you would want to go. That makes a considerable difference in both comfort and stability from even 6" so I'd just play around with taping foam to your seat and see what works.
-will

[sbroam]

I say make it as high as you need to be comfortable - heck go as high as 9" (mine is in the neighborhood of 8") - then learn to deal with it. Your sense of balance will improve, you will have better leverage, a better view, and be more clearly distinguished from the kayakers around you by your height. That was quite a challenge in my Whiplash which is pretty dern narrow, but with these 26" wide playboats now (like my Score), you can about take a nap in them.

I laugh at the kayakers who complain about foot room then ask me how I can tolerate sitting like I do. I remember when it was only the squirt boating kayakers that complained about their feet...

[PAC]

I again agree with Scott.
I paddle with a pedestal in the 8" - 9" range for most of my boats and don't have much of an issue with my knees and ankles. Low seats hurt my knees and I have gotten use to the twitchiness of sitting higher. Also although other C1ers do not like my "sitting high" set up, some get use to it (Warren currently is borrowing my X and is dealing quite nicely with the set up).
With the new short play boats its usually the kayaker asking to pull over to take a break. You got to love that!
I suggest you go with comfort and set up high. Then you can take a knife with you on the river and cut the seat down until you find your comfort zone!
Good luck and let us know how it works out!

[Dave_M]

I wonder if you might do a little better with lowering instead of raising your ankle blocks. 2 to 3 inches sounds high. The higher they are the more acute the bend in your knees. Of course, I should probably add that I don't use any ankle blocks and I still lose circulation in my legs. Just a thought.

[Space Canoe]

30 minutes until foot pain sounds fairly normal to me, what are other paddlers' experience on this? I just basically assume that I'm going to have to get out and stretch every half hour if I'm in a playboat. I'm curious, what's the normal pain range, when playboating, for other paddlers?
RT

[sbroam]

When I'm paddling regularly, I can stay in for a couple of hours - I've made it all the way down the Ocoee and Chattooga section III.5 (only out for a scout of Bull Sluice). That's in OC-1 and C-1. If I haven't been boating for a week or more, I'll feel it when I go to walk after an hour or so of playing, but no real discomfort in the boat. Most of my saddles are in the 8" range, higher in the open boat. I know I'm top heavy, but after a couple of years (7 or so ) I got where I could stay right side up for a while.

Also - my outfitting is secure, but loose - does that make any sense? In my open boat, it is a double strap and foot pegs, lots of contact and I can cinch it down. I can also relax, take my feet off the pegs and be quite a bit looser. In my C-1s I've got combinations of bulkheads, straps, and hip pad/couches - again, not too tight, but lots of contact. In both boats, I keep my feet flat, I think that makes the knee a lot more comfortable. Getting comfortable with the instep stretched so much was a gradual thing.

[Randy]

I have crap for knees, and intend to paddle single blade for life, so I am very sensitive to leg pain. I try to keep tuning my rig until it stops. I hope this will allow me to paddle without damaging my legs.

Anyway, the seat heights in my various outfitting efforts have progressed from early efforts of 10" or so off the bottom of a Rival (OC,) down to 7" on the most recent playboat conversion - a Forplay.

The 7" setup works fine for me in the pool, with nothing on but booties and a swimsuit. I feel no deadleg or pain for two hours in the pool. However, wearing a drysuit over the swimsuit on the river resulted in moderate pain within 30 minutes or so - cramping in the lower leg and pain behind the knee.

I immediately padded the seat up to 8" and finished my run in comfort. I feel wobbly on my legs when I get out of the boat, but only for a minute so.

I would rather give up some stability, or go to a different boat, than suffer repeated leg pain. I feel that really learning to paddle is going to take time for me, so I am in it for the long haul. Pain while paddling, or chronic deadleg, is not part of the program, for me.

I recognize the need for a lowered center of gravity, so I stretch and exercise my legs during the week, and plan to keep lowering my seat and ankle block heights as my legs will permit.

I found a basketball in an eddy on the river last weekend, is this an omen???

[Kelly-Rand]

I've paddled C-1 the past couple of years with the saddle at about 7". In the open boats my saddle is at 8". In either boat after 2 Hrs. I have to get out and stretch because pain develops in the kneecap area. After that I have to get out about every half hour to 45 minutes. I also use ankle blocks and started out with them high and have graduallly lowered them to aboat 1.5". Ankle blocks are tricky because there is a pressure point (s) that cause rapid pain/deadness, and I haven't quite figured out where that is but my current setups are working well. If there are folks at the armada who have defined the pressure points etc.. I would like to learn from your experience. I am limited to paddles of about 4 hours in a C-1 now, after that I loose any enjoyment of the experience.

JIm