Subject: Re: [baidarka] Re: Folding Kayaks versus Traditional Baidarkas
From: RCH3149@aol.com
Date: Tue Aug 05 2003 - 15:08:12 EDT
In a message dated 8/5/2003 12:23:30 PM Eastern Standard Time,
bill.samson@tesco.net writes:
> ... The important thing, though, is that we're a very special class of
> people - and from the categorisation above, pretty diverse as well. ...
After reading the heated back and forth in this thread, I offer the
(calming?) thoughts below -- perhaps it's the unfortunate, possibly inadvertent, use of
"versus" in the subject line which is at fault?
The people who build and learn to paddle (well) their own "traditional" boats
are certainly special and, yes, I would go so far as to accord to them
"elite" status (easier for me to do since I cannot truly count myself among the
serious practitioners! :-)
On a larger scale, though perhaps only slightly so, the died-in-the-wool
folder people can well consider themselves in a very special class also -- and do
so.
In North America knowledge of and appreciation for commercially built folders
are unfortunately largely restricted to a couple of traditional brands,
producing, at least nowadays, the stereotypical wide, stable boats, the image of
which has become synonymous with the term "folder." Commonly known and available
designs for amateur construction are most often influenced by the likes of
Percy Blandford, who certainly intended his boats to be built and used by the
inexperienced recreational paddler.
(Yostwerks is a notable exception, of course!)
Especially in the German speaking countries, however, the tradition of
commercially and amateur built folders is much deeper, even if there are now only
two commercial folding boat builders left out of the dozens even that had
survived the ravages of the second world war. Hammer, GESA, Pionier, et al. are
still names that are uttered with respect -- slow and dumpy many of their models
were not! -- and there are many specimens of these and like brands in active
service to this day, or waiting for rediscovery in the many still existing
riverine canoe and kayak clubs.
Among the amateur builders boats as narrow as 18 inch width were not uncommon
and some of these highly sophisticated designs were adopted built
commercially ... until the advent of cheap fiberglass hulls and outboard motors in the
late fifties and early sixties started to draw the post war generation towards
past times less physically demanding than paddling, initiating the rapid
commercial decline of boats that required large amounts of specialized expert labor.
There is a revival of sorts going on over in Europe of amateur folder
building, which, while probably still smaller than traditional Baidarka and Greenland
style SOF boat building over here, is growing. Some of the resulting hulls
certainly rival their "traditionally" designed and built cousins and add the
convenience and advantages of folding construction.
It's a bit ironic perhaps that "recreational" folder building actually has a
much longer continuous tradition than the recreational building of
"traditionally" built North Atlantic (and North Pacific) SOF craft, especially so since
the "sleeker" folders (starting in the 1920s) certainly took inspiration for
their lines from exactly those boats!
(Many, many first great white water descents were accomplished in folding
boats, often sporting Greenland inspired lines cleverly adapted for the purpose,
because back in those days carrying the folded and packed boat on your back
was the only way you could reach those waters -- and then often only after
achieving considerably feats of mountaineering into the bargain.)
I hope that the above helps somewhat to put into perspective the unfortunate
stereotypical view that all folders must by nature be "barges" and "slugs" and
are thereby in a different class to "traditional [craft]" ... I regret that
this will not easily lead Tony to many (commercially available) sexy
performance folders nonetheless ...
;-)
Ralph
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