Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Quietwater Canoecopia 2012 seminar on bent shaft laminated paddlemaking

Hello world!

Nancy Saulsbury, who has long been doing some great work at Rutabaga as well as equally great stuff at Canoecopia, called recently and informed me that my proposal was accepted.  I will be giving a couple of seminars on making bent shaft laminated paddles.

The seminar will show what the steps in bent shaft paddle making look like. I will discuss how I do the laminating (hint: it's not rocket science), the bending, and the fiberglass bits and pieces. The tools and forms will be shown and shared as well. I will also be offering paddle making kits and an instructional DVD for those that want to try making their own paddle. I use these techniques to make standup paddleboard paddles, but these same techniques work equally well for making shorter canoe paddles too.

This has long been a labor of love for me. I made my very first paddle back in fourth or fifth grade. Still have it. I'll bring it to the seminar. Woodworking is something I have always done purely for the pleasure of being in the garage, smelling cedar and watching the curl form behind a spokeshave. Hours fly by and the cup of coffee goes cold on the workbench.

A few years back I made a hollow wood standup paddleboard and realized that I had no paddle to go with it. So I proceeded to make a standup paddleboard paddle. And then a few more. A couple years later, both board and paddles are still in use and have spent many a paddle stroke in Lake Kegonsa and the Yahara River, my two most-used local paddling spots. For the record Fish Camp Park on the northwest corner of Lake Kegonsa is a fine place to put-in and either go up the river or out into Lake Kegonsa.

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