I've just had a little lie down, my back was killing me after an hour or so bent over running some new retroreflective decklines round my bow. One of the very few things on my boat that is merely adequate rather than top notch are the deck lines. They are functional enough but a little on the thin side. So I replaced them with 6mm line with a retroreflective strand woven through which I bought from Mick McRobb of Flat Earth Sails last Rock'n'Roll.
I took the opportunity to add a pair of Northwater's Paddle Britches just forward of the front hatch and compass recess while the lines were going on, so we'll see how they go in the surf tomorrow. Last time I played in the surf I nearly lost half a Werner Cyprus. It was tucked in under the front deck bungees and the water pulled it out at the far end and it was flapping around all over the place. The paddle britches look just like a little pair of pants and are designed to hold the shaft ends of a split paddle safely on the front deck where it is easy to get at. A full review will come shortly.
If you ever find yourself changing deck lines on a sea kayak: many boats are supplied with lines that are really too thin so there's a good chance you will be: you will find it much easier if you start off by melting the new line and shaping it nicely into a drawn out point. It just needs to be long enough to poke through the deck fittings so you can easily catch it with a pair of pliers and ease it through. 6mm line is a snug fit in Valley deck fittings and the kernmantle construction of the cordage makes it expand when you try to push the cut end through, so melting it and rolling it to a stiff little point lets you get it through without the sheath bunching up and fraying. You might also want to think about letting it cool slightly and wetting your fingers before you roll it as molten plastic does nasty things to skin.
When you finish, I think it's worth leaving the tail ends a little long, just a few inches as this makes it much easier to adjust them down the track if the new lines should stretch or shrink. Put a loop in the end of the lines and you have two impromptu towing points if you ever need them although I would worry about using them for all your towing needs as I could see it being likely to rip out deck fittings in rough water. Maybe a loop of bungy cord as demonstrated by Gordon Brown in his rescues DVD is a better option.
I'm off down to Botany Bay, bright and early tomorrow for a club paddle as part of my ongoing preparations for sea skills assessment. Four of us Klanners will be joining the legendary Stuart Truman for a paddle to test us out and see how close we are to ready for assessment and give us some tips on what we still need to work on. In my case, I know that will include manoeuvring in rough water, rescues in bouncy water, preferably without throwing up and towing. The way my back is the rescues and towing are going to need great care but I hope that over the next six months I can find work arounds for the things that hurt and build enough fitness back up to get by in the assessment. It will be interesting to see what else Stu picks up on.
The instructional team tomorrow is Stuart Truman and Shahne Gresser, so we will have the first man to paddle completely unsupported around Australia (only the third person to circumnavigate Australia) and the first woman to cross Bass Strait solo so we couldn't be in better hands. If we don't learn something from these guys, then it's probably a lost cause.
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