Standup Zone Forum
Stand Up Paddle => Gear Talk => Topic started by: PonoBill on January 24, 2010, 12:35:38 AM
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I've gotten to be a bit tedious about tail handles, I'm a true believer. I don't have one on my new board yet (have the inserts, just haven't attached one) and as a result I got a nice whack on the inner thigh from my fin a few days ago when the surf was big. I thought at the time that if I'd had a handle it wouldn't have happened. the board spun around in the soup and the fin got me. I thought I might be cut, but no blood, in fact no mark at all--my boardies saved me. Of course this little charmer developed a few days later. It's still getting brighter and lumpier.
(http://www.downwindrace.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/finwhack.jpg)
Between this and my twisted fingers I have two good reminders that tail handles work really well.
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That pic should come with a warning.. :D
DJ
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Ouch....I've been thinking about handles lately - is it the stretchy kite strap you are planning on Bill?
I've been surfing my Starboard 8'5 Pocket Rocket as well as the 10'5 Drive at the local beach break over summer and that always involves plenty of rinse time. The board size makes a huge difference, the little board is just so much easier to control and hang onto when I'm getting worked, found that by flipping it over I can grip the leash and hold it pretty easily, totally different with the 10'5 though. Ended up with sore fingers one day trying to hold it with the leash so I think a handle may well be the way to go.
Are you going to just drill holes and epoxy the plugs in or go for "board lady" special with glass over the top? The whole glass thing turns it into quite a production.
Would be great if you could post a couple of photos of the process when you get around to it.
PS Love the yellow Footie
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Are you having that ham for dinner?.... ;D
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Yeah, I'm going to do a stretchy kite footstrap. I had Bill glass the inerts in when he made the board. I've just been too lazy to drill then and screw in the handle.
My old Footie, the Gecko board, has board lady style inserts done poorly if strongly. Then Mark Raaphorst offered to add his new recessed handle. Very cool and it works wonderfully well.
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Hey there Bill hope your well.and healing quick... experience has shown that staying with the board at the first moments, in the event that a wave is approaching and I'm on or with an oversize board, is critical. What if I'm away from my board when a wave hits me again...should I go to it or keep my distance?..I think if time permits.. get to the tail end of the board and grab the leash.. A thick rope with two knots would be sufficient. Staying close to the board lets me be in more control of the event happening before my eyes..it's when the wave hits me that I may need to let go. A strap in other words may grab hold of your hand and twist your wrist seemingly right off. That's my two cents..any thing eaasy to hold on to the board but with a quick exit strategy possible.
Been working at Da Beach House...and Sundays SUPn@1000's
peace
sol
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Hey Sol, good to hear from you, Next time i run into you I'll have to get you to try these handles with a wave dropping on you. I guarantee it'll shock you.
Of course we humans always consume any safety improvement. With a handle on the board I'm not particularly nervous about being slammed by any wave up to double overhead.
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I have an idea for a handle.
A T-handle with a piece of cord or rope attached to it, like a ski boot handle, the kind they give away for free sometimes.
It could be attached to the leash plug along with the leash, no modifications necessary.
It could be made out of a stretchy material so it is short enough to stay on the back of the board while paddling but when the board pulls away it stretches out a foot or so such that your hand is clear of the board and won't get trapped.
The downside would be that the board could twist and flip upside down,
Not as much control as with the water ski handle but an easier retrofit.
I have not had much luck holding onto the fabric portion of the leash near the board.
Any comments ?
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A thick rope with two knots would be sufficient.
Hey moreysup - that is a clever idea. You could also use skinnier rope and put a Monkey's Fist at the end of a 6" length of it attached to one of the leash plugs (good use of a second leash plug!)
If you don't know what a Monkey's Fist knot looks like, check this out http://www.animatedknots.com/monkeysfist/index.php (http://www.animatedknots.com/monkeysfist/index.php)
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Monkey's fist:
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Not a good idea. My hand hurts almost constantly from the damage I did grabbing a knotted strap and getting my fingers caught. Sam Pa'e got really pissed when I suggested that instead of a handle. Didn't understand at the time, but there's a world of difference. It's not intuitive, at least it wasn't for me. You have to try one in some good sized waves to understand.
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Not a good idea. My hand hurts almost constantly from the damage I did grabbing a knotted strap and getting my fingers caught. Sam Pa'e got really pissed when I suggested that instead of a handle. Didn't understand at the time, but there's a world of difference. It's not intuitive, at least it wasn't for me. You have to try one in some good sized waves to understand.
OK - how does one get a hold of one of those recessed handles that Mark Raaphorst makes?