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Big, big show today, as we have a Very Special Episode of the Hammerfactor. Today we tackle weed and it’s role in paddlesports.

But first…viewer mail starting off with 5 questions in 30 seconds.

Today its Grace reads, Fusilli answers:

1. 1)  From Jeff Hammond: Cam straps, Cordage or..ahem.. Dinosaur bones.
2. 2)  Nathan wants to know if he should take a free Phoenix kayak- will it blow his mind or willpicking the fiberglass splinters out of his thighs be too much hassle?
3. 3)  From Alex H. In Cali: Is North Korea the next expedition? (Look at a map (Mt. KumgangNation Park) before Weld “poo poos” this). And if so, who is the Dennis Rodman ofkayaking we will send to bridge the divide?
4. 4)  Also from Alex H. : Is running the tallest waterfall over?
5. 5)  From Rhett Flowers: Can a boat be “predictable?” He says: “Hell, that phrase is in almostevery review. Here’s what I have to say-It’s an inanimate object. Given precisely the same circumstances, the same boat will react the exact same way every time” What gives?

On the Viewer mail proper:
Lets get the nasty stuff out of the way, first: Shaun writes us and says to cut the politics:

My suggestion is to cut out ALL non whitewater/kayaking/SUP/MTB related politics. Also, for truly related political topics, try and limit it to an on point and succinct segment that takes much less time in the show. Or, even better, just make it a separate podcast for politics so those who want to hear it can subscribe. I realize that it is easy to get lulled into a sense that (a) everyone agrees with you on every topic, and (b) that your listeners want to hear more politics than we are already bombarded with from tens of thousands of other outlets every day. I mean, talking shit about the NRA?!? WTF does that have to do with kayaking?

Tom Sheburne writes with some horseshit calling me Donald Trump Jr again. and clarifies that he still owns Shredready, but doing exactly none of the work. Oh, wait- he’s doing the “R and D”. Sorry. He talked the CKS crew into doing all of the heavy lifting. In any case, who does Grace contact about his T-Dub royalty check?

And Ryan Havner Chimes in with his thoughts on my thoughts on the Asheville Citizen Times:

I need to rant at John Weld for his uninformed digs at the local Asheville Citizen-Times in last week’s episode on risk. I am the rare 30-something with an actual hard copy newspaper subscription…as an informed reader I think his comments are off the mark.

He continues

The article provides a few perspectives on the risks from folks like Asheville’s own Leland Davis and Juliet Kastorff from Endless River Adventures and ends with a quote from Nick Williams that might best sum up the tone:

When asked if he believes boating should be restricted on the Cheoah, Williams said, “Hell no. None of the paddling community or Maria’s friends or family would even contemplate that paddling the Cheoah should be limited. That freedom shouldn’t be limited.”

Summing it up, he says:

Mr. Weld’s reactionary commentary to a headline does a disservice to their reporting and unfairly characterizes the Citizen-Times as a hippy/podunk waste of time. I encourage you to read the article. You just spent an entire episode focused on risk in paddling; why is it unreasonable for a newspaper to consider the same thing?

Local journalism is a dying industry, and we are fortunate in Asheville to have a team of folks that share many of the values of the outdoor enthusiasts who live here…That’s my two cents. You can find me sipping my coffee and reading my paper Wednesday and Sunday mornings in Candler.

On to the good emails:

Bryan Tooley writes in to defend the low offset:

Can’t agree more about the paddle offset. I always felt the offset should match the angle of the shaft while taking a forward stroke. If the offset matches the shaft angle, the control hand can provide power in a neutral position. These low angle offsets forces the control hand into a position that puts a high stress on the wrist. Probably old info to

you guys. Combine the low offset with the close grippers and its enough to pul your hair out.
keep up the good work, Former NF Champ (How old of a victory can I still claim?), Bryan

Kerry in Revelstoke wants a small braap:

I have a Braaap and love it but feel like I’m missing out on some of the performance that larger guys get out of it. A Braaap for the 150lb and below group is definitely needed. So please call out Shane or Pat about it on the show.

Doesn’t Pyranha already have a small ripper???!! hell yeah! A few more outburst notes from the Rughs:

The Sawblade Outbursts are in fact the superior boat. If you line up 10 Outbursts side by side, you will find that each one is different which led me to my theories about different colors of plastic having different shrinkage rates (which the Hammer Factor confirmed on an earlier episode). The older, sawblade boats are made of cross-linked plastic and for whatever reason, they have a lot more rocker. It could be that there were multiple molds made, but I think that they made different cooling molds which would effect the rocker.

Speaking of outbursts, Hammer Factors in-house historian Tim Kennedy reviewed the outburst this week:

My initial interest/attraction to the Outburst
It has a slalom boaty appearance. Didn’t Scott Shipley have design input on this boat?

Big/pushy water performance (from my recollection of paddling it on Gore at 2800 cfs… 22 years ago)

– Fast and stable! Handled the left boof at the top of Gore rapid with no issues.
– Easy to boof for it’s length, due to the long edge, low volume tail, and slight bow rocker.
– Punches through holes, due to it’s long edge and mid range volume…such as the hole 1/2 way down Kirschbaum rapid at high water.
– But it also stays on the surface when you need it to, because of the wide hull area under the seat, slight bow rocker, and mid range volume.
– Amazing front surfing on bigger waves! Would be a great Grand Canyon boat (with raft support).
– Holds a line in pushy water well.

Technical/low volume water performance (from paddling the Numbers at 700 cfs last summer)

– Soft forgiving edges don’t seem to hinder the ability to carve in and out of eddies in a slalomy style.
– Still boofs well. Just sink that outside hip with a big sweep/forward stroke.
– Super fun for running slots.

– Harder to get the stern down when squirtin’. You need a strong deep eddy line or a lot of cheeseburgers. You’re not gonna splat it by slamming the underside of the bow onto

the face of the rock how you kids like to do nowadays. Learn to splat/squirt with a pry stroke (choke up on the paddle, if ya need to).

Other points to note
– Sit up and forward and the boat paddles and turns from around the front of the seat area. I prefer this “aggressive” paddling posture to the RPM’s “in the backseat” style.
– Old Dagger boats seem to leak like a sieve! I think that “dagger” looking logo of the kayak shape with the wavy line actually represents how full the boat will be with water by the end of the day.
– Make sure that your hip pad foam is shaped well for your fit and comfort. The deck is lower than modern boats. My legs fell asleep.

– Put a backband in it.

Nathan Polley, professional ecologist, writes to justify Grace’s rant on the hating the environment:

I am officially recommending a “May affect, not likely to adversely affect” call for your video concerning the wild and scenic status of the Nolichucky with concern to the eastern hellbender. That’s official legal jargon for “tell that environmentalist to calm their shit.” Geltman should back me up. The real danger to the eastern hellbender is development which leads to the build up of silt in streams and the destruction of their habitat. Wild and scenic status for the Nolichucky would be a net positive and a massive win for the species.

Stay yeasted I guess.

Nathan
Lastly, the numbers from the lower yough. Eric cant make it, but I can fill in.

We also got a bunch of emails on risk, new forms of slalom races, as well as “race in kayaking” which we’re going to kick down to next week to address.

Wow. OK we’re running wayyy late, but lets bring in our guest today to discuss, well, the white elephant in the room. Weed and kayaking.

DAVE FUSILLI