Top 5 Kayak Paddles of 2021 - 2022 | PaddleTV Award Winners

ken winding with paddle tv and in this video we are giving away some more awards we're giving awards to the best high performance paddles now there are a few things in this world that i love more than a high quality paddle they're like works of art that you can use even better they elevate the whole paddling experience but that doesn't mean you need to have a high performance paddle i mean i've always said about kayaks and paddles actually any paddling gear is that any boat or paddle is better than no boater paddle that gets you on the water that's great if that's what you can afford that's great that being said if you do spend a lot of time paddling and you do have the means to splurge on yourself upgrading your paddle is one of the best things that you can do to elevate the whole paddling experience so how did i pick these paddles that are going to get these awards well i didn't pick them arbitrarily i actually tested them unfortunately i didn't get to test every paddle on the market because i couldn't get my hands on every paddle this summer thanks to covet it was really hard to get gear but these paddles that i've picked to get awards for best high performance paddle even though there are other paddles out there that i'm sure deserve to be in that conversation there's no denying that these paddles deserve special recognition for being awesome so let's get into it [Music] first up is the lendl storm the lindell storm retails for 625 us dollars it's made with carbon fiber and the blades have a foam core it weighs in at 22 ounces or 650 grams the blade area is 609 square centimeters and it comes of lengths of 205 to 220 centimeters it's primarily designed for touring or sea kayaking in all conditions so all of the paddles that are receiving awards i can tell you straight up they're what i call holy crap paddles and what i mean by that is if someone throws this thing to you like holy crap because it's so light it feels so good they are truly amazing pieces of equipment the question is why is this one best in class the lendl storm isn't just a holy crap paddle but it's also a really high performance paddle that is designed to deal with any type of paddling conditions whatever sea kayaking conditions you can get yourself into long expeditions whatever this it just has the feel of a paddle that can handle it all the fact that the lentil storm is only available from 205 to 220 centimeters really drives home the point that this isn't a paddle designed for big wide recreational kayaks where typically you want a paddle 230 to 250 centimeters long this is designed for sea kayaking another thing i really like about the storm is the position of the bent shaft the bend is in a great position for me i often find bend shafts are a little too narrow they put my hands in a bit too narrow i like a wider grip when i'm doing aggressive paddling and so i like the position of it now the ferrule this is a key point of all paddles this is lando's lever lock now the cool thing about the lever lock and the storm is that you can add or remove five centimeters of length to this paddle you can also lock it in at any feather any twist that you want left hand right hand two has zero twist whatever and when it's locked it's bomber it's not moving anywhere now five centimeters isn't enough to make this a paddle that you can use on recreational kayaks sea kayaks any type of kayaks it's just not it's not adjustable enough but it is a nice feature if you have different kayaks yourself or if this pal paddle will be used by different sized people next up the werner ovation the werner ovation retails for 585 us dollars it's made from carbon fiber with foam core blades it weighs in at 20.5 ounces or 577 grams it comes in lengths of 210 to 240 centimeters long and its blade area is 643 square centimeters it's primarily designed for relaxed paddling in sheltered waters so why is the winter ovation in the best of class well first of all this thing is ridiculously light i mean it's the lightest paddle i've ever held and it's probably the lightest paddle on the market if there's another one let me know it feels absolutely beautiful in your hands but when you're paddling it's got such a light and lively jumping feel the foam core blades make these blades very buoyant so they pop out of the water with every stroke you take it truly is a unique paddling experience with the ovation who is this paddle for well this paddle is not for everyone well it's not for the majority of people who can't afford a paddle like this but it's also not for people who are going to be pushing they're paddling who need power from their strokes or who are going to be taking their paddling to rough conditions this is not a paddle that gives you complete confidence this is a paddle that feels magical if you're somebody who is doing basically long days of mellow paddling low angle touring cruising around and you want the ultimate in light weight paddles this is for you the aquabound whiskey fiberglass paddle the aquabound whiskey fiberglass paddle retails for 315 dollars it has a carbon fiber shaft and fiberglass blades it weighs 26 ounces or 737 grams it comes in lengths of 200 to 240 centimeters the blade area is 613 square centimeters and it's primarily designed for recreational paddling in varied conditions or high performance touring in exposed waters so why did i choose the aquabound whiskey to be best in class well it's not because it's the lightest paddle or it's the top performing paddle but it is because it's a lot less expensive than those other paddles at 315 us dollars this is a very high quality paddle and for a lot of people who can't afford the 500 600 full carbon paddle this is an ideal price point to get a really high-end paddle now a couple of other quick reasons this was chosen for best in class is the shaft actually provides a little bit of grip and i like that and then there's the ferrule system their posi lock ferrule system is a really bomber feral system you can choose an infinite feathering and when it's locked in it's locked it's not moving anywhere so who is the aquabound whiskey for well it's for any paddler who wants to really upgrade their paddle get a high performing paddle but can't afford to go full carbon it's for beginner to expert recreational and seat kayakers anyone who wants to take their paddling almost anywhere except maybe the very roughest of conditions the gear lab outdoors calek greenland paddle the cowlick retails for 438 us dollars it's made from seamless carbon fiber with replaceable tips it comes in lengths of 200 220 and 230 centimeters and it weighs 25.5 ounces or 720 grams it's primarily designed for expeditions recreational touring and rolling so why did i choose the gear lab calic paddle as best in class well to be honest the first reason is i've never had a paddle that made me feel like such a ninja this thing feels amazing in your hands i mean it's it really is a piece of art but it also is highly functional it takes some time to get used to paddling with a greenland paddle the style of paddling that you need to adopt but it doesn't take long paddling this thing to realize how smooth and light and lively the paddle acts when you're paddling greenland paddles don't have any twist and so the feral system is very straightforward it just snaps in single button and there's no play whatsoever it's a simple ferrule but it works the other thing i really like about the calic is that it has the replaceable tip so you don't have to worry as much about digging up your paddle so who's this paddle for well this paddle in particular is for anybody who has the budget to go full carbon and wants a greenland style paddle now what is the greenland style paddle for well it's primarily designed for long days of touring because it's it reduces the load on your shoulders your back it makes paddling for longer easier and so if you're someone who regularly just goes out for short paddling stints it may or may not be the the right choice for you but if you're someone who regularly goes for long paddles big tours and you find that a standard paddle is tweaking your shoulders putting undue stress on your body it is worth trying a greenland style paddle next up the wilderness systems apex carbon the apex carbon paddle retails for 440 us dollars it's made from carbon fiber with foam core blades it weighs in at 27 ounces or 765 grams it comes in two telescoping sizes 205 to 225 centimeters and 220 to 240 centimeters the blade area is 610 square centimeters it's primarily designed for recreational and touring paddling in varied conditions so what makes the apex best in class it's extremely light but it's not the lightest paddle that's not what does it what does it is the fact that at 440 for a full carbon paddle it's one of the least expensive full carbon paddles that you can get on top of that it's the telescoping style of the paddle where you get 20 centimeters of variability 20 centimeters for me that's enough to make this paddle a one size fits all paddle for example i'll typically see cac with a paddle around 220 centimeters in length but when i'm on wide recreational kayaks i'll need or want to use a 240 centimeter paddle this one does the trick so who is the apex carbon paddle for well it's really for beginner through expert paddlers anyone who wants to paddle in any type of condition except maybe the most aggressive conditions or roughest conditions it's also for anybody who is willing to give up a little bit of weight savings in order to have a paddle that offers flexibility of length well that does it for this video what a stack of goodness i've got on my shoulder here i know there are other paddles out there that should be considered for this best in class and so i'd love to hear about them leave a comment down below if you think i'm missing something here i know i am but what i can tell you is that each one of these paddles absolutely rocks for its own reason yes they're expensive they're very expensive but you know if you can afford it they're worth it if you can't well that's okay because you know what you get to paddle you're if you're paddling you're doing something that 99 of the people in this world don't do and it doesn't matter if you're using a carbon paddle or a stick you're experiencing the the outdoor the natural world in an incredible way so i hope you've enjoyed this video if you have give it a thumbs up leave a comment down below subscribe to paddle tv if you haven't because i'm going to be doing lots more gear reviews and not just high-end paddles next season i'm going to be reviewing a bunch of lower end paddles more accessible paddles so stay tuned we got lots more paddling vids coming your way [Music] you

Channel: PaddleTV

Views: 24,762

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Id: 2jFFbZam4WQ

Length: 13min 30sec (810 seconds)

Published: Sat Oct 16 2021