SUP Paddles: Why Use a Bent Shaft?

I have been getting some additional inquiries lately about the Werner Paddles SUP Bent Shaft and I thought to myself, this will make a good blogpost so here it is…

Coming from our expertise in Whitewater and Touring it only made sense for Werner Paddles to introduce the Bent Shaft and the philosophy behind it to the Stand Up Paddle market.

Target customers are Performance Enthusiasts and Ergo-conscious paddlers looking for less-impact on their bodies.  This paddle benefits entry level recreational users as well and ultimately the features of the bent shaft paddle play to both of these groups.

Key features of the bent shaft:

-          The alignment of the lower hand/wrist/elbow on the bent shaft places less stress on those parts of the body, so it is more comfortable and less taxing.  The wrist is straight, relaxed and in alignment. This prevents fatigue and injury and most important allows you to enjoy your time on the water longer.  For those with existing arthritic or other medical issues the bent shaft typically relieves some of these symptoms that flare up during paddling.

-          Paddlers may hold the shaft with full fingers without making the ok sign; this allows more control on the lower part of the shaft during the catch phase. 

-           Paddlers will like the extended reach for the catch and the torque provided by the bend to “lift” the board during this phase.  Those extra inches in your forward stroke, add up over miles in a race and give you that competitive edge.

-          Both performance enthusiasts and recreational paddlers will appreciate that the bend allows a more neutral position when ruddering and bracing.

The image below helps illustrates some of what we are talking about:

Great overview of the bent shaft by Matt at SUP Global http://www.supglobal.com

http://youtu.be/wF-9NEMj91Q