Rock Garden Series by Adanac Paddles

Last weekend I had the pleasure of taking out my new Adanac Paddles for their first trial on Sydney Harbour.  This pair of paddles – a full length Greenland paddle and a shorter storm paddle – had been made especially to handle the rough treatment I give my paddles each week.

The quality is immediately apparent, with the paddles feeling thicker and stronger than my other Greenland paddles. The loom on the full length GP is quite different from my other paddles, in that not only is it considerably thicker, the cross-section is more of a round-shouldered square than the oval-shape I’m used to.

Trialling the paddles on Sydney Harbour

The paddles themselves are unshouldered and taper nicely to their tips, which are fashioned from the South American hardwood “Purple Heart”. The Fat Paddler logo has been etched into the tips for that personalised touch, but the tips are not there for looks alone. This became quite clear when I smashed the paddles into an oyster bed in the Harbour without leaving so much as a scratch. These babies are designed for tough work!

In terms of paddling, I initially found a bit of flutter, as my hand got used to the different loom cross-section (the oval looms orient your hands in the perfect position – the square looms need a little more skill in terms of paddle cant). However, it wasn’t long before I found the right position and rhythm and my fellow paddlers started to comment at how well the paddles seemed to be working.

Switching to the storm paddle was a real treat in itself. I like to use a sliding stroke with my full length GPs so the action required for the storm paddle was easy enough. But with the shorter storm paddle, the sliding stroke becomes even smoother, and to my fellow paddlers dismay, I found myself moving along even faster than with the full paddle!

Lastly, the end of the paddle came with a 15 knot head-wind, which made perfect conditions for testing the storm paddle in a blow. The idea of the shorter paddle is to not offer the blade out of the water any chance to catch the wind , reducing drag and making the stroke easier. And undoubtedly the storm did just that – it was easy to swing in the wind meaning far less energy expended.

The shorter storm-paddle fits nicely on deck as a spare

At the end of the day I was incredibly happy with these paddles. They are beautiful yet tough & effective – what more could a Fat paddler ask for!? Cheers – FP