Re: Foot Straps - How do you actually benefit from it

Could someone post some photos of their successful footstrap modifications please?

I have found that alot of the manufacturers put there foot straps to high and its right on the top of my foot. As for a strap, the ones on Robberggs are real good. In a K1 we use a solid carbon pull bar across the top of our feet and then a strap underneath and there hell tight, cuts our feet to shreds sometimes but its highly effective. That would be interesting in a Mako 6

Could someone post some photos of their successful footstrap modifications please?

I second this request. I would be very interested to see how this works.

Ok, sorry but it took me awhile to figure out how to shrink the pics. Hope this works.

This setup works well for me. I next plan to add a nylon webbing strap on top of the pullbar to give a more secure grip for remounting the ski.

I also have the strap on my V10S adjusted tight enough to lock the feet in place. This, coupled with the rudder pedals being angled back in relation to the footboard, sometimes there seems to be a little bit of preload on the rudder cord. Not sure if this is a good thing in terms of cord lifespan, but it definitely makes for super responsive rudder input in big swelly conditions.

As a lower/intermediate level paddler I could understand the theory of secondary stability, but having my feet strapped in place really drove the point home with nothing left to the imagination. Once while trying to link up some runs, I found myself skidding along with one hand off the paddle at an extreme angle of heel in what would normally have meant an instant huli. The direct connection to the footstrap allowed recovery through maintaining firm contact with the boat.

This thread has been incredibly useful to me. I have been trying to work on pushing with my heels for a couple of months but the more I tried to push with my heel, the more unstable the boat felt. This week, I really started to make progress when I started pulling with the opposing foot too.

Pushing with the one foot, while pulling with the other really locks me into place and provides a solid base to pivot around but the change really occurred when I actively stopped focusing on the push and started focusing on stabilising with the pull. The difference was immediate and I can feel myself uncoiling much more effectively. A tight footstrap helps a lot. Play around with it and see what works for you, but at this stage it feels like the tighter it is, the better (within reason, obviously)

I honestly can't believe the difference this has made, both to my overall speed as well as my stability in any direction relative to the chop. I think this is the thing I've been looking for to turn the corner and get my paddling to the next level. Thanks to everyone for the posts. This truly is a great source of information for anyone willing to spend the time sifting through the archives!

wmongie wrote:

I honestly can't believe the difference this has made, both to my overall speed as well as my stability in any direction relative to the chop.

That would help to explain why I felt unstable in a Mako 6 I paddled without tight footstraps and the pedals not adjusted for my height . I guess when testing boats you are on the money, you cant give a good appraisal of a boat without getting your set-up right beforehand

I found this to a certain extent when paddling the Stellar, but rather than just persevere, I came in after a few hundred metres and took the time to get the set-up right, as I really wanted to like the ski and having leg drive made a big difference to my perception of speed and stability.