Fitting into Your Kayak

Before you get out on the water in your boat, it is important that you take a few moments to make all necessary adjustments to make yourself as comfortable as possible in the cockpit. Good posture and position is critical to your comfort and efficiency when paddling.

Footrest Adjustment

Position your footrests so that, with your knees slightly bent, the balls of your feet press against them evenly. You should not be seated so tightly that you cannot relax your legs. By adjusting your footrests properly, you should have good support when you take a stroke and enough support on your feet to allow you to sit up with good posture.

There are many different types of footrests with various sorts of adjusting mechanisms. Figure out the easiest way to make the adjustments you need before you get into your boat.

Backrest Adjustment

The goal in getting your backrest adjusted correctly is to have good lower back support combined with free and easy rotation of your body when you are paddling. The backrest or backband should not push you so far forward in your seat that you cannot move easily. It may take a bit of experimentation to get just the right combination of support and freedom of movement.

Some recreational kayaks have very high seat backs. Boats designed like this are mainly used for poking around or very relaxed paddling. They do not provide the combination of support and freedom of movement you’ll need for paddling any serious distance, or in any but the calmest conditions.

Leg Position

Some kayaks have adjustments to tilt the front of the seat up to support your thighs. Thigh support pushes you back slightly into your seat and spreads the weight of your body across a wider sitting surface. This can make your paddling position more comfortable. If your kayak does not have a seat front tilt adjustment and you’d like to have better thigh support, you can achieve the same effect with a foam wedge glued to the front of your seat. Again, you’ll need to experiment a bit to determine just the right thickness of foam that gives you the greatest comfort and easiest positioning.

Thigh Braces

Thigh braces are small protrusions on each side of the inside of your cockpit against which you brace your body while maneuvering your boat. The purpose of the braces is to increase control by giving you more points of contact with the boat — to make you feel more “at one with your kayak,” more like your boat is part of you. With proper, supportive and comfortable thigh contact, you will be able to lean turn your kayak with more confidence as well as do rolls and do many other advanced maneuvers.

Thigh braces come in various designs. Many kayaks have adjustable thigh braces, other kayaks have seats that move forward and aft to allow you to fit into their fixed thigh braces. If your kayak does not fit you well and does not have adjustable thigh braces, foam can be shaped and glued into place to get you that perfect fit.

At Ocean River Sports we work closely with customers to ensure that you get proper fit in your boat. If you have issues with the fit, our knowledgeable and experienced staff can help.