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If you need your boat perfectly sized for the highest performance (often for destination boaters who crave maximum downtime and fluid mobiusequence abilities), we recommend you visit us for a custom "float chop". This means you will actually check the boat for maximum comfort in minimum space and also to make sure the stern is cut exactly to an "expert's chop" for your size- BEFORE the permanent seams are installed. People's leg weights and centers of balance vary and a float chop is a way to lock into a high performance final product with minimal guesswork. It needs to be done near our shop because it involves sizing the boat in the shop, then testing it with temporary duct tape seams on a nearby pond, and then possibly re-sizing in the shop and re-testing on flatwater. The process can take several tries and take up to several hours but sometimes works faster and gets to a final confirmation step quickly.When you arrive, your boat halves will be built but not yet cut nor seamed. First you check the sizing for comfort and then you’ll spend some time floating your boat so that Paul can see how it sits in the water. You'll do some subtle testing maneuvers to check how the bow drops and how the volumes are balanced and to see how the stern registers in the water. Then you will likely go back to the shop where he’ll cut and grind here and there, duct tape the boat together again, then go back to confirm the chop is pure perfection. If there are any adjustments to make, they always show up in this process and can eventually be worked out until the boat is a fluid display of the paddlers will and there is virtually no "working around the boat". This process goes on until the cut is totally dialed in.
It is not necessary to have a float cut. It is really just for paddlers who have the highest performance requirements for downtime or mobiusequences or unique sizing challenges. Paul knows how to cut according to your weight, shoe size, inseam , and chop range from a sophisticated and proprietary "chop chart". For instance many paddlers- both beginners and experienced cruisers- prefer and need medium or medium low chops, or chops with extra footroom. These chops can usually be accomplished from Paul's carefully dialed in chart which focuses on key sizing areas of the boat and follows complicated formulas and LOTS of experience and documentation of previous chops. But for those who require the ultimate tool- a unit which virtually disappears and becomes pure intent- a custom float chop is the only way to KNOW for sure you will get optimal results. You can count the chopmeisters of the world on one hand- and Paul is one of the best of this elite crew. Our picky customers agree- his, and your, time are well worth the investment. It may be your best opportunity to attain squirt bliss.
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