From: "James Mitchell" <mariner@seanet.com>
To: <baidarka@lists.intelenet.net>
Subject: Re: baidarka Workshops/Kits
Date: Sun, 5 Sep 1999 10:06:39 -0700
ME TOOOOO!!! This is Mitchell.. I've been hangin' with Corey for what, four
or five years now. Don't tell him I said this, but he's great! Just
remember, when you come visit, bring tobacco (Camel 100's), it's that
tradition thing!
Seriously, so many of Corey's ideas are, if not right on the money, close
enough that you can see it from here. Almost every time I think I know
better, I get proven wrong. So I just keep learning from him. I would urge
anyone who wants to learn kayaking (both the building and the paddling) and
has the time to spend (recommend at least two weeks) to look into it. Just
remember yer guitar and yer softball glove!
A word on Corey's boats. They are based on a combination of the Lowie and
the British Museum boats, using three stringers per side (Lowie = 4 if I
recall correctly, and BM = five) with a single-piece keel. The hull is
stiff, with all intesections between ribs and frames tightly square-lashed
(Corey says they last longer this way when using a permanent skin). He is
using a heavy nylon (a couple different weights, depending on supply at the
time) with a two-part polyurethane coating that he and his dad concocted.
Corey likes to build the hulls skinny and shallow, and is proudest when the
weight falls around 28 lbs or less. The usual combination of woods is
redcedar gunwales, keels, fames, and bow/stern parts with yellow cedar ribs,
with bending oak for the cockpit rim.
Takes about two weeks of hard work to assemble the hull. Most of the parts
are precut. Yes, you may be able to stay in the treehouse (two-story, build
from skin and frame just like the boats) if you ask nice; being a good
guitar player helps. What you get is a boat that is a semi-replica, adapted
to modern materials and tools and usage, that is servicable as a day boat or
a light expedition hull. It is one of the fastest boats around, and I have
bounced it off enough of Alaska's granite beaches to vouch for its
toughness. Corey even dropped one on the freeway one day, and it survived.
You also get all the trimmings... spray skirt, float bags, seats, etc... you
build your own paddle, again a semi-replica adapted from the Aleut blades
from around Adak. And you get some great memories and instruction in some
rarely known traditional paddle strokes.
So if you are thinking about it, call him. 360-299-0804. If you can't
handle the time it takes to build the hull, but want that kind of boat, call
me. That is the business I am putting together, putting together a boat
based 90 percent on Corey's hulls. It'll cost ya, but you'll like the
product. I am planning to build one or two hulls this winter. But if there
is any way you can get to Anacortes and build your own with this man, just
do it.
----- Original Message -----
From: <LVito55113@aol.com>
To: <baidarka@lists.intelenet.net>
Sent: Saturday, September 04, 1999 8:11 AM
Subject: Re: baidarka Workshops/Kits
I built 2 boats with Cory Freeman at the Spirit Line workshop last summer.
The boat is great in all respects. The rougher it gets the more stable it
feels. It is also custom to our body dimensions, ability and usage. The
wood
is yellow and red cedar, not plywood or spruce. The price is great also,
less then anyone else. We stayed right on the property and didn't have to
spend money on a hotel. We met some nice folks who also came to build.
Cory and his crew are good to work with.
I can't imagine building with anyone else.