Something outside the box from KeNalu

UUUUUMMMM Goasty

What has your link got to do with kenalu Paddles. Just keeping it on topic!

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djoblin said...
UUUUUMMMM Goasty

What has your link got to do with kenalu Paddles. Just keeping it on topic!

You are correct. Strictly speaking it does not. BUT if you can step outside the box for a moment you will see from the link that
nanotechnology IS employed in the design and construction of the paddles, so its not a difficult extrapolation to make that the same principles or similar ones at least, would feature in the design of SUP paddles.
If you know a little bit of this stuff then you will appreciate that once you exhaust the design capabilities, then what is left is nanotechnology. If you have a look at the advertising behind this new paddle then you can appreciate the point I am making or in this case asking. Cheers Ozzie

I was recently privileged to have a Konihi 84 a month ago with strict instructions not to show anyone but flog the hell out of it and report back with some feedback to KeNalu HQ.
Yes I'm a team rider so I'm bias as hell and I love KeNalu but my feedback was honest.

My first paddle with the Konihi felt disappointing not because it felt bad, but because it felt too good! I remember ringing Dean saying "this paddle has no power and I'm struggling to get any grunt from it".
Luckily the next day was the Kawana Lake time trial and I could gage its speed.......WOW...... I was 10 seconds off my PB and my body felt amazing.
At that moment I realised this new blade is "silky smooth" and maybe paddling isn't about brut strength and flogging my old body.
Over the weeks it just kept impressing me not because of its speed and smooth feel but because I could train super hard and the next day feel 100% which I've never had from a blade before.
My conclusion is that......I don't think its the fastest blade around but I can guarantee its going to be the best feeling blade you'll ever try!
If you feel good when paddling and racing........ well the rest will fall in to place.
Cheers Jonesy

PS I've started to demo it with the Sunny Crew and everyone's impressed with it.yeeeeeeeeeeew.

Great,
Something else I never knew existed, and now must have

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JonesySUP said..
I was recently privileged to have a Konihi 84 a month ago with strict instructions not to show anyone but flog the hell out of it and report back with some feedback to KeNalu HQ.
Yes I'm a team rider so I'm bias as hell and I love KeNalu but my feedback was honest.
My first paddle with the Konihi felt disappointing not because it felt bad, but because it felt too good! I remember ringing Dean saying "this paddle has no power and I'm struggling to get any grunt from it".
Luckily the next day was the Kawana Lake time trial and I could gage its speed.......WOW...... I was 10 seconds off my PB and my body felt amazing.
At that moment I realised this new blade is "silky smooth" and maybe paddling isn't about brut strength and flogging my old body.
Over the weeks it just kept impressing me not because of its speed and smooth feel but because I could train super hard and the next day feel 100% which I've never had from a blade before.
My conclusion is that......I don't think its the fastest blade around but I can guarantee its going to be the best feeling blade you'll ever try!
If you feel good when paddling and racing........ well the rest will fall in to place.
Cheers Jonesy
PS I've started to demo it with the Sunny Crew and everyone's impressed with it.yeeeeeeeeeeew.

Very good point mate. Its one thing that is overlooked and that is the recovery after an intense workout. There is no point having the fastest paddle around and then feeling like a wreck the next day.

Ozzie

Bardunyah,

You said: If you believe that a "special" blade contributes more to a faster recovery the next day than a good healthy meal, staying of the grog, and an early night, then you should rush out and buy one of those hologram powerbands. To be fair that was not the suggestion that was made. I dont think that anyone can argue against the benefit of good dietary habits but I think you are throwing the baby out with the bath water with your comment as well. If you doubt the value of a paddle with say sufficient flex in the shaft then go use a stiff paddle and then let me know how your shoulder feels the next day.

Cheers Ozzie

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colas said..

bardunyah said..
Agreed.

If you believe that a "special" blade contributes more to a faster recovery the next day than a good healthy meal, staying of the grog, and an early night, then you should rush out and buy one of those hologram powerbands.

I would not be so sure... I think we unconsciously compensate a lot for the paddle flutter, that can wreck havoc on our joints. I don't know if the Ke Nalu is great or not, but that a paddle be easier on the body than another does seem plausible.
I experienced the opposite anyways: Some paddles can destroy you, whatever the diet.

Spot on , a paddle can make a huge difference. Possibly even more so than a board.

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colas said..

bardunyah said..
Agreed.

If you believe that a "special" blade contributes more to a faster recovery the next day than a good healthy meal, staying of the grog, and an early night, then you should rush out and buy one of those hologram powerbands.

I would not be so sure... I think we unconsciously compensate a lot for the paddle flutter, that can wreck havoc on our joints. I don't know if the Ke Nalu is great or not, but that a paddle be easier on the body than another does seem plausible.
I experienced the opposite anyways: Some paddles can destroy you, whatever the diet.

It's great to see improvements in equipment whatever the sport, but without experimenting there is no change or advancement.
Modifications to design can have huge benefits as seen on winglets on some planes, you can all read about the fuel savings by throttling back. Maybe this is translated to
JonesySUP commenting on his body feeling so good (I have no intention of feeling his body to confirm this) The other point made by Colas on paddle flutter is very pertinent as many breezers have had elbow joint pain (tennis or golf elbow). Tennis and golf elbow is caused by stress and often in the form of vibration translated from the racket/club when the ball is struck incorrectly, so if alleviating this vibration comes from a simple design change, I say well done. What next ailerons or canard incorporated into blade? look forward to seeing more advancements in paddle design.

Believe the hype.

I did a couple of 25 knot downwinders on the weekend with my new Konihi and it felt soooo good. So smooth and so steady through the water. It seemed like I could just paddle onto any runner I wanted.

I paddled with a big group on the second run and I was able to keep up with a few guys that I thought were out of my league and are usually waaaay ahead. I was very surprised with my performance as I didn't really feel like I was pushing it – must have been the effortlessness of the Konihi.

I did back to back 9km runs on the one day – and wasn't sore at all, that night or the next day. Amazing!

I love it. Problem is, now I want to see how it goes in the surf - so I have to do some shaft swapping.

Disclaimer: I am a sponsored Ke Nalu rider.

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Deano72 said..

ghost4man said..
Before people get overly caught up by so called suggested outcomes from speculative data collected from the company who have a vested interest in promoting this product lets see if we can get some independant testing to determine the veracity of the said claims.
Cheers Ozzie

You asked for some independent testing......I hope this puts your mind at ease Ozzie.
This review was just sent in from an experienced, independent paddler from the US....with absolutely no ties to any paddle brand.
He compares his Ke Nalu Konihi to a couple of other top shelf paddles he owns from other brands.....this is one man's independent opinion after using all of these paddles.
We have edited out any reference to other brand names (kind of), but retained the model names so that you can work out what he's talking about.....we think this is required so that the review can be read in context.
We hope this doesn't offend anyone who has an allegiance to these other brands.....but if that's you and you love what you use, then what do you care if another brand makes a better paddle. Getting upset about it is like a Holden owner that loves his car getting his knickers in a twist cause Ferrari's makes a better car
Like it or not.....At Ke Nalu we're just working on making the best paddles possible!"I rarely send feedback on anything, but I have to say the Ke Nalu Konihi is simply awesome! I have the Q********* Trifecta, as well, and although they feel very similar, the Ke Nalu is better on a number of levels. I also have a W***** Grand Prix 1000 Medium, but I really haven't been fond of it, at all, so I won't really compare it.From the grip down:Ergo T handle is great. I have fairly larger hands and the Ergo T is the perfect mix, allowing me to "cheat my hand" over to one side or the other, and still have a very secure grip. The 100 Flex Shaft is just a bit stiffer than the Trifecta and I really like the one-way slide texture. First couple of paddles have been in the rain and I have had no hand slippage. The diameter of the shaft is great, as well. Not as thin as the Trifecta and not as thick as the Grand Prix, which even though I have large hands, I find too thick for good wrist angle on the entry. The blade is beautiful, with the production quality a step above the Q********* stuff in my opinion. Very well finished. I opted for the 95, which feels very similar to the Trifecta 96. As far as performance, I love it. The entry is quiet, the catch is very secure, and when you get both of those correct, the pull is sooooo smooth and strong. The Trifecta doesn't flutter, but there must be something going on because the Konihi is noticeably smoother. It's hard to quantify, even with a SpeedCoach, because of changing condidtions, but I do think I'm a bit faster at the same effort with the Konihi. Maybe .1 to .2 mph over an hour, which in racing terms would be substantial. Will be ordering another one . . . . "

Hi Deano72,

Thank you for that. I just want to make some additional comments in relation to this. When it comes to personal feelings we head into the domain of subjective viewpoints which are difficult to quantify on a number of levels. I wont get into the actual science of double blind studies with a control group but there is a specific reason why any type of legitimate experimentation follows this adopted path. I say this for a reason because it never ceases to amaze me how manufacturers who want to promote their brand dont employ this precise protocol. It doesnt have to be under strict conditions either. So can I make the following suggestion which is directed to one and all when it comes to this. For the purposes of testing how about you do the following. Get a sample group of guys. It does not matter if they have any affiliation to one particular brand. In this case we want to test a paddle or rather its efficacy. Strip the paddle so there are no logos whatsoever on any part of the paddle. Provide a number of paddles so you have an established reference point. Ensure that the person dispensing the paddles is unaware of branding as well. Next step is to get the guys to use the equipment on the same day in relatively similar conditions. After each session get them to rate each paddle on the basis entry, catch, smoothness etc. So whilst I respect Casso's subjective experience I need to caution myself that his disclaimer is subject to the heavy element of confirmation bias which is not to detract from his experience but needs to be taken into account. By doing this the issue of prejudice is virtually eliminated. When you do a side by side comparision of a competitors product, which is blind, you get a much better account of what is going on. I will let you in on a bit of interesting information when it comes to drug trials which has applications here. Pharamceutical companies will never do side by side comparisons during the testing phase with a competitors drug because they dont want it to come out in testing that their competitors drug performs better than their own!! So as I said the best feedback to get for your product comes via some very simple tried and tested techniques which if done correctly has the capacity to yield some very impressive results. Just remember that people have an expectation that a Ferrari will perform better than a Holden and its precisely this expectation which interferes in their overall experience and how they rate it. Its not that hard to do. Then the whole argument really becomes redundant.

Cheers Ozzie

I just got the new KeNalu Konihi paddle I am certainly not sponsored by KeNalu. Previously I had the 95 Maliko and have used it constantly over an almost 2 year period. I am yet to do an extended test but trailed it before I bought it. I will be doing an extended test on it over the weekend but in the 5k that I trailed it over I found it to be quite unusual when pulling it through the water. I am used to a significantly bigger blade but the 84 that I ended up trailing seemed to be particularly powerful, but strangely it didn't feel like you were working very hard. I expect that this paddle will get used just as hard as my last one.

I be keen to try one hopefully one day and make up my own mind but wouldnt go off what people say when they are given something free to use ,,, gotta take that with a grain of salt really , but I have seen other paddles from the brand which looked good to me , I hope they live up to your hype

The problem I find when i test a new paddle im so used to my trusty old Methane that i have had for about 4 years that anything else just feels different and strange the shaft shape being different even the different shape handle so i struggle testing anything correctly when It comes to paddles ,

having recently purchased one it’s a bit of a game changer for all the reasons mentioned in this thread.

Have a 90 in my 84.
However, I'm thinking the blade may be a bit small for me
Hade a Maliko before, just can't pick my cadence up enough, so I may try a 95.
Bit disappointed to tell the truth.
Have increased my stroking rate, but not feeling faster. Indeed GPS tells the same story.

I'm same size as you, just feels like 5th gear.
If I could up my cadence it might work for me, but that's a speed I can't get to.