Johnny Puakea on Testing the Volare OC1 Flatwater Speed, paddling tips, downwind tips and more!

[@Hawaii96720]

Mahalo for this! Currently a proud owner of a Kehele Pro for about 2 months, love that wa'a! Super fun in the bumps!

[@barryblackburn5910]

That’s awesome. Do you happen to be 160 lbs or less? Johnny mentioned the Volare could be better for those over 160 lbs.

[@Hawaii96720]

@@barryblackburn5910 I’m a small dude around 5’6” 135 bro.

[@donburns9786]

Great discussion. Love my Volare!

[@ThePaddleChannel]

Very cool, Don! Do you have a favorite thing you love about it?

[@barryblackburn5910]

Don, what is your height and weight? Johnny mentioned that the Volare is best for those over 160 lbs.

[@MrPhil604]

Awesome interview. Some gold in those 33 minutes.

[@ThePaddleChannel]

We agree! Johnny has a lot of great knowledge to share!

[@barryblackburn5910]

I agree. I loved his down winding tips. Especially “use your feet.”

[@subliminallyinc]

Awesome interview. 👌 loving my volare so far. When I handed my volare to my more novice paddling buddy he even took off on a 50 ft long bump ride. He says he's never felt such a rush on a canoe before. Afterwards I had to peel him off my volare to get my canoe back. Lol

[@ThePaddleChannel]

That is awesome!

[@barryblackburn5910]

What is you height and weight? Curious because he talked about the Volare being better for those over 160 lbs.

[@johnnypuakea6931]

@@barryblackburn5910 hey Barry, the Volare is getting good reviews from lighter people as well. I originally designed it for heavier people but once again a surprise. Thanks for the support. Aloha

[@barryblackburn5910]

@@johnnypuakea6931 I loved hearing you talk about cutting up canoes and trying different things. My favorite downwind tip was “use your feet.” At first I was like huh? Then when you talked about trying different angles it made sense what you meant about the feet. Thank you so much for doing this interview. Thank you for being so humble!

[@subliminallyinc]

@@barryblackburn5910 I'm sitting just under 200lbs. my buddy is 169lbs.

[@barryblackburn5910]

Well done!! This video format is cool. I love hearing Johnny Puakea talk about canoe design.

[@ThePaddleChannel]

Could do that all. Day. Long. No doubt!

[@barryblackburn5910]

He is so humble. Very refreshing.

[@barryblackburn5910]

I loved his tips about downwinding.

[@ThePaddleChannel]

Rod: "What's would tell people to help them downwind better?" Johnny: "That you can't tell people how to downwind better..." True, but his tips are golden!

[@barryblackburn5910]

@@ThePaddleChannel when he said “use your feet” I was like huh? But then he went on to say to try different angles, if you always surf right, try going a little more left and learn something new. “Use your feet.”

[@mahi-ai-kalo]

Got my Kahele 3 months ago and love it!

[@barryblackburn5910]

Hey Rick, do you happen to be 160 lbs or less? Johnny talked about how the Volare might be better for those over 160 lbs.

[@MrPhil604]

@@barryblackburn5910 I sit on the bubble at 160 pounds and have a Kahele. That low volume plumb bow is something you have to get used to at 3 feet plus waves as it just reinforces the requirement to ‘stay high on the wave’ to avoid pearling. Otherwise very manageable. Ozone has a little chart of weight vs wave height for Kahele and Volare - image search for Kahele vs Volare and it should come up.

[@barryblackburn5910]

@@MrPhil604 great feedback. 🤙🏽

[@mahi-ai-kalo]

@@barryblackburn5910 Hey Barry, I was really on the fence about kahele vs Volare. At 6ft and 165 lbs I figured I'd be ok with the kahele. I haven't surfed anything bigger than 2 maybe 2.5 ft waves in it yet so I'm gonna have to see how she does in 3 ft. Mahalo for the info. 🤙🏼

[@mahi-ai-kalo]

@@MrPhil604 Mahalo for sharing that. I'll definitely remember to stay high on bigger waves. 🤙🏼

[@switen]

I'd really like to see the data around the time trials and how they compare given an elite level athlete. Given similar conditions, seeing what adjustments on stroke length and rate while keeping the athlete and heart rate constant would be very useful gauge the performance. I've been paddling 10+ years, am 190lbs/6ft tall and decided to get the Volare. I'm struggling to get the top speed up (using a GPS) in flat water/no wind conditions at a reasonable heart rate. I'm currently asserting that my ama settings and my covid-fitness are the factors which lead to my other paddling friends in leaving me behind! I'm sure that the merits in downwind are there but understanding the flat water performance would be fantastic!

[@ThePaddleChannel]

That would be cool to see.

[@subliminallyinc]

In my opinion, because of the wider beam/volume in the Volare, you do need to load the blade a bit more in order to get the speed up. This is in comparison with the Kahele. Once you have the cruising speed you have increase the cadence in order to increase speed or just keep loading the blade with slow rate for a cruising experience. However I do suspect because of the wider beam you need a paddle blade that "catches" better to match the extra volume you're trying to push in the Volare. My flat water settings are swept rudder and the back ama at the end of the shaded area to keep it the most level. I also use a kialoa Hoku but plan on getting a Puakea Maika'i for the extra bite the Volare might need in adverse conditions. I also have the front ama pointed higher. As Johnny said in the video "aim with your feet." good luck with your new Volare!

[@brunolevi5649]

Hi, have been looking at every video I can on the Volare and Kahele, was in Hood River a few days ago and visited with Waterwalker and he showed me the two models in detail. I’m still having a hard time making up my mind, I know both boats will work for my size, 5’10 180-185lbs to use on the Gorge and in San Diego. Does anyone know the volume of the Volare and/or the Kahele. I was unable to demo the boats so I am basing my decision on specs and documentation. Does anyone have any advice to help me make a choice. Thanks

[@ThePaddleChannel]

Hopefully someone can tune in with some specs for you, Bruno. We'd love to see those, too!

[@paoloameglio8919]

Bruno so the quick answer would be the Volare is better suited for you. Here is the why in surf the adjustable foot brace will let you come forward more and allow you to drop in easier on the bumps. The Volare has more volume than the Kahele most of the extra volume is actually under your seat and that helps the canoe get on the bump later than you would expect it works better with the swell to get on. The Kahele will also work well and the only reason you may want that boat is if you like to bully the boat a lot, its smaller and lighter. In 0-60 its quicker than the Volare. I have plenty of seat time in both canoe I am 6'2'' 225 and for me the Volare definetly works better. Also at my size find the extra seat width makes the Volare more comfortable. Check out this The Paddle Channel Video it will also be helpful. kzbin.info/www/bejne/a16oh2yro6-Mqdk Feel free to reach out with more questions Aloha Coach Paolo

[@brunolevi5649]

@@paoloameglio8919 thank you very much for getting back to me I appreciate it. This helps as I have to place my order for a boat in the next couple of weeks. Thanks again.

[@ryanognibene5030]

How do these OC1's compare to surfskis or a K1 in flat water speed?

[@ThePaddleChannel]

Typically an OC1 is going to be slower than a stable paddler in most surfskis and especially K1s. The ama does create a bit of additional drag. But if the double-bladed paddler isn't stable, they won't get the best speed out of the 'ski or K1.

[@ryanognibene5030]

@@ThePaddleChannel Thanks, You guys should do a side-by-side video. I can't find one anywhere comparing the two types of boats directly. Would be super helpful.

[@rodclayton]

@@ryanognibene5030 we'll get that into our video queue. Great idea!

[@teop7887]

Johnny speaks in short, quick sentences 😁

[@tdsil]

Glad they were thinking of us "gravitationally attractive" people for the new boat.

[@ThePaddleChannel]

😊 Yes, Johnny seems to work really hard to provide designs to fit paddlers of all shapes, sizes, and conditions.