Hi Bob,

I'm a bit late to see your post. I like your idea & the foot plate w/pvc sleeve. I'm building the Schade Bros. footbrace for a couple boats, but optimized (I think) for more effective forward stroke. [footbraces are for pushin' da boat] I didn't' even think of this as an option WRT entrapment, I very much doubt that the rod with/without the footplate would be much of an issue. You keep it simple--very sweet.

: I am about to join the deck and hull of the Spring Run I'm building
: and I'm trying to decide what kind of foot peg / braces to
: install. I've got Yakima pegs on one kayak, Keepers on another
: and another style of adjustable pegs on a Dagger Alchemy plastic
: boat. I find these ok but not as comfortable as I would like but
: absolutely love the foot braces I have in my Wenonah Solo Plus
: canoe. They are the Wenonah brand sliding brace which consists
: of a telescoping aluminum tube that is mounted across the canoe
: and can be adjusted fore and aft on a track that mounts to the
: hull of the canoe (just like kayak adjustable foot pegs).

: Having an adjustable bar across the width of the kayak would
: provide lots of brace points but I wonder how it would feel on
: my feet after a couple of hours ( I wear water sandals in the
: canoe but booties in kayaks). I have also thought of adding a
: footplate to the bar by cutting a plywood plate that nearly
: fills the interior space (like a building form but a bit smaller
: to fit the space) with a short length of pvc glassed to the back
: so the foot brace tube could fit inside and pivot. I'm thinking
: that this would give me the equivalent of a bulkhead brace that
: pivots horizontally to match my desired foot angle and is also
: adjustable lengthwise. I could add some minicell foam to the
: plywood plate to make it comfy.

: I've attached a pic of the Wenonah canoe foot brace for reference.
: Am I crazy or is this a good idea that needs to be tried??

: Regards,

: Bob Beaullieu