Spare oar?

Well it is another weekend in Montana and for a change the snow is flying! The refinishing and overhaul of the boat continues and I am waiting for weather warm enough to lay down additional coats of epoxy on the flooring deck.

  While day dreaming of floating the Yellowstone, Madison, and Missouri, I thought that I had better start thinking about a spare oar. A guy at work was just telling me about losing an oar on a float and the fun he had recovering it; I have forgone the spare oar decision until now because of the expense of buying a "what if" item.

  Does anyone have a good reliable source for inexpensive oars? I would certainly like to hear from you either by PM or on this thread. Do most folks carry a spare oar? My neighbor is a guide and although I have not asked him, I do not recall seeing a spare oar in his boat.

   Thanks in advance. Roger   Bozeman, MT

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Permalink Reply by wade radina on February 11, 2012 at 7:41am

barkleysoundoar.com/

I just got three new ones yesterday. Beautiful. 

Permalink Reply by Lawrence E. Long on February 11, 2012 at 12:28pm

Rippy:  We got a 2 piece, at some place in Livingston.  Think it had an aluminum shaft/furrel system. Strapped it under the forward seat. It might have been a Carlyle but don"t remember.  Boats in WA-so can't give you any more than that.

Good Luck- why not make your own-2x2 DF shaft and attach 6mm PW blade.  Just finished 2 for the Peapod

Permalink Reply by Robb Grubb on February 11, 2012 at 4:57pm

Roger,

Do you carry a spare tire for your truck and boat trailer? Do you wear a life jacket? hope so...

Those stupid spare oars are always getting in the way, nowhere convenient to put them and when you really need it, usually the spare was an after thought purchase at a garage sale, and it was mis-matched to your main oars and really a pain in the butt to use all the way up to the point that it broke in two because it was a 'rotten' after thought.

- 'Gull' brand oars are relatively cheap

- Barkleys are great oars

- Mr. Long's advice is sound, plus it is out of the way if you are boating mellow water (you can buy several versions of a break-down oar, 'Carlisle', 'Sawyer', 'Cataract', etc)

- Having a matched spare to your set is really worth the money, then you can rotate them out also

- On mellow water, maybe one spare is reasonable, on technical or back-country water, you should probably carry two spares (they also make great tarp / shade supports, see Greg Hatten's awesome tent structures)

- Most spares that I see in drift boats (while fishing) are not tied down / secured to the boat, so when you breach, flip, swamp or tip, the spare departs the boat and you do not have an opportunity to use it.

- A quickly accessible spare is mandatory (most you see are strapped to the outside of frames of rafts, or shoved under drybags or seats) If you can't get at it in 5 seconds, it is relatively useless

- You don't need a spare, until you need a spare (about 6 times in my 30 year boating career)

Safe boating, Robb Grubb

www.RiverTraining.net

Permalink Reply by Eric Loudenslager on February 11, 2012 at 5:53pm

Yes, I always carry a spare oar in my drift boat, or paddle if canoeing.  I have had oars pop out of the oarlocks and used the spare.  They do need to be easily accessible.  I find them cumbersome when fishing and do not tie them down.  But Robb below is correct they should be secured.  

Permalink Reply by AJ DeRosa on February 11, 2012 at 6:50pm

Forty years of floating and never needed it, YET.  I always carry one and keep it handy even if it is a bit cumbersome.  Robb is right on, but then that is his business.   As pros we never get lax in safety.  All boaters should do the same.  Thanks Robb.

 

AJ

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on February 11, 2012 at 10:47pm

I once stuck a downstream oar on the Middle Fork of the Salmon. It was a large diameter ash Smoker oar. I  was amazed to see it form a c-shape before it dislodged itself from the oarlock and the bottom at the same time. Like an arrow it sprang down river at an exceedingly fast speed. One quick grab and pull on a snap and the oar was available from the side of the raft. A quick lift and drop into place and I was able to row on down and grab the lost oar. It would have been a mess without the oar so close and easy to get. The quick release buckle that was actually a "bull snap", one that can be opened even if there is pressure pulling on the snap.

 

At another point of the same trip an oar caught again but was restrained by my female passenger's swimming suit which stretched an unbelievable distance without breaking before I pivoted the raft, dislodging the tip of the oar. Would have been a handy time for one of the spares.

The Middle Fork moves very rapidly, yet is very shallow at times. There is little time to rest unlike the Lower Main or Main Salmon rivers which I was used to. So you rest your hands on the oars while running the boat perpendicular to the flow being ready for immediate movement. After a few hours and several days on the river the heavy oars sometimes ride lower in the water than you want. So when I was tired of the continual rowing it wasn't unusual to allow an oar to occasionally stick.

While most trips and rivers don't have these same conditions and hazards there are certainly others to be concerned with. Safety and preparedness aren't always easy or convenient however the results of ill-preparation and disregard for safety can take much more effort to resolve and the results possibly long lasting.

My vote is for at least one spare oar secured appropriately. By the way a good farm supply store should have bull snaps available.

Rick Newman

Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on February 12, 2012 at 5:56am

Thanks to everyone who replied; I certainly appreciate the information and some of the stories that went with them. Although I have had a number of boats over the years, this is the first drift boat. I am refinishing a Stu Williams boat built by him in 1994; it is good shape with a set of wood oars. I would prefer to stick with wood oars since they look good; they float; and they go with a traditional approach to fishing a river from a boat. Of course, what I was not prepared for is the cost of a wood drift boat oar; an NRS Sawyer can cost around $300 each which is quickly approaching the cost of my boat and trailer. Oh well.

  Thanks Wade for the info on Barkley Sound Oars; they are Canadian which may mean import fees. Lawerence I appreciate the idea of looking around Livingston. Good advice Robb and thanks for the comments Eric & AJ. Rick I appreciate the time you took and relate a couple of stories; I got a chuckle out of them and they certainly reinforce the notion of a ready spare.

   So I guess I had better start looking. Hyde Boats has a spare Carlisle breakdown for $145.00 and this is one of the best prices I have found so far. I even thought of buying a new pair and keep my current oars (brand unknown) for the spare, but that would wreck my current budget.

  Thanks again all. Roger   Bozeman, MT

Permalink Reply by Steve Sobba on February 12, 2012 at 7:30am

Roger,  What about making your own spare? When building my boat I decided to build my own oars.  If I remember correctly  I got 4 oars out of $250 supplies  and  an enjoyable time building them.   You can look at some of my photos under my name on this site.  Steve 

Permalink Reply by Jason Knight on February 12, 2012 at 8:29am

Roger,

Our water here in Michigan is the definition of mellow... but I still carry a spare just in case. In my case I have a Sawyer Pole cat that is a 2 piece, and my blade is wood that is separate. So the 2 shaft sections and the blade get bungee corded down in the rear of the boat. If I lost one or needed to hold up and assemble the oar it wouldn't be a huge deal bc our water isn't going to smash your boat in the event of an oar failure/loss. If we had whitewater you better believe that spare would be assembled and ready to go at all times.

-jk-

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