[kazak4x4]

I switched from I-beam to Maravia drop stitched. At first it was weird to get used to how the boat tracked, after a while I love how I can make minor adjustments to my line in a quick second before dropping into the rapid.

The pressure relief valve on the I-beam drove me nuts. The floor was always soft and always needed to be topped off. You can't really stand on I-beam floor when you want to row standing up. I tend to do it a lot to stretch my back on long flat sections. Drop stitched gives you a nice firm platform to stand on.

 

[kazak4x4]

Tracking is how the boat glides over water. I-beam has the long V section which makes the water glide along the boat's floor. This helps with a straighter line and you don't have to adjust as much. Drop stitched floor is all flat on the bottom, which means it's much easier to turn because there is no drag on water from i-beams. If you row a drop stitched floor for a while, you adjust and learn how to steer it straight.

 

[kazak4x4]

Yup, that's tracking you guys were discussing Get him an i-beam boat and get yourself a drop stitched! lol

 

[kazak4x4]

I had Riken, but also I see the same behavior on NRS boats. You top it off in the morning, the heat of the day expands the air in the chamber, the relief valve bleeds through out the day and by afternoon you have a soft floor.