anyone recomendations on these canoe seats?

[JTCelica]

Hi-

My dad used to accompany me on canoe fishing trips but the last couple years his back has been acting up and he goes less and less. I was thinking about getting a couple of these canoe seats:

https://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/s...DhAv9Ex01NDCiU

any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jon

[pico23]

I picked some up this year, not those but EMS brand Crazy Creek Chairs.

They aren't that supportive in the canoe BUT my back bothered me less this year than previous years. Just a little bit of support is a big deal when putting 6-10 hours a day in a boat

They also allowed my back to get some support in camp. On a 10 day trip this was priceless.

My wife was a little upset with me at first for spending $60 (on sale) for the pair, by the end of the summer she was completely sold on them and thought double that was money well spent.

Bottom line is in the boat they have limited value (although more then no back support) but at camp they really help you.

For better support they sell an actual ridgid chair that goes over the canoe seat. It's probably more supportive but not sure how it does when lounging around camp, and probably not too easy to stow when portaging.

[townlineterry]

We tried something similar to the Campmor, it was pretty usless. We also went with the Crazy Creek seat, thought they worked pretty well, i' recommend them. We got ours at Adirondack Lake and Trails in Saranac Lake, end of season sale for about $40. Sorry pico. Added bonus they are made in the U.S.

[MikeT]

Rebecca and I have tried different brands of seats, including Crazy Creek. Of all the seats we tried, only the Wenonah Super Seat (we have used both the bucket and bench seat versions) provided significant back support.

Try a piece of minicell foam under a bench type add-on seat. That addition made our bench type Wenonah Super Seats (wenonah.com) even more comfortable.

Adding foot braces to our solo canoes also improved back comfort.

[Wldrns]

That type of canoe seat/backrest might be most helpful if you are lazily paddling along, relaxing while fishing. Similar ones I have tried don't do much for me while cruise paddling to a destination. You ought not to be leaning back during a paddle stroke, nor leaning much forward either - a straight back works best. A "cradling" type of backrest also inhibits hip/shoulder rotation for efficient transfer of power.

If your back bothers you after a long paddle it may be more related to paddling form than back support. In a tandem boat the best and most efficient form is when the paddle shaft is perpendicular to the water surface and held close to the canoe during the stroke. You can only get that if your hip is pressed up against the gunwale, which means you are not sitting centered in the canoe. This puts your outboard shoulder outside the canoe right over the water. Of course your tandem partner is doing the same on the opposite side. For that reason I would never have a canoe with "bucket" seats. Sitting in the center requires you to reach out at a stressful angle to your shoulder and back, and is highly inefficient in terms of power transfer as well as tracking straight. Switching sides and sliding from side to side requires precise synchronization with your partner, which is a good thing too.

But I agree that a many day trip is enhanced at camp with a nice dry seat to plant your butt on and to lean back while chowing down after a long day of paddling.

[aft paddle]

I got a pair of similar Crazy Creeks for my son and I and we both like them. We usually have the backs slanted back while "making time" and really don't use them for support until we're grabbing a drink or snack. A quick snub adjusts the backs up for some support and allows fairly comfortable resting while still in the canoe. When fishing or tired is when we get the most use out of them when we can lean back just to change positions and stretch. Ashore it seems less comfortable but still nice to have although I am considering taking a folding chair for camping this year. Maybe less strain ashore allows for more comfort in the canoe.

[pico23]

"If your back bothers you after a long paddle it may be more related to paddling form than back support."

Not disagreeing with this statement, but sometimes it's the chicken before the egg.

Most people without major traumatic back injuries don't realize that once you've ruptured or bulged a disk, very rarely, regardless of fitness, form or technique, does you back ever return to 100%. Any doctor or physical therapist that tells you otherwise is lying.

Furthermore, once a traumatic rupture has occured it never heals. Even a surgical decrompession (clearing bone, usually the lamina and/or removing disk fragments) does not cure the root problem, which is a hole in the anulus of the disk. Inevitably disk height and more nucleus poor out. think of it like stepping on a jelly donut. jelly squirts out, and if you step on it gain, more jelly squirts out.

the reasons or complex of course but they including structural and worse, the unfixable, electicral damage to the nerves. If the nerve has been damaged, to date, it's done. this is probably the cause of most "post laminectomy syndromes" and other unexplainable failures of otherwise good decompressions where MRI doesn't show any further herniation. Of course it could be scar tissue too but again, scar tissue is compromising the nerve root and irritating it which in turn causes pain and spasm.

But once the nerve or nerve root has sustained damage the electrical issues are what cause pain, or the sciatica that runs down your legs. this can be reduced over the long haul with good technique, and fitness (core strength and flexibility) but it cannot ever be eliminated 100%. Basically if the pain is in the back only then it's probably structural for the spine, if it's in the leg(s) then it's probably electrical.

Point being if you have structural/electrical damage to the spine/disk/nerve roots even perfect technique and fitness might only aleviate most of the problems, but probably never all the problems, and probably not all of the time.

But on topic, for longer trips, the chairs help at camp, and can help when relaxing in the boat. We often eat, and calculate our route from the boat. So every little bit of rest on the core trunk muscles can really help over a day or week long trip. No doubt the chairs do little in the boat while paddling to aid in perfomance, but it's the cummulative effect of them over the long haul. I don't think for the OP that these are the answer since it sounds like his dad has some issues with his back that are entirely unrelated to paddling and probably have negative effects on him on a daily basis.

[Justin]

I can also concur that the stadium style chair does little to help with back problems while paddling a canoe. I also need to find something better for this upcoming season.

[k-new fisherman]

I zip-tied in a regular aluminum stadium seat from Wal-mart. (Cost you maybe 20 bucks) I'll be the first to say that I don't canoe to put miles under my belt but more to fish from cove to cove and then the next cove and so on as long as the fishing stays good...still I manage to spend 10 hours a day is the seat...this is the only way I could manage such long stretches...With all that said I did by a native ultimate 12 for this upcoming season based largely on the fact that it has the MOST COMFORTABLE SEAT I"VE EVER SAT IN!!! Canoe, kayak, and most recliners don't touch it for comfort...A dealer may be able to get you one as they do clip in and out of the boat...if you're creative you maybe able to find a way to retro fit one of these for your boat, esp. if you could paddle from a seat on the bottom of the boat.

[PatK]

We have crazy creek seats which help alot. I have bulging disks and stopping to stretch every couple of hours and the seat helps quite a bit. Also my husband had a foot brace installed in the stern and says that has really made a difference too.

[Rookie]

I bought the kind of seat that you attach permanently to the canoe seat.
It's hard plastic, hinged, foam padded, big and comfy and swivels...like you'd find in a "bass boat". It gets in the way sometimes but my wife absolutely loves it.

[Rich Lockwood]

Essex Industries

Essex Industries sells some nice looking canoe seats with backrests.I haven't tried them,but their contoured seats are well made and comfortable.they have a website.
Turtle

[Durango]

"Most people without major traumatic back injuries don't realize that once you've ruptured or bulged a disk, very rarely, regardless of fitness, form or technique, does you back ever return to 100%. Any doctor or physical therapist that tells you otherwise is lying.

Furthermore, once a traumatic rupture has occured it never heals. Even a surgical decrompession (clearing bone, usually the lamina and/or removing disk fragments) does not cure the root problem, which is a hole in the anulus of the disk. Inevitably disk height and more nucleus poor out. think of it like stepping on a jelly donut. jelly squirts out, and if you step on it gain, more jelly squirts out.
Point being if you have structural/electrical damage to the spine/disk/nerve roots even perfect technique and fitness might only aleviate most of the problems, but probably never all the problems, and probably not all of the time."

Thanks for taking the time to go through these points. I understand much better now why & what I go through after significant paddles or rows.