RowSurfer

RowSurfer^TM
Turn a windsurfboard, sup, canoe, or kayak into a rowing rig!
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Rowing on a Mistral Competition Superlight with the drop-on RowSurfer

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RowSurfer:

General:

The RowSurfer drop-in/drop-on rowing unit with folded riggers

RowSurfer Features

The RowSurfer has several remarkable features. Besides the most obvious one, the sliding rigger concept, several other features like its folding riggers, mounting options, and adjustability, make the RowSurfer a versatile and unique drop-in/drop-on rowing unit. Below you will find a summary of some of these features.

Mounting Options
Adjustments
Transport and Storage

Mounting Options

Sailboards and sup boards
On sailboards and sup boards, the RowSurfer stands on the board by means of four legs with adjustable feet. Three attachment options are available: tie-down straps, a special daggerboard-casing mounting kit, or the more permanent mounting option using plugs laminated into the board.
1. Tie-down Straps
  The RowSurfer will be equipped with four brackets for two (ratchet-type) tie-down straps. This allows the RowSurfer to be mounted easily to any type of sailboard or sup. Position the RowSurfer on the board, adjust the feet if necessary to level the RowSurfer and make sure the slide can freely move back and forth, guide the tie-downs around the board and through the handles and tighten them.
2. Daggerboard Casing
  An optional accessory available for the RowSurfer is the daggerboard-casing mounting kit. If the board is equipped with a daggerboard casing, this kit provides a very elegant solution to mount and dismount the RowSurfer in a rapid, easy, and sturdy manner. In the daggerboard casing a mounting base is attached. On the RowSurfer a mounting beam is attached. The RowSurfer can now be positioned on the board and attached or detached to the base by hand with only two bolts. Click here for a schematic drawing of the daggerboard mounting kit.
3. Mounting Plugs
  The RowSurfer can also be mounted to the board more permanently using plugs laminated into the board. An optional kit is available for this, consisting of a set of plugs and hardware, and an instruction manual how to insert the plugs into your board. If desired, we can also equip your board with the plugs for you.
Canoes and Kayaks
Several mounting options are available for canoes and kayaks as well, such as: hanging from the gunwales or the deck, resting on the gunwales or the deck, attached to the hull, and standing on the bottom of the hull. Click here for a schematic drawing of these mounting options.
1. Hanging from the gunwales or the deck
  The RowSurfer can be mounted hanging from the gunwales or deck of a canoe or kayak. Only four holes have to be drilled in the gunwales or the deck. Often, holes already present in the gunwales from benches or thwarts can be used. Four bolts are fed through these holes. Then four spacers are slid over the bolts followed by two thwarts that are secured by four nuts. The RowSurfer itself is placed on these thwarts and secured.
2. Resting on the gunwales or the deck
  
  The RowSurfer can also be mounted resting on the gunwales or deck of a canoe or kayak. No holes need to be drilled in this case. Two thwarts are attached to the RowSurfer. The RowSurfer is then placed in the canoe or kayak such that the thwarts rest on the gunwales or deck of the canoe or kayak. Special clamps are used to clamp the thwarts to the gunwales or the deck. If the kayak or canoe has raised ridges along the cockpit, mounting feet can be attached to the thwarts such that the thwarts clear the ridges and the RowSurfer rests on the deck through the mounting feet.
3. Supported by the hull.
  A third mounting option is to attach four supports to the inner side of the hull of the canoe or kayak. Two thwarts are then attached onto these supports. The RowSurfer itself is placed on these thwarts and secured.
4. Standing in the hull.
  A fourth mounting option is to have the RowSurfer standing on the bottom of the hull of the canoe or kayak. The RowSurfer is then equipped with four legs and adjustable feet. These feet simply rest on bottom of the kayak or canoe. It is advisable to secure the RowSurfer to the hull at some points to avoid the RowSurfer to shift during rowing.
Custom mounts.
Besides the aforementioned standard mounting options it is also possible to provide a custom mounting solution for your particular application. For instance, it could very well be that your canoe or kayak already has a bench or thwart suitable to support the RowSurfer. Or your sup board or sit-on-top kayak provides some deck fittings that could be used to mount the RowSurfer. It is also possible to mix and match the aforementioned mounting options. The possibilities are sheer endless. We are happy to advise and assist you in finding the optimal mounting solution for a RowSurfer on your sailboard, sup board, canoe or kayak.

Adjustments

Several adjustments can be made to the RowSurfer to fine tune the set-up: oarlock height and angle, foot stretcher angle and position, seat angle, and mounting feet and/or mounting beam height.

Oarlock height and angle
The oarlocks of the RowSurfer come with a number of (blue) bushings of different angles. You can replace the bushings by loosening the top two nuts on the oarlock pins, slide the oarlocks of the pins, exchange the bushings, and reinstall the oarlocks. The height of the oarlocks can be adjusted by shifting the (black) nylon washers above or below the oarlocks.

Foot stretcher angle and position
The foot stretcher of the RowSurfer can also be adjusted. By loosening the four bolts that secure the stretcher, the stretcher can be moved back and forth and tilted. Adjust the tilt to your likings and comfort. Moving the stretcher backwards or forwards in the rigger slide increases or decreases the amount of "through-the-work" of the oarlocks.

Seat angle.
Because the RowSurfer is equipped with a sliding rigger system, all forces you exert during your rowing stroke are passed on to the board through the seat. Therefore, the seat is tilted slightly to avoid you sliding of the seat during your stroke. The tilt of the seat can be adjusted by removing or adding tilting wedges. Extra wedges are available as accessories.

Mounting feet and/or mounting beam height
The mounting feet of the RowSurfer are adjustable in height. This adjustment is particularly useful to level the RowSurfer on the board or canoe/kayak, to make sure the stretcher board clears any items attached to them, and to adjust for the varying shapes and sizes of any board or canoe/kayak the RowSurfer would be mounted to. If the RowSurfer is mounted in a canoe or kayak, the mounting beams and hardware also provide means to adjust the height of the RowSurfer in the canoe or kayak.

Transport and Storage

The RowSurfer can be easily prepared for transport and storage. First of all, the riggers of the RowSurfer can be folded in to reduce the width of the RowSurfer. By loosening the center bolt the riggers come free to be rotated inwards. Secondly, the complete sliding rigger structure can be removed from the base frame by removing the two bottom wheels. Loosen the center bolts of the wheels and remove them. Now you can lift the complete sliding rigger structure from its base frame. The base frame can be left attached to the board, canoe, or kayak during transportation or storage.