Sting Ray Hybrid
The Sting Ray Hybrid is the one we point most people at. It takes the fiberglass-reinforced blade from the entry Sting Ray and puts it on a full carbon shaft with the proper Posi-Lok ferrule — which is where nearly all of the weight saving and all of the day-to-day usability live.
Why This Is the Value Pick
Against the entry Sting Ray it is forty dollars for three and a half ounces off and a ferrule that feathers in 15° steps instead of offering you two fixed positions. Against the Carbon it costs fifty dollars less and gives up one and a quarter ounces and a little blade stiffness. If you are paddling a few times a month rather than every week, the Hybrid is where the money stops making a difference you can feel.
High-Angle or Low-Angle
This is the thing worth understanding before you spend anything on a paddle. A high-angle blade is short and wide: you paddle with your hands high and the blade enters close to the hull, almost vertical, like climbing a ladder. It takes a big bite and it is the choice for speed, for punching into wind, and for a heavy loaded boat. A low-angle blade is long and narrow: hands stay low, the shaft nearer horizontal, and the blade sweeps wider from the boat. It is less work per stroke, which is what you want when you are out for three hours watching birds rather than racing anybody.
Most people think they will paddle high-angle and then don't. For flat coastal water around Clearwater, low-angle is the right answer more often than not.
Sting Ray Hybrid Details
• Blade: abXII fiberglass-reinforced nylon, 92.5 sq in (597 sq cm), 6.5" x 18"
• Shaft: 100% carbon, ovalised at the grip
• 30 oz (850 g)
• Lengths 200–260 cm in 5 cm steps
• Posi-Lok ferrule with a carbon insert and dual-button release; 15° feather increments
• 2-piece; 2 year manufacturing warranty
• Low-angle blade
We stock 220, 230 and 240 cm in White and Sun Red, plus a 4-piece Versa-Lok in the 200–215 cm range if you need it to break down for travel. Come and hold it next to the other two at our Clearwater shop.
