First work out the paddle length based on your height.
Paddle length has been written on the blades of the Werner paddles, and on the HCC stickers on the winged paddles.
| Your Height | Paddle Length |
| Under 5’1” | 200 cm |
| 5’1” to 5’4” | 205 cm |
| 5’4” to 6’ | 210cm |
| 6’ and above | 215 cm |
Second choose a paddle based on your size and strength.
For the winged paddles to work as designed, paddlers need to paddle at a high angle with torso rotation.
The winged Braca club paddles have a variety of blade sizes – generally the smaller you are, the smaller the blade size you should use.
Most of the winged paddles have the blade size marked on the back of the blade.
| Paddle Type | Paddler |
| Werner | All paddlers |
| Gremlin | Small women |
| Braca 4 S-Min | Small women |
| Braca 3 | Women, smaller men |
| Braca 4 Min | Women, smaller men |
| Braca 4 Max | Men, stronger women |
| Braca 5 | Strong men |
To tell if a paddle is left or right handed
If you are interested to know more, below is some more information about the paddle characteristics.
All else being equal, the bigger the blade the more force that is needed to paddle with it.
A teardrop paddle has a stronger catch than a parallel edge paddle. This means that it gets a good hold on the water quickly. The teardrop paddle has a stronger catch because it has more surface area at the end of the blade. You could try them both and see which one you prefer, remembering you need to paddle at a high angle, with rotation, for them to work as designed.
From the Nelo website:
“Generally speaking, the parallel edged blades have a more constant power application throughout the stroke, and the blade feels more stable in the water with more even behaviour….
The tear drop shape start narrow and form a big “tear drop”…These shapes tend to have a smooth catch and exit….
You need to have a good grasp of your technique and have perfect co-ordination of hips/legs and blade in the water. In other words, these blades are more effective if you have great technique.”
| Paddle Type | Paddler | Paddle Style | Blade Shape | Surface area (cm2) |
| Werner | All paddlers | High-angle paddling | Asymmetric | 608 |
| Gremlin | Small women | Low angle paddling | ||
| Braca 4 S-Min | Small women | High angle paddling Strong catch |
Tear drop | 705 |
| Braca 3 | Women, smaller men | High-angle paddling Not as strong a catch |
Parallel edge | 755 |
| Braca 4 Min | Women, smaller men | High angle paddling Strong catch |
Tear drop | 735 |
| Braca 4 Max | Men, stronger women | High angle paddling Strong catch |
Tear drop | 765 |
| Braca 5 | Strong men | High-angle paddling Not as strong a catch |
Parallel edge | 810 |
Websites of some of the paddle manufacturers are below, if you want to know even more