Oar Stowage

 I have a pair of two piece, fibreglass, Sawyer oar for auxiliary propulsion (along with a telescopic paddle, 2.3 hp Honda motor, sail).  I am not super keen on sailing but better than paddling and I was able to sustain a 1-1.5 knots.  The oars themselves are awkward to stow either in two part of deployed mode.  In deployed mode I usually leave the oars in the oarlocks and stick the blade end out over the stern where they sometimes tangle with the mainsheet.  

If I bring them along I usually break the oars down and tuck them under the coamings on the seat tops but in this mode they do stick out and interfere with sitting.  

Consequently I usually don't bring them along.  Earlier this year I did a three night trip with Jean-Francois to test out the new cockpit tent.  too much hassle to bring the oars so they stayed in the garage.  As luck would have it I had motor troubles and little wind so I was thinking the oars may have come in handy.  Made it home ok.  

I heard some guys cut away a little of the plywood framing under the coamings to allow the oars to fit further back.  I did this with a hole saw and used two bungie toggles on each to hold the oars securely.  Presto!  

The oars are out of the way but come along on every trip so they are there if needed!