John Fereira wrote in message ...
(Gene Cosloy) wrote in
m:
John Fereira wrote in message
...
"Michael Daly" wrote in
:
The Explorer is everything _except_ a fast kayak. One of the best
all- round kayaks out there. Check out the Boreal Designs Ellemere
as well if you like the Explorer.
I've heard many compare the Ellsemere to the Caribou too. It has an
aggressively molded seat so if it fits the shape of your butt it's
going to be real comfortable.
I found a dealer in Plymouth, MA who has Ellsemere and Surge Marine.
His demo spot is on a large inland lake. Patriots's Day in MA there
were up to 40 mi/hr gusts and strong chop on the lake. I asked the
dealer which boat was more stable and when he replied Surge decided to
demo it even though I had come down for the Ellesmere. The dock and
lake were roiling and I had not a little fear in my heart when I
pulled away. The Surge knifed through the chop nicely and didn't seem
to mind the wind. I wasn't brave enough to try edging under the
conditions and after less than 15 backed it into the dock and was
happy to be off the water. While I announced to my host that I didn't
think I was up for any more demoing today he suggested I at least sit
in the Ellesmere. That was enough for me, unless I was interested in
strong prostate stimulation along with my paddling, I did not like
that seat with the raised prostate bumb in the middle. What were those
Quebec folks thinking?
As I said, some people like it, some people don't. The seat in the
Ellsemere is certainly different from any other boat I've seen.
Speaking of seats, the next day I spent an hour
in a WS Tempest 170 pro.
I've heard very good things about the seats in the new Necky boats and I've
always been a fan of the Looksha IV and definitely want to give their new
Chathams a try.
Well I won't buy a
boat just because I like the seat, but I won't buy a boat either which
has a seat I hate.
At least in the latter case, if you don't like the seat it's not that
difficult to modify it or remove it entirely and replace it was a carved
closed cell foam seat (what I've got in all of my boats). That's one of the
reasons I've always liked the seats in the Seaward boats. They're *very*
basic, which makes them easier to modify or replace with closed cell foam.
I'm thinking now that maybe I'd be better off
spending all this time demoing other boats on paddling my own boat and
trying to improve my skills. After all how can you appreciate what a
performance boat has to offer if you're not willing to push it.
Perhaps an intermediate/advanced lesson makes sense or head up to the Kayak
symposium in Castine, Maine this summer where you can take an advance lesson
*and* demo more boats than you could paddle in a weekend. If you did
something like that you'd have a very good idea what you'd want for next
year.
Sounds like a good plan, unfortunately almost all the symposiums and
demo days being scheduled are for the 99% of the population that has
the weekends free. My free days are Mon. & tues. For that reason I'm
really grateful that Charles River Canoe & Kayak will let you demo any
day. the downside is it's on the Charles river, so without a dood deal
of bluster and chop you really can't get a sense of how the boat will
perform in salt water. I've come down now to two boats that i could be
very happy with: the Tempest 170Pro and the P&H Quest. Anyone have any
thoughts or comments about the Quest. I thought it was lively i.e.
moderate primary, easy to edge but stable as you approached putting
the cockpit in the water, quite fast, no tendency to weather cock,
terrific cockpit for me, plenty of room for size 12 feet, and not
exactly a boat that turns sharply. I'd like to know if others have
tried it particularly in salt water. It seemed similar to the NDK
Explorer?
Gene