Playing at Beavertail Point - Rhode Island, Sept. 2008

Towing Practice - Beavertail Point

I have a wealth of photos from staffing trips with Atlantic Kayak Tours - even though a bit dated, am posting a few.  This was a great trip practicing skills in conditions.  Taking turns towing, rescuing in moving water.

AKT is a great place to learn core sea kayaking skills and to enjoy the sea with a group of instructors who are fun and knowledgeable.  Bill and Janice Lozano have run it for 30+ years (at this writing) and their on-line Expert Center is a valuable resource.  I worked for them for number of years in the 2000's and learned so much - was a great time in my life.  Check them out! 

Balancing boats at Lunch Time - outer Narraganset Bay (me on the far right)

Narrow River (I assume)



SKUK Pilgrim Expedition Sea Trial – Fishers Island Sound – June 2011

Had the opportunity to demo the SKUK Pilgrim Expedition this past weekend with Greg Paquin and Paula Riegel who together make up Kayak Waveology, a BCU sea kayak instruction business and retailer of Nigel Dennis’s line of sea kayaks. I’ve known Greg for a few years and have run into him and Paula on the occasions I’ve paddled out of Stonington CT to hit the tide races east of Fishers Island. Greg has also organized some great instructional symposiums in eastern CT in recent years (Rough Water Symposium and November Gales out of Stonington) that I’ve attended and have enjoyed. Greg heard I was considering getting a different boat and thought the Pilgrim Expedition might fit the bill so suggested I meet him up in Stonington to give it a try in conditions.

I’m 5’10” and 175 lbs and currently paddle a Romany. I like the way the boat handles very much, especially its maneuverability, its surfing ability and handling in following seas. But I often think that if I could change the Romany, I’d raise the front deck a bit to help my forward paddling and I’d increase its length a bit to give me a little more speed. The Pilgrim Expedition is described as an expedition kayak for the smaller or slimmer paddler. Although I’m not particularly “small” or “slim”, the boat’s specs and the pedigree of great boats in the SKUK line intrigued me. The Pilgrim Expedition is 17 feet in length (519 cm) and 19.5 inches in width, which makes it a foot longer and slightly more than an inch narrower than my Romany. Things like rocker, chines, and volume aside, the Pilgrim Expedition’s length/width put it in the same range as a lot of boats I’ve enjoyed paddling. In addition to the Pilgrim Expedition, Greg brought along an Explorer and Romany Surf so I had the unique opportunity to switch quickly between all three and get a good feel for their differences. My thoughts on all three boats below.

Greg and Paula with Pilgrim Expedition

Pilgrim Expedition: The concept of a “smaller Explorer” is a great idea and I think this boat could be used by many paddlers, not just small/slim ones. We paddled out to Wiccopesset Passage to catch the tail end of the flood current and were able to find a few waves to play in. As I expected, the Pilgrim handled somewhere between an Explorer and a Romany. I could end the review there actually. To me, it’s more maneuverable than an Explorer, easier to turn the boat around to quickly jump on a wave. I found that waves broke over the deck more so than when I paddle the Romany/Explorer – the Pilgrim Expedition is narrower so sits more solidly in bumpy water which adds to stability – similar to Anas acuta or Pintail at my weight – but still with plenty of freeboard. Breaking out of an eddy and staying on the front wave in a wave-train seemed easier in the Pilgrim due to its longer length as compared to the shorter Romany. The front deck of the Pilgrim Expedition has “knee bumps” to increase the height of the deck that allow a solid contact and provide as much or more room under the deck as compared to my Romany - a pleasant surprise. The one downside for me was the width of the seat - it was too small for me, painful actually. I had to sit slightly angled so my hip bones would fit. (As a benchmark, I fit fine in the Romany seat but find Valley's Anas Acuta seat a bit too narrow). The seat is something that can be remedied - a foam seat is one option. The new SKUK fiberglass seats come in two sizes (Small and Large) and are moveable fore and aft – so we measured the width of a large-size SKUK seat to see if it might be swapped in the Pilgrim – no dice. The larger seat was perhaps 1” too wide to fit. (Greg will get back to me on whether there are alternatives). Perhaps Nigel should make a “medium” size seat for the Pilgrim to accommodate larger paddlers. Overall a really nice boat and one I'd like to try again with a larger seat.

Explorer: I owned an Explorer and it was a great, solid boat with predictable handling. It’s a good boat to paddle first as a benchmark to see how Nigel’s other boats differ from his central work-horse. For me, the Explorer was a boat that helped me move up the BCU chain and learn fundamental skills. The biggest difference I experience when paddling the Explorer is when edging the boat – unlike the Romany/Romany S which loosen up when edged but will turn equally readily upwind or downwind, edging the Explorer alone even without corrective strokes will turn it away from the edge – handy when fighting weather cocking. Perhaps this is due to the longer length and therefore greater turning influence of the chine. Greg also points out that the flat hull and increased length are helpful in staying high on a wave when surfing. The Explorer is his preferred boat for tidal races and even beach breaking surf. If I was paddling big conditions regularly, I’d revisit the boat for sure. I sold my Explorer some years ago because most of my paddling is in more sheltered conditions in Long Island Sound where I found shorter boats more fun.

Romany Surf: Of all the SKUK boats the Romany Surf is the most comfortable for me in the cockpit. The higher deck and new fiberglass seat allow me to assume a more forward paddling posture. (Photo of new SKUK seat below). I noticed it right away. Greg has his Romany Surf seat set up in the most forward position so forward sweep strokes really cranked the boat around, fun in the wave and manouvering around some small eddies east of Fisher's Island during the demo. The boat has more volume in the chines and more volume aft of the cockpit than the standard Romany. The chines make it a little stiffer to edge than my Romany and more grabby on waves for carving - which has pluses and minuses depending on what you're looking for. The extra volume in the stern makes it well balanced fore-and-aft, which seemed to improve speed and glide a bit as compared to my standard Romany which has a lower volume stern that sits a bit low in the water for me. The Surf's cockpit coaming isn’t may favorite - doesn’t provide the same thigh-hook design I’ve come to enjoy in other boats. This is my only criticism of the boat. Greg had his cockpit foamed out nicely which helped a lot.


New SKUK Fiberglass Seat on Explorer



The current line of SKUK boats now has enough variety that I expect most paddlers would be able to find one that works for them. The hull designs are all “friendly” and can accommodate a range of abilities. And Nigel’s focus on making subtle changes to his basic design to offer improved fit for different sized paddlers appears to be unique in the industry.

P&H Delphin demo paddle on Hudson River May 2011 - it's all about the Cockpit!

Was working up in Newburgh NY last friday, so decided to stop a bit early and demo the P&H Delphin at the nearby River Connection kayak shop in Hyde Park, NY. It's been on my short list of boats to demo as I'm looking for something a little more comfortable in the cockpit that is also a shortish day-paddling sea kayak. The owner Marshall set me up with a demo.  First impressions are - fun, turny, even moreso than my Romany. Also a fair amount of yaw with the 1' following waves in the center of the river without the skeg down - to be expected for a short rockered boat. Very manouverable in tight corners as I messed about near shore.  Expect it would be very fun in tidal races or shore-breaking surf.   Didn't take any photos but grabbed the one above online to show cockpit.

Cockpit:  The primary reason the boat was on my short-list was the feel of the cockpit. Unlike my current boat, the Delphin has knee-hooks that are placed further forward away from the torso and adjustable fore/aft. The knee-hooks are also somewhat closer together than other boats. I was pleased to find that this allows a higher and more centered knee position that was very comfortable and solid feeling.  On my current boat, the thigh grips are set quite low and out to the side - this forces the legs out in an Indian-style position that I have come to find (after 15 years of paddling) bothersome to my lumbar back and not the best position for sitting up straight (at least for me). The Delphin and Tiderace boats (see reviews below) allow my knees to be perhaps 2 inches closer together and 1 inch higher up - not much, but enough to make a noticeable difference (to me anyway). More power in forward stroke, more freedom to maneuver the boat around, more comfort.

Jones Inlet - May 2011 - off the east jetty



Boats I've Owned - Seven (7) and Counting

"All kayaks are a compromise of one type or another" - i.e. no such thing as a perfect boat.

Necky Looksha IV (Purchased in 1995/1996): My first kayak - I really lucked out with this one. I bought it used in great condition and at the time knew very little about what makes a good sea kayak.  Had it as my primary boat for several years and sometimes regret selling it. Learned to roll in this boat, did a bit of kayak fishing for stripers and bluefish. It's no longer made by Necky in plastic version.  The Looksha IV was maneouverable and really fun. Not sure the kayaking-bug would have grabbed me as much if my first kayak had been something less inspiring to paddle. Sold it in 2000.

CLC North Bay (Built in 1999): A great project but not my favorite boat to paddle.  I got inspired by local builders and emailed Bobby Curtis, Jay Babina, and Nick Shade in 97/98 for advice on building and to get my courage up to tackle the project. Installed some inlay and hatch.  Eventually sold it in 2006 as it wasn't getting enough use.

NDK Explorer (Purchased in 2002): Decided to get more serious about moving up the BCU chain so got this boat. Helped me build skills, used it a lot, some camping. Eventually found myself using my next boat more (Pintail) so sold it in 2005- would have definitely kept it if I had more room in the garage. Often think of getting another one - very solid.

VCP Pintail (Purchased around 2004): Although the seat was always too small for me, in all other ways the boat "fit" me well and reminded me of the fun turny-ness of my first boat the Looksha IV.  Once I got the Pintail, it's all I paddled. Totally fell in love with the boat. No other boat I've tried handled wind and rough water so well.  Nothing else as fun to paddle. Rope skeg (used often) was sometimes a pain to fiddle with. Ocean cockpit so secure and comfy as compared to keyhole - but a minor struggle to enter/exit. Bought used (a '96 Pintail) and sold it in 2010 due to loss of my boat storage. New owner was thrilled to get it. Had to flip a coin between selling the Pintail or Romany. Chances are good I'll buy another one someday. UPDATE!: Valley stopped making this boat - if you can find one, grab it!

NDK Romany (Purchased in 2008): Wanted a 2nd boat as a loaner and something more "vanilla" than the Pintail.  A Romany was the boat I would usually grab when staffing programs with AKT no matter the venue.  Familiar feel after owning the Explorer. Surfs straighter and handles following seas better than the Pintail. But surprisingly more volume in front than Pintail - had to expand my front cradle straps more than a little when switching to the Romany.  

Epic V8 Surf Ski (Purchased 2013): Bought a used surf ski to work on forward paddling form. The V8 is a beginner ski, stable and 18 feet long.  Great to work on forward stroke, knees-up helps torso rotation. Shoulder injury prevented me from doing much distance paddling so sold it.

Valley Gemini SP (Purchased 2014):  Wanted something for shorter local paddles and lighter to be easier to move around.  Great boat - shorter play style kayak but has enough of the "standard" sea kayak features to be appropriate for any type of coastal day paddling.  Full review on my Gemini SP blog post.

Tiderace Xtreme Review - Norwalk Islands

Been thinking about getting a new boat for awhile – something that’s fun in waves and maneuverable but also a bit faster and more comfortable in the cockpit than the smallish boats I’ve owned recently. Not sure such a boat exists, but I saw the Xtreme online some months ago and it’s been on my short-list to demo. The boat just came in at the Outdoor Sports Center  in Wilton CT (Call Mark Bodian who runs the kayak department there). Yes the descriptions of the Xtreme describe it as more of a surf-machine than I need, but what the heck, it might be a decent all-around boat too and so worth a look. So I took the Xtreme for a test paddle around the Norwalk Islands in CT on Sunday, April 17th 2011.

Xtreme on Ram Island, Norwalk, CT

The day of my paddle, the wind had shifted from east to west overnight but without enough time to create any real waves – according to NOAA, steady 20 knot west wind with higher gusts and no particular waves, not my preferred paddling conditions to say the least. But there are only so many weekends in the year so I went for it.  I’m a local Long Island Sound weekend-warrior and not someone who ventures regularly into the conditions the boat was built for. For that review – check out this website: http://paulkuthe.blogspot.com/2011/04/tiderace-xtreme-review.html He’s got some amazing photos of the Xtreme in big surf on the west coast. My overall impression is that this boat would be best appreciated by a very well-conditioned paddler who can really throw some strong moves at the boat. That’s not me (at this point). But what I could assess paddling in heavy wind around the Norwalk Islands is it’s general behavior, and in my opinion, despite being a “specialty” kayak geared to bigger conditions, the Xtreme is also a very viable all-around boat for general use. (I’m 5’10”, 175 lbs).

The boat is hard-chined and heavily rockered. Like the Maelstrom Vaag, the rocker is evident as a bend/fold in the boat at the rear of the cockpit rather than spread out across the length of the boat. My guess is this keeps the boat sensibly straight-running overall but then maneuverable when edged or on a wave. The cockpit is noticeably further aft of center than many kayaks – less boat behind the cockpit means less boat stuck in a wave as one paddles forward. As I understand it, this is intended to help the boat keep a straight course on a wave rather than broaching, and make it easier to turn the boat when riding a wave. The boat is 17’ but relatively high volume overall. There’s a lot of boat there – noticeably more than my most recently owned boats (Pintail and Romany). The cockpit is again the very positive-feeling design typical of the Tiderace boats. I would say the Xtreme has a noticeably lower deck than the Xcite, but the knee position is still higher and more centered than in a Romany or Pintail. This cockpit arrangement is my favorite part of all the Tiderace boats – and due to some lumbar-disk issues I’ve dealt with this past season, it is a more comfortable position for me than more extreme Indian-style, splayed-out knee positions on other boats. To me the Tiderace seat/deck/thigh-hook arrangement helps with forward paddling and allows me a more upright posture. I think more boat manufacturers should consider something similar.

This boat is purpose-built for bigger waves and tidal races. Not having the opportunity to try the boat in these conditions, I can only make observations about how the boat behaves as a general sea kayak. But I had glimpses of how the boat might do in bigger stuff. Rounding the south side of Chimon with the wind behind me, some 2’ waves lifted the boat in a way I haven’t felt to that degree. Got some nice rides there. Rather than being pushed out in front of the wave or struggling to match the wave speed to get a ride, the Xtreme was picked up and held on the crest with much less effort than other boats I’ve paddled. Very maneuverable in that position too. I have to assume this is due to the comparatively wide/flat hull shape and to the reduced amount of boat aft of the cockpit. Waves can tuck under the boat easily and its planing hull wants to sit on the wave. Very cool. The hard chine and flat hull make for more responsive edging/turning on a wave than other boats I’ve owned. Like the Maelstrom Vaag which has similar up-turned rocker in the stern, the Xtreme yawed a bit more than some boats in small (1’) following seas. But once on the wave it was a pleasure to paddle.

In my paddling around the islands, the Xtreme felt reasonably fast and tracked well. I’m used to boats that more readily weather-cock as compared to the Xtreme. Perhaps due to the comparatively large amount of boat forward of the cockpit (center of mass more to the rear), I found that the Xtreme didn’t weather cock at all and had some minor lee-cocking in the 20+ knot winds when the wind was at the beam or front quarter. Edge and sweep correct this. It’s a compromise I suppose – a kayak that readily weather-cocks can be corrected with a skeg (but that can be a pain if too skeg-dependant). One that doesn’t weather cock as much is great unless you want to turn into the wind and might even be a chore if you’re constantly doing sweep strokes to aim up-wind. I’d need to have the boat out many more times in variable conditions to make any solid observations about the Xtreme’s directional stability. Battling big winds on the day of a test paddle (as I was) limits one’s ability to objectively observe a new boat’s handling. I also took it into the marina to see how it would feel in more sheltered conditions – it was nice, maneuverable, fun to carve turns, etc.

Headwind, Norwalk, CT

Finish on the boat is great as in all Tiderace boats. One minor caveat – the hatch covers are tethered on the inside, but unlike an earlier Xcite I paddled, the tethers are permanently glassed in (see photo) so if it breaks you can’t easily replace it.

Hatch cover tether

Made this graphic (below) in powerpoint showing how the cockpit of the Xtreme appears to be set a bit further back than some other boats - both the Nordkapp LV and Tiderace Xcite have more boat aft of the cockpit (extend beyond line). Seems to confirm what I saw and what I've read about the design of the Xtreme. It's not intended to be as balanced fore-and-aft as these more general purpose sea kayaks. 

Nissequogue River Kayaking (July 2010) - Long Island, NY

River paddling in Long Island - a nice trip is the Nissequogue River about 1/2 way out on the island's North Shore. Great info on put-in posted by the nearby outfitter that runs trips for all levels: Nissequoque River Outfitters. They're even happy to shuttle you for free if you like. We got there early and decided to do our own bicycle shuttle, leaving our boats at the river mouth in Nissequogue River State Park, dropping our car at the upstream take out. Depending on tides, you can do this trip in either direction, but river loses too much water to make it all the way upstream unless timed right. Urban surroundings for some stretches but overall a nice relaxing paddle perhaps 1-2 hours.