Sub (less than) 10ft. "TRADITIONAL" OC ???'s

[Craig Smerda]

What's your favorite "traditional" OC that's under (around or close enough to) 10ft. long and what characteristics do you like and dislike about it?

Of course "traditional" means ends that are higher than the middle and it has gunnels on it... not "rodeo" boats (Fly's, Taureau's, etc.) so don't start yappin' about 'em on this thread.

Feel free to comment on any boat in the poll... or others I may have missed.

Give us the lowdown on Slalom, Playing, Creeking and General River Running... Speed, Manuverability, etc.

What did you hate about them?

Y'all know the drill...

[PAC]

Have not paddled the evergreen but as for the rest I pretty much like the rest equally base on the condition my conditions are in.

Oh and doesn't traditional mean its made out of wood, canvas or bark? Plastic and composite aren't traditional IMO. Just say'n!

[biggreenjefe]

The only boat on the list I had was the Phantom. Bailey Johnson tried to talk me out of buying it. God was he right. What a turd! My apologies to its fans, but as a boat for running tougher runs it just didn't cut it. The bow did come up fast. Was terribly unstable full of water. And without the hard chines, just didn't have the performance I was used to.

Truth be told I did have a Prelude for a day. Had one of Frankie's Mobile Adventure Preludes. Drove 16 hrs to Tenn. from Tx. Bailey had picked me one up in Knoxville. Spent the next day outfitting it in Baileys shop. The next day we hooked up with Dooley and ran the Pigeon Dries @ about 1000 cfs. A fairly beefy level they said. Bailey thought I was nuts to run my first time in that boat on that run at that level. Long story short. The hull was so crappy that I knocked 7 holes in it during the course of the run (before the end of the run). I was soooo bummed and and disappointed that I couldn't even enjoy the run. The boat was edgy but cool, and I just didn't even care. I was thinking f**k... $700+ down the drain. And that's what it was. It's still in Bailey's barn. One day I'm going to turn it into a planter. A red $700+ planter. And I WILL have good thoughts of Frankie.

[sbroam]

Dagger Ovation - not bad, forgiving but you could drive it hard, had that "ghost chine" you could engage if you leaned it enough.
Dagger Phantom - ugh.
Esquif Detonator - s'alright
Esquif/Pyranha Prelude - liked it, but probably just over the top end weight-wise, consequently very slow
Esquif Zoom - like trying to paddle an ice cube - thumbs down
Evergreen Solito - not been in one - I'm probably too big
Mohawk Maxim - not been in one yet... looks interesting...
Mohawk Rodeo (close enough) - never been in one, but love the Vipers - it's a Frankie boat, couldn't be too bad

Had to vote for the Ovation but not with a lot of feeling.

[jrsh92]

There are a lot of things I enjoy about the Zoom... it feels very fast for it's size. It ferries okay and carves in and out of eddies very snappily. It feels like it's completely under the paddler's control (if control means "you can lean/possibly tip it effortlessly")... all of this is overshadowed by HORRIBLE stability. I need to try this boat again now that I have a roll, but the last time I paddled one it was overwhelmingly easy to swim.

[ncdavid]

Ovation is 11'. Add another 2 or 3 inches and you can include two more great boats, the Ocoee and the Zephyr. My last paddling trip before an extended vacation for back surgery was on the New River Gorge in my Zephyr. Love that boat. Fast enough, very stable, nice edge, super light, very dry. I've got a Pyranha Prelude. It has made some trips to the USNWC and the Ocoee without me. Can't wait til I'm allowd to paddle whitewater again. It looks like a fun boat and feels great on the lake. As much as I like the Zephyr, the material of the Prelude is what sold me. Sure it is heavier, but it'll hold up a lot better than Twintex or Royalex. I'm very curious to see this new material that Mohawk is going to make boats with.

[sdbrassfield]

I've been in the Ovation, Phantom, Zoom, Detonator, and Rodeo.

Ovation is 11' , but alot of fun and does not require your full attention, plays great, does get a bad rap because it is a bit slow.

Phantom, OK but slow as the Ovation and twitchy to me...

Zoom, like the phantom but twitchier

Detonator is essentially a 10' Ovation...

Tried the Rodeo twice and it seemed like something I could get used to...

I am gonna cop out and vote for the 11' Ovation.

[TonyB]

Id like to give an accurate review for these boats but Im not in their weight range. I'd be curious to compare a prelude with just a lil more volume. or a Detonator that wasn't such a dog with my butt in it, or....well you get my point.

an uncarved bukhead has mad demoing the Taureau difficult, (wait not supposed to talk about that boat)


I like the dryness and manuverability the prelude has over my skeeter, It felt weird rolling it but that may have something to do with the outfitting in the one I tried out. would love to see a little more primary stability. But what do I know?

[TheKrikkitWars]

I plumped for the Prelude as I'm paddling a well preserved Savage Designs one currently, having paddled the zoom (fast, manuverable, twitchy as), rodeo (alright speed, ok manuverability, a pig to handle swamped) and detonator (another pig to handle when swamped, but merrily runs over everything in its path.)

The prelude has the right combination of speed (i can keep up with my buddies in kayaks), manuvreablity, and doesn't lose so much performance when swamped, and of course its in PE which was essentially a neccessity for paddling all my local runs.

I'd still like to try a Robson Homes, they're reputed to be "marmite boats" either you love them, or hate them.

[the great gonzo]

The Ovation and the Rodeo are both, as far as I know, over 10 ft long, so I won't comment about them.

Just for reference, i am 6'1" and 185 lbs.

Dagger Phantom - didn't like it, too twitchy and a dog when full of water. That said, many women and lighter paddlers seem to like it and do well in it.
Detonator - sluggish, slow to accelerate, not my cup of tea
Prelude - great, good secondary stability, accelerates well, boofs well, dry, still stable when full of water. My pick!
Zoom - WOOZ, nough said... ...
Solito - Never paddled one only sat in one briefly on the showroom floor., looks interestin, but felt very narrow in the knee area
Maxim - Only paddled it for a short time at the Armada. Instantly liked it. Felt as good as the Prelude. Definitely right at the top of my list.

L'Edge - Can't wat to try one!!

That's my 02 cents. Now back to writing my paper... ...

TGG!

[sbroam]

note - I *wanted* to like the Prelude and maybe 10 pounds lighter and/or with a couple of hours in it, I'd come around. [I tried it at the same time I tried the SF (oops) - instant love there]

+1 on wanting to try a Maxim and ++1 on interest in just what this new material is...

[philcanoe]

My vote is for.....Miss Daisy... not another 10 footer even close, of course she is custom designed to my style and liking.

I haven't seen or tried the Maxim or a finished Solito.

However she's much drier, way faster, and quite a bit more maneuverable than any Ovation, Phantom, Detonator, Prelude, Zoom, Solito or Rodeo.

BTW - What's Millbrook got in the work's, seem to recall John mentioned something a few weeks back?

[kaz]

I'll let you know in a few weeks.
JKaz

[ezwater]

Can ANY sub 10 foot OC-1 be "traditional"? Aren't they more like human-powered Foamies?

[kanur]

I've only paddled a few on the list but here goes.
5'11" 175#

Phantom - Just not my kind of boat

Detonator - Not bad but slooowwww and not very durable

Zoom - I would go back to a kayak if this was the only OC I could
get. That does not make it a bad boat, it just did not work for me. Maybe if the one I tried fit me better.?

Prelude - It's what I've been paddling for several years now and
other than an Ocoee there is nothing out there that
works as well for me. But it was not love at first paddle
and I have tweaked mine a lot

Homes - If this could be bought in PE I would get rid of every thing
else I own. Instant Love! It is fast, It is edgey, Instant
response to any paddler input. This thing is much, much
closer to a 10' Ocoee than it is to a Prelude. It's just
made out of the wrong stuff.

L'Edge - Waiting impatiently with money in hand