Submitted: 09-27-2005 by phf
I'll prefix this review by stating that I am new to the sport and am looking for my first kayak so I'm by no means an expert. I've tried a number of boats with mixed results. The Pungo seemed tippy (for a novice anyway) but I liked the Perception Americas 13.5. Once it came out though, I fell in love with the Dirigo (on paper anyway). I finally got a chance to paddle one up at LL Bean and was disappointed though.
The seat, which looked like it should be VERY comfortable felt flimsy at best. I'm a big guy (6' 250lbs) and just didn't feel stable in the seat. Also, while the cup holder seems like a perfect idea, it comes down right where your let wants to be. I had a chance to paddle a Loon 138 back to back with this boat and was much more impressed. Both boats tracked well, but the Loon was much more comfortable and tracked a bit better. A number of people at Beans said that they were less than impressed with the new seat and that they were constantly fixing the ones in the rental fleet.
Like I said, I'm no expert but I'm going out to buy a Loon! *grin* |