The Liquid Logic Big Wheel belongs to the same family as the Liquid Logic Scooter.
Tag: Old School Series (Page 1 of 2)
In the spring of 1997, Riot Kayaks set out to design a kayak that would enable them to win the world rodeo championships: the ultimate wave-surfing, hole-riding, rodeo kayak.
From Riot:
We succeeded in creating just that a boat so far ahead of any other kayak at the 1997 championships, that athletes who felt disadvantaged lobbied for a last minute change in the scoring rules to prevent the Glide from achieving high scores on the moves it had been designed to do, and in which it excelled. That was prototype number one. Thirty-three completely vertical ends in twenty four seconds, multiple blunt splitwheels on totally green waves, airborne six point wave wheels, super blunts, freewheels, rockwheels, super clean cartwheels, clean shuvvits and more. The list is endless, the limits are undefined. If all-out rodeo is your thing, then this is the only possible choice.
The Rivertec Fusion PFD has been about for some time now and has only seen one real revamp in its history. It first appeared in the late 90’s in a rather smart dark blue which was later joined by red and now grey. The new grey version also has a zipped chest pocket, something which its colourful predecessor lacked. The basic concept of the Fusion will be familiar to most – a slab PFD with adjustment on the shoulders, sides and waist.
Where it differs is the use of neoprene to help provide a snug fit without being restrictive or allowing the PFD to ride up. The neoprene forms the basis of the shoulder straps with additional tape adjustment. Further neoprene is also evident on the the front and back of the Rivertec Fusion and are joined by tape adjusters fastened by fastex buckles. This makes the Fusion very easy to put on, adjust and remove. An additional strap on the bottom of the Fusion makes riding up almost impossible.
Continue readingThe Nano has been about for a few years now. It’s made from Prijons/Eskimo’s bombproof HTTP plastic which doesn’t require central foam pillars to provide the boat with rigidity. This in itself puts the Nano in the enviable position of being able to have a narrow bow whilst still having adequate foot room. The boat is also considerably lighter than some on the market which is great for long walk ins/outs.
The Micro series of boats, first released in 1994, have been popular creek boats ever since. However, creeking has evolved along with creekboat design. Loads of manufacturers have released more modern designs like the c.f.s, Java and the Huck. Now Pyranha have decided to retire the trusty micro in favour of a new machine – the M3. Here’s what I reckon…
The Look:
Fresh ‘n’ new! The M3 really looks the business, with the new “Syncro 4” outfitting and clip in points made by DMM. The “Syncro 4” outfitting works really well. The boat needs minimal time spent messing around with glue and sandpaper getting it right as it comes with pre-padded seat and hip pads. The hooker thigh grips give the control of quad straps combined with the easy access needed for rivers and creeks and the backrest was great, providing positive support from the moment I got into the cockpit. The M3 features a full plate footrest, rather than the “shoc-bloc” system favoured in Pyranha’s playboats, giving adjustability, control and safety. Anyone taking big hits can layer the footrest up with thick foam. There’s no peli case holder as standard anymore, although these can be ordered from Pyranha. The boat comes supplied with a bag of foam fittings as standard, along with the ubiquitous Pyranha sponge. Continue reading
To be honest I was surprised that at 6ft 2in I could actually fit in the boat. My feet were right to the end of the bow (no footrest needed) which was pretty good interms of the outfitting needed. The Liquidlogic Space Cadet has that now very familiar Liquidlogic look and looks very similar to its older brothers the Pop and Skip.
The outfitting will also be familiar to those with older LL boats. The seat etc remains the same but additional sticky back padding has been provided in the form of a butt pad, hip pads and knee pads. These seem very hardwearing and once stuck doesn’t want to shift.
The backrest is as you would expect a ratchet one and in this case is the IR flex capacitor. I would personally prefer a much wider back band as I found the back band was a little too short which resulted in the plastic straps digging into my side.
The Flip Stick is a relatively new boat from New Zealand manufacturers Bliss-Stick. I first saw the boat on the stands at the International Canoe show in the UK last February and was quite impressed by its overall look and design. I’m 6ft 2inch with size 10 feet and found the Flip Stick really comfy and felt like it fitted. The Flip Stick is 200cm long and has a flat planning hull and therefore is extremely loose. The ends are so short and rockered, they do not catch and pearl in the oncoming greenwater, allowing for easy spins on the greenest of waves it will also allow for those yet to be achieved arial moves. On the negative side the boat is noticably slower than similar boats I have tried.
This year (2001) sw the launch of the Prijon Delirious as a design for play paddlers/top rodeo competitors and billed it as the master of spin. I had seen the Delirious on one previous occasion and its image had lodged in my head. With a number of impressive European freestyle wins under its belt I thought I’d better give the Delirious a try.
The delirium is easily the most comfortable boat in its class due to the fact that it has no pillars and the end, despite being slicy is still large enough to accomodate size 10/11 feet and respectable sized wetboots comfortably. The fit kit that came with the boat is good- the ‘booster seat’ which came with it is very effective – it is comfortable and because of its form fitting shape offers great control.
For the books I am 165 lbs, 31″ inseam, and size 10.5 feet.
I recently got to try both the vibe and the chronic. First in the lake then at a low flow park. Anyway my first thoughts when I finally got too see the boats in person was wow, the outfitting is awesome the thigh braces are super adjustable, the seat has a lot of room to move it front to back, and the back band is super positive, but not the most comfortable out there. These boats have an amazing hull support system in them the best I have ever seen. I found both boats to be really comfortable with lots of foot room.
The Bliss Stick RAD (Radical Air Device) comes in two sizes. Both are very short – 175cm or 185cm. Not much in it I know but its enough! The boat has plenty of volume which has resulted in a very comfortable sub 2m boat.
For quite a volumous boat the RAD cartwheels extremely fast and relatively effortlessly. It loops really really well, although the addition of an overthruster makes the loops far bigger (a worthwhile investment for this boat).
Continue readingDagger’s G-Ride, is radically short yet it still offers comfort for a wide variety of sized paddlers due to its foot and knee contours. The G-Ride is outfitted with Dagger’s familiar Clutch™ outfitting.
The Clutch™ Outfitting includes: Hip pads and shims, seat wedge, thigh booster, and a full plate footrest. For different size paddlers, Dagger’s Clutch™ Outfitting allows for a custom fit in the boat. It seems quite effective and reports from paddlers asked confirms this. That being said I prefer solid hip pads made of foam and would remove the “pump-up” hip-pads if I owned a Dagger boat.
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