Intermediate skis: Knysna Blu, Evo2, Swordfish....

Exactly Owen. Been waiting for someone to bring this line of argument up. Had a swordfish in the carbon layup. Great in flat water and small seas. Tight fit and difficult to rotate and remount. Got rid of that and bought a new V10S in the performance layup.

Happy as the proverbial pig in sh.t! Swell, surf, downwind, flat water, cross chop... Love it!

Paddler weight... 115kg, height 5' 10"... 57yo ex Front Rower. We are not all super fit 30 something's Lol! Yes, we weigh what we weigh and must take this into consideration when we select and purchase a new boat.

owenfromwales wrote: - it`s just difficult to reflect that in this list as it was put together to be comprehensive whilst also being as simple as possible.

Sorry for stretching this conversation out, but wouldn't it be of interest for manufacturers to agree on, perhaps, two waterlines (and their corresponding beams)? That is:

-waterline with 80 kg paddler
-waterline without paddler

In this way, we might be able to analyse skis more effectively.

Hi Sam
It would probably be of interest to consumers.
Trouble is, it would be a pain for maker`s to accurately do, plus they`d have to do it for each model, and then for each lay-up. Although, I suspect some manufacturers may have some similar R and D results on their computers.

For those paddlers living in places where trying demo/other skis is difficult, then I think the maker`s width measurement, coupled with the on-water reviews from surfski.info and others, do a good job of helping the paddler predict the stability of such craft (obviously the buyer would have to take into consideration his/her own height/weight/ability and proposed paddling conditions into consideration too.

Owen

ps Sam - you wouldn`t happen to weigh 80kg would you?

Sam_Atlas wrote:

Dale Lippstreu wrote:

The boats we are talking about have these figures:
Epic New V10 45 x 645
Fenn Swordy 45 x 610
CK Focus 46 x 642
Knysna Blu 46 x 620
Think Evo II 48 x 625

I wonder if it would be possible of getting the measurements at the waterline from the manufacturers so that a more precise comparison can be made. In the ratio that you give weight is not considered. Should it be?

Swordfish in salt water with 75 KG aboard 45 - 12 = 33

I'm a similar size and went for the EOS665 also known as the Zeplin. Not as quick in small downwind conditions or perfectly calm but if it's messy with lots of side chop or big down wind, the Zeplin is awesome.
I change boats fairly regularly and usually have a handful at any one time. The Zeplin continues to maintain its spot mainly because work and other commitments usually dictate when I can paddle. If I get a chance to paddle and conditions are suspect or just plain crap (e.g. 35knot winds constantly changing direction) then the Zeplin always gets the nod and always makes me smile. I've never owned another boat which is actually fun to paddle in big confused chop.
It would be nice if it was also a speed demon, but then I would only have one ski and where would be the fun in that?