Topic: 2 New creekboats and one old Creekboat (one)

[Paul Potvin]

Here's a new sponsored review of the Karma Large.

Paul

http://worldkayakblogs.com/wildwildwes/2013/02/27/getting-some-good-karma/

[Paul Potvin]

Thanks for the helpful and funny comments Jean Nicholas and Christian! LOL!!
Great article on Playak, thanks Mark! I kind of really like the Recon, but that's just sitting in it. I haven't tried any boats yet including the Villain! Paddle Shack said they will have demos for every models so it will be a very interesting spring!

Paul

[ChristianG]

Ha ha! He advertises not as pristine condition, but fantastic:

"Fantastic condition creek boat. This is the full size villain, not the villain S. The Werner paddle is not included."

I would agree. 'Fantastic' as in:

1.
conceived or appearing as if conceived by an unrestrained imagination; odd and remarkable; bizarre; grotesque: fantastic rock formations; fantastic designs.
2.
fanciful or capricious, as persons or their ideas or actions: We never know what that fantastic creature will say next.
3.
imaginary or groundless in not being based on reality; foolish or irrational: fantastic fears.
4.
extravagantly fanciful; marvelous.
5.
incredibly great or extreme; exorbitant: to spend fantastic sums of money.
6.
highly unrealistic or impractical; outlandish: a fantastic scheme to make a million dollars betting on horse races.
7.
Informal.  extraordinarily good: a fantastic musical.

Who's selling the Nomad? In Stittsville... I agree that creekboats, even if they are in demands, should be cheaper. Because it's buyer beware, just as in buying a used mountain bike.

The review Mark posted is very informative, BTW.

And now that Boatwerks seems definitively dead, Kijiji it will be...

--C.

[JohnCyr]

Theres a brand new nomad 8.5 for sale on kijiji. 800$.
 Oh and speaking of Marcos old boat that trevor is selling....

Well let me tell you this.. Marcos offered to sell me this boat for half of what trevor is selling it... This is the boat he swam Plaisance in a high water with Aniol last year.. Both handles are missing and dented, cracked, ductape welded...Its a POS like paul said... Even my old Villain from blakeney was in better shape seriously...

I have no idea why trevor bought the thing in the first place but to advertise it as a boat in pristine condition is just nuts...I have a hard time believeing the kid didnt know what the duct tape was either... I mean comon.... haha

Anyways... Im in the market for a boat as well and I dont know wth people are thinking selling used creekers for 700-900$... I mean I can get a new shiva for 999$.. Paddleshack even offer boats for 850-1250... and with 200$ store credit at time of pickup... Thats a new helmet or paddle...

Its seems those prices are more in QC... In the US.. used creekers range from 400-600... in the UK, same.... een cheaper... Ontario usually 650$ on average... but Quebeckers? 800-900$.. Same for eberything else i find on kijiji as well.. lol. cars, bikes, skis, cameras... whatever...

OKS have a few boats on sale right now btw!

[Mark.D.]

recon - habitat comparison http://playak.com/news.php?idd=2273994632530

[Paul Potvin]

Thanks Christian! Probably in a week, two at the most!

Cheers,

Paul

[ChristianG]

Paul, if you decide to rent a creekboat for a pool session, let me know ahead of time so that I can bring my big Villain for comparison.

[ChristianG]

One reason the Mamba might feel flexier is that it has a flat bottom and isn't really a creek boat, while the Recon is all curves, resulting in a stiffer feel (bad pun)...

The new Wavesport Recon creekboat looks like a mean steep creeking boat but might be slower in general than the Mamba or Villain because of the insane rocker, look at photos on manufacturer websites... I'd say that the Villain is more a general-purpose creekboat than the Recon, and the Karma is in between.

[Paul Potvin]

Last Villain I tried to buy had a huge hole in the stern... Deal Breaker, Villain is a, should be at least, a Flower pot now.... Can't believe Marcos sold that boat to a kid for 800$.... The kid said he didn't know what that duck tape was for on the stern, until I removed it to find the gapping hole....... Funny thing, plenty of Villains in the States for sale, none, at ALL in Canada. For a 600-700$, in very good shape, I'd be inclined to go for a Villain, but no one is offering, so back to the 2013 models....

Well......TodayI sat in the Dagger Mamba 8.6 and the Recon 83 today. The Mamba feels Very FLEXY, not a good feeling at all. The Recon feels Rock SOLID. I checked the weight of each boat. The Mamba, a bigger boat at 89 gallons is 46 pounds. The smaller  Recon at 83 gallons weighs in at 50 pounds! Since both boats have the exact outfitting, I guess the extra weight in the Recon goes into thicker Plastic...., not an inconsequential thing in a creeker...  I have't even sat in a Karma yet, the folks at Paddle Shack say they should come in eventually but I really like the fit of the Recon. The outfitting in both boats was awesome! Not sure Jackson will be up to their standard and they're priced at least 100$ more, go figure....Next step, pool session to try all of them and then a weekend rental or two or three:).

Can't wait for the season to begin!

Cheers,

Paul

[ninja]

Only heard good comments about the karma. friends of mine are paddling it.

[Paul Potvin]

LOL, to both of you....

Just kicking the tires...for now:)

Paul

[Todd]

Or the regular Jefe on sale in my garage!

[ChristianG]

Is this your way of saying "I'm shopping"? If so, don't forget the Jefe Grande for sale on Boatwerks... Cheers!

--C.

[Paul Potvin]

http://cksblog.com/2012/11/2013-wave-sport-recon-review/

http://jacksonkayak.com/jk-kayaks/whitewater/2013-karma/

http://jacksonkayak.com/jk-kayaks/whitewater/villain/villain-series-promo-video-and-walkthrough/

Paul:)