|
|
|
I used to work for a kayak manufacturer who made flatwater, whitewater and day touring kayaks. We took a LOT of calls from people wanting recommendations. Since I don't know much about your or your paddling experience, please don't take offense at what I say below. I'm not trying to insult your experience or intelligence, I'm just starting with the assumption that you know nothing about whitewater. If that's wrong, feel free to round-file anything I say... this is just an internet message board after all.
The boat in your photo is not a good boat for learning whitewater. Are you planning to get into whitewater kayaking? If you're mainly planning to paddle flat moving water with a Class II here and there and the occasional Class III, it should be fine. Just be aware that Class III can mean a pretty small series of manageable ledges, OR: a 4 foot vertical drop, or large waves that will come into your boat and possibly swamp it, or even push you completely over and are *almost* Class IV. In other words, when I say "occasional" I do mean just that. If you want to run Class II/III rivers, meaning that the focus of your trips is to learn to paddle whitewater rapids with skill, this is not an appropriate boat.
If you want to learn whitewater, flatwater boats are not the "beginner" boat for whitewater. They are completely separate sports, like skiing and snowboarding - some skills may translate, but neither is an entry into the other sport.
If you plan to get into whitewater, I only have a few recommendations:
1) budget for instruction. Whitewater is something that looks easy because people get very skilled at it and make it look that way, but you'd be surprised at the amount of time and dedication that it takes even to become an intermediate boater. Also, you will need to learn to roll, and in the 9 years I've paddled and knowing literally hundreds of boaters, I have seen maybe a handful or less who learned to roll on their own using videos or what have you. Instruction shortens your learning curve, decreases your frustration and increases your fun, and also you will learn about river hazards and how to avoid or deal with them - pretty important considering that people don't have gills! Small group or one-on-one instruction is totally worth the $. Let us know your location and we can probably make recommendations for instructors in your area.
2) Buy everything used except your helmet (hey, it's your HEAD.  ) Boat, paddle, sprayskirt, helmet, PFD (lifejacket) are the five essentials you do not put on a river without.
3) In choosing a boat, get something that floats your weight well - look for a boat where the ends are out of the water, and there's no more than an inch or two under the water along the sides. This is where going to a paddling shop, as recommended here by another poster, will definitely pay off. There are three main types of whitewater kayaks: freestyle boats for doing tricks; creekboats for running steep creeks; and river running kayaks, which fall into the more-freestyle type (like a freestyle boat but more forgiving) or the more-creekboat type (generally shaped similar to a creeker but usually not as heavy and usually has a planing hull for surfing waves.) I would recommend a river-running type boat, whichever you are more comfortable in when you demo them on a lake. Yes, you should at least sit in them on flat water and see if they're comfortable and seem to "feel right" as far as fit. Tell us your weight, inseam and shoe size and we can make recommendations as to specific brands and models to consider. BUY USED and you will cut the price in half - new boats run about $1000 or $1100 more or less, depending on what brand you buy and what kind of boat. There's also this: On the one hand, as a complete novice, you'll know so little that it doesn't matter what you get, you'll get used to it. On the other hand, if you spend any amount of time on the river and you get bit by the whitewater obsession, you'll probably end up selling the boat within 6 months because by then you'll know what you want. If you buy used, you can usually recoup all or most of the purchase price, unless you've dropped it off the roof of your car at 70mph and broken it.
4) Never paddle whitewater alone. If there's a whitewater kayaking club in your area, that's a good way to find beginner trips and start learning the rivers in your area, and making connections with people to paddle with.
5) Have fun!
Hope this helps. Sorry so long!
Jill |
|
|
I used to answer your exact question for a living. Help inside... New 
BoaterTalk 
