Recommendations?

[Bgoulet3]

New to the sport. Looking for a river running style kayak. Kayaked class2 rivers before but looking for much more. What would you recommend for a first kayak?

[BMuu]

The Jackson fun is a great river runner do it all kinda boat.

I own a fun in addition to a full on Creek boat and full Play boat, the Fun will do both but not on the extreme of either end.

They offer different sizing depending on your weight.

[Bgoulet3]

Im looking for something that in time i can use for class5 rapids. Would the fun be suitable for that?

[JTarver]

If you're Eric Jackson, sure thing. Otherwise, you should probably go ahead and get a creek boat. There are hundreds to choose from, so my advice would be to try as many as you can, and sooner or later you'll fall for one, and then you know what to look for that you won't regret buying later.

Hope that helps,
Joe

[Bgoulet3]

Any suggestions for brands. Im 5"10 and 165lbs whats a suitable size boat and paddle length. The only way im able to afford a kayak is because im currently serving on a deployment. So i want the first kayak one to keep me pleased for awhile or at least until i leave little rock.

[Shep]

If you reach the point where you are running class V rapids, I guarantee you will own more than one boat by that time. You don't necessarily need to get a hard-core creek boat to start. In fact, a river-running play boat general river-runner will be the best all-around for learning different kinds of skills including surfing.

Of course, if you REALLY want to be a bada$$, what you need is one of these: http://www.blackflycanoes.com/index.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; :myday"

Shep

[Cowper]

In fact, a river-running play boat general river-runner will be the best all-around for learning different kinds of skills including surfing.

Dang it. Paul beat me to the punch, all I can do is further explain / add to what he already started.

One of the features of "creek" boats is that they tend to be "forgiving" of any mistakes you might make. In other words, you can make mistakes, paddle less than perfect, and may not even know your own performance was less than stellar because the boat just "takes care of you". So you start thinking you're hot stuff, but you may or may not be ready to move up to harder water.

But a boat that has sharper edges (river runner or play boat) can give you mild "spankings" on even easier water. You'll be more likely to flip and turn over when you don't lean the right way, get your timing right, or don't lean hard enough, fail to brace, or make other minor mistakes. Your head being underwater will give you clear feedback that something wasn't quite right and needs to be worked on to improve further. And here's the beautiful part - all this can happen even on relatively easier water, where the chance of serious injury is really low. You don't have to get on Class IV or Class V where mistakes are more likely to involve injury, in order to build your skills to the point where you can run Class IV/V with a reasonable degree of safety.

Just get a boat you like now. If you buy used, you probably won't even lose money when you move on to other boats.

[mgood]

Class V is a step or two up from class II. There's a lot in between that shouldn't get overlooked.

You'll want to run mainly class III for a while, and take IV's in slowly. Once you're a competent class IV boater (which can take years, or months, depending), it takes a pretty big step up to paddle class V. It's a good goal to set, but take it slow and enjoy your progress.

Try to make smaller goals for yourself instead of "paddle a class V river" (because V is just a relative term and means different things to different people). Learn to ferry properly over fast current, learn to interact with rocks, practice your roll everywhere (especially in current), take the hardest route through a well-known rapid, try to invent a new line through a well-known rapid, etc... You might even pick a specific river you'd like to run by this time next year (Cossatot, Ocoee, etc...)

Some folks will tell you to get a creeker, which wouldn't be a terrible choice. But i'd tell you to get a small boat, learn how water works on your edges and how to move your boat as an extension of your body. I've learned more just messing around in a playboat than anything else.

That being said, once you're comfortable in class IV, then invest in a creeker. There's a ton to learn about how creek boats interact with water and rocks- the boof is a beautiful thing in a long boat. But i'd say not before class IV really- I see a lot of people who use creek boats as a crutch in class III and never seem to progress beyond.

The more you can mess around and learn how to interact with current (at rockport, etc) the better off you'll be when trying to step it up to class V.

Good luck. In sum, I'd point you in the direction of an all-star or fun.

[SteveGabbard]

As said above, at your size the jackson fun would be good. Don't overlook one a few years old as the second generation is a great design.

Not sure about paddle length.

[RomanLA]

Any suggestions for brands. Im 5"10 and 165lbs whats a suitable size boat and paddle length. The only way im able to afford a kayak is because im currently serving on a deployment. So i want the first kayak one to keep me pleased for awhile or at least until i leave little rock.

The recommended paddle length is 197cm for river running and 194cm for playboating.
http://www.wernerpaddles.com/paddles/wh ... reational/

As far as boats, paddle as many as you can get your hands on. A good way to do that is go to one of the roll sessions. You can also go demo boats at an outfitter. Once you start narrowing down your choices, you can look on the manufacturer's web sites to get recommended paddler weights. The lower you are in the weight range, the more stable the boat will feel. At the same time, you don't want to buy something so big that it swallows you. You want to have good contact with the boat to be able to control it with your body movement.

[Cowper]

OK, here's an even more specific suggestion:
http://forums.arkansascanoeclub.com/vie ... =2&t=19979" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Look at these; the Embudo is a good boat; don't see many around here but that's at least partly because there are not many (if any?) Prijon dealers in the area. The plastic is very tough; and at these prices, you can get both a "creeker" and a used play or river-running boat.

Based on this review http://boatertalk.com/article/article.php?id=45" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I think the boat was designed with Class V in mind; but the review sounds like it might have been written by a "sponsored" paddler so I'd search around a bit for other reviews. (Or no, maybe at that price I wouldn't bother over-thinking it

[Mike S]

I will have a LL remix 69 and a Prijon Samari at the UALR pool today from about 2-5 if you want to paddle them around the pool!

Michael

[Jbyrum]

I have a Jackson 4Fun (River running playboat) and a Hero (River runner) for sale if you decide what you want

[okieboater]

I had a Embudo.

Built like a tank. Ideal for rough scrapey Arkansas creeking.

Used mine for a Salt River AZ 5 day self support. Plenty of room for gear. Beat the boat up as it was low water but zero damage to the hull and the big cockpit made it easy to get in and out of.

My opinion, ideal for low water creeking, self support, long lasting plastic, good all around creek boat. Big water did push mine around a bit, but it is a creek boat.

Buy at a good price, boat the dickens out of it and sell it for about what you paid for it.

Sold mine when a new creeker design came out, back in my days of looking for the perfect boat design. If memory correct, the new creeker I got was not much if any better than the embudo. Anyhow, for a first creeker for a big boy paddler Embudo will get the job done.

[MaxTexan]

I agree with most everything that everyone has said especially regarding the desire for two different types of kayaks (play and river running) as one progresses in the sport.

However I am going to go in a slightly different tack.... find a used kayak, probably a river runner, that you have demoed and feel comfortable in and try to get the kayak as cheap as possible.

Spend your money on good paddling clothes and paddle.

More than likely the first boat you buy is not the kayak you will want a year later.

A lot of AR paddling occurs in cold weather.. having a good warm drytop and base layers are really needed. Do not go cheap on a helment and pdf.

Your dersire to run tough whitewater may change as you paddle. I really thought I was a river running kinda a guy. After my first play-river running I found how much I liked playing. Many days I would rather spend my time surfing, bow stalls and stern squirting than running rivers. Really never thought I would like that part so much.