Here is an update on Cetus LV
http://www.phseakayaks.com/newsSheet.php?boardID=1&id=10
if this doesn’t work - go to phseakayaks.com and click on the news.
jim -
P&H
Asheville NC
Thanks and then some…
I am looking forward to playing with a Cetus LV this coming season 
I followed the link to the new brochure. Very nice and very glad to see that the Vela and Sirius are still in the line-up.
I’ve always wondered who is the P in P&H. The history in the brochure leads me to believe it is ‘Patrick.’
Length 17’6"
Yes, nice brochure. I see the length is now shown as 17’6", a bit longer than an estimate given several weeks ago. This new length puts it more logically beyond the Capella range.
Will be looking forward to some reports.
Mike
I think I am narrowing my choices…
…down for a good “all-arounder” and rougher water expedition type boat to this and the Nordlow, as I am only 160# and 5’ 6". I’m going to have to test paddle them; hopefully at the same demo.
Anyone care to venture what a comparison might reveal? The chines look a bit harder on this, and maybe a little less rocker on the keel line?
Nice looking boat!
Probably quite different
– Last Updated: Jan-15-09 9:09 AM EST –
From paddling a standard Cetus and owning a Nordlow, I would imagine that the Cetus LV will have much more defined stabilities than a 'kapp and probably be a bit less playful.
P&H's own literature indicates that the Cetus line is meant to be reassuring, whereas the Nordkapp LV is for "advanced and advancing paddlers" according to Peter Orton. My experience of the boat supports both P&H and Valley's characterizations.
The Nordlow is a blast but I do not find it reassuring except in chop and/or when moving quickly ;-). I found the standard Cetus is as confidence inspiring as an Explorer while being livelier. I would imagine the Cetus LV would be similar.
looking forward to demoing a Cetus
but, even though I don’t own one (but have paddled one), I’ll be quite suprised if for my purposes, I would prefer it as an all-arounder to the Quest LV. I actually feel compelled to bring up demoing a Quest LV along with the others, that’s how impressed I am with it as an ocean-going kayak. Yes, I know, personal preference. But don’t skip an opportunity to demo it if you haven’t and you have the chance.
Quest LV
Did you have a chance to compare Quest LV to NordLow?
Quest LV
– Last Updated: Jan-15-09 3:56 PM EST –
As a matter of fact the day after I spent a day in a Cetus, I spent in a Quest LV. Both days were paddling all day on Muscongus Bay (Mid-Coast Maine) with stop for lunch. Nice range of flat to moderate conditions each day. Paddled out to Wreck et al the day in the Cetus and out to Eastern Egg Rock the day in the Quest LV. This past July paddling regularly on Mid-Coast, Maine, I swtiched between my Nordlow and my Romany. The previous 4 years I brought my Aquanaut for my summer Maine sojourn.
My issues with the Quest LV are personality based not an evaluation of the boat's capabilites. I did not particularly like paddling the Quest LV. It is a capable boat, but IMHO it is not as fast or solid feeling as a Cetus nor as playful or quick as the Nordlow.
The Quest LV felt 'jagged' in its response to chop. The Nordlow 'locks in' in chop - it is very fluid feeling.
The Cetus is much more confidence inspiring than either the Quest LV or Nordkapp LV. The 'kapp feels secure moving forward in lumpy seas. It has less primary stability on the flat and/or at rest than the Quest LV. Unlike most boats I've paddled, I have trouble feeling any hang-point in the 'kapp LV as the boat heels. It seems to not have a preference for being upright - in this way it sort of reminds me of a Sirius ;-) The Quest LV feels to have more defined hang point on its secondary.
The Quest LV seems much bigger than the Nordlow.
The Nordlow feels to be the quickest and maybe outright fastest of the boats I've paddled on Muscongus. This is especialy true in lumpy water.
It is worth noting that the Nordkapp LV has estranged a number of competent paddlers when confronting challenging conditions. It has shaken my confidence more than once. I'm not a good enough paddler to have the Nordlow as my only boat. There have been days I chose to paddle my Romany or Aquanaut because I didn't feel confident enough to paddle the 'kapp LV. If you have the intestinal fortitude and equanimity, I think the Nordkapp LV is a fabulous boat.
Nordlow compared to Quest LV
From more experienced and knowledgable source than me:
http://seakayakphoto.blogspot.com/2007/01/valley-nordkapp-lv-test.html
http://seakayakphoto.blogspot.com/2007/01/p-quest-lv-test.html
Thanks! NM
How high is the seat in the Nordlow?
If it’s as high as those in other Nordkapp variants - typically over 1" above the hull - lowering the seat will take all the unwanted “surprises” out of the boat’s demeanor and make it downright confidence inspiring. My old Nordkapp HM scared the crap out of me at times, but after lowering the seat, I absolutely loved the way it felt in rough water, much like I love my Pintail these days. There is a lot to be said about the way these very-soft-chine hulls deal with beam seas and large waves. I don’t know if the current Nordies still have the same hull cross section of the boats of the early 90’s (and earlier), but if they do, they should be outstanding in the rough stuff.