I was entertained while paddling tideplay's Xcite and observing him paddle my Nordlow on that crossing.
Tideplay is a far more skilled paddler than me, but has been paddling his Explorer and now his Xcite and was not accustomed to the more active hull of the 'kapp LV.
Aled Williams' based boats are designed to provide a lot of margin for paddlers in severe conditions. Whereas Nordkapps seem to assume a more engaged paddler. Even Gordon Wilcox notes: "...as you edge the Nordkapp LV it just keeps going over smoothly until sploosh. There is no warning when you are just about at the limit of secondary stability."
John Carmody has said "loose hips save flips." I find that the Nordlow truly rewards a relaxed paddler who is unconcerned if a brace or even a roll is required. The more confident (read relaxed) I get in the boat, the more fun it becomes. Though this is obvious with any boat, I find the Nordlow has challenged my equanimity more than most. As I grow into the boat, I enjoy it more.
All that being said, I am not yet ready to take it surfing - for that weekend I'm bringing the Romany ;-)
No boat is the right boat for everyone - though some work in a comfortable manner for most paddlers (Romany, Explorer, Avocet, Aquanaut). The Nordkapp LV is a boat for skilled paddlers and those wishing to build their skills. Note Peter Orton's characterization: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXilcmGCLxk
After paddling the Nordkapp LV most other boats feel leaden to me...
Maybe the most fun comes from finding your "risk homeostasis" point???
Maybe that is why we deliberately choose a boat that requires us to feel our balance, and dynamically paddle, rather than be mindless. Or to take a boat with more stability into rougher stuff to get to that same place.
When I got back into kayaking I got a used Andromeda, and realized all I had to do to capsize it was to look around for another paddler. When I got back into kayaking I got a used Andromeda, and realized all I had to do to capsize it was to look around for another paddler. This boat required that I quickly relearn all my skills. And I actually developed my current dynamic paddling skills approach, something I really did not have as a younger paddler.
Sports psychologists studying why athletes take risks and the amount of risk they take have found that too little risk does not engage us, too much overwhelms us. There is a homeostasis zone of just enough but not too much. This changes over time. On the plus side this is that amazing human capacity to grow and learn. The negative is that we place ourselves into more and more risk to achieve this, called risk creep.
But maybe the biggest advantage in a boat like the Nordlow is that we develop our skills and have a better appreciation for what will happen in a storm setting everyday. Like WilsoJ says, he won't bring it surfing. He and I have learned by these boats what our abilities and limits are and how better to develop.
Back to the original post on the LV (Naut that is), I would love to know from the designer or Valley person, if the rocker on the LV is the same proportionate amount as the regular size or was the absolute amount kept constant, so that it is more rockered as a percentage of waterline.
Write Peter Orton… Peter used to past here fairly often - though it has been while… You could email him and see if you get a response.
OR you could remind me the next time we are going to be paddling together to bring my Aquanaut and we can sit your 'naut LV and my standard 'naut on some level pavement next to each other and see for ourselves
Celia and wilsoj may recall this 2007 post. I concur, Peter O from Valley seldom posts here any longer. This old link suggests Peter in the birthing of the small person kayak.
Then the vid that most have seen, but just in case, Peter Orton here describing the AvLV. (question the weight range he mentions on this vid--that would be a tiny person's boat indeed if true).
I met Peter at Canoecopia 2007 and he was a cool dude, even if he does sound a smidge like Billy Idol.
Cetus LV Thanks for the mention. This is a boat I’d like to try, though it may not be within a moderate volume range for me. Jim felt the regular Cetus was huge on him.
Of all the LV models I tried (NDK Romany LV, Explorer LV, Avocet LV) the Aquanaut had the most room at the hips and most rise to the deck.
First, I know for sure I am too small and light for the boat (5'3' 117 lbs). An additional 20 or so lbs would go a long way towards settling into a nice waterline. At 145-175 lbs you have the makings of a nice if somewhat longer dayboat of 17'1" regardless of gender.
Celia, I know you, like me, are particular about thigh brace placement. I have relatively long thighs for my 32" seam, and I felt for these the placement was merely OK - a C+ - because the meaty part hit a little further towards my knee than I like. I also felt I would have to lift up my leg with more "travel" to hit the underside of the brace which cuts responsive time fractionally (at least for me).
Yeah, I would've liked a lower deck and a smaller cockpit (this one has a deck of 12.5" by catalog and the keyhole dimensions I do not know except they looked identical to the regular Aquanaut FG and I had a chance to see both a few feet from each other. Which is weird - why not slenderize for the LV version?).
But I realize these are my biases based on the boat I paddle and my favorite demos. Again, someone 20-30 lbs bigger would want this deck height. And Valley keyhole cockpits are friendly to many paddlers across a good size range.
Oddly enough, of all the thigh brace fittings I tried, the best fit was the Romany LV - a fellow kayaker running safety duty nearby said those braces were the "seakayaker's version of WW outfitting." Whether or not this be true, the braces felt great and gave excellent contact further up the thigh, more "wraparound" than many seakayaks I've tried.
But I digress.
Handling on strokes and braces quite fine (no rolling that day)and the Aquanaut LV like its' VCP stablemates is a well mannered and confident boat. Its length did not overwhelm me and it responded well to turns. Felt quite stable. Not tricky at all to find the balance points for second & third degree edging.
This was a(very)flat water demo. It wouldn't be my pick for textured conditions due to my size. It would seem irresistible for someone heavier with skills for active water to at least give it a go.
Definitely worth a try for a wide range of people, including a woman of Celia's size, and especially those who may not have previously considered an LV boat.
Celia, I look forward to your take after you get one out on the water.
we are getting the production versions now - we have boats arriving in WA this week and NC - and they have them already in nova scotia - and Vancouver. i’ll be heading to annapolis wed nite - for potomac paddlesports event - anxious to get it on the water.
