Hi, thanks in advance for any advice. Apparently at roughly 6’1" and 185 lbs, I am not so large that I couldn’t go either xp9 or 10. I have sat in and seems to be the case. Because I have somehow taken on “portage adventures” as part of my routine, I think I might go for a 9 if the tracking difference is almost same with skeg down. What say you? Thanks again.
not sure
– Last Updated: Sep-16-12 12:33 AM EST –
I've got an XP9. What I'm wondering, is how you can fit in the XP9, with your height? I'm 5' 9", and have moved the seat back an inch, to have good toe room for my size 10 booties [edit: make that size 9 1/2 sandals; I forgot; moving the seat gave me the freedom to wear more substantial shoes].
I'm happy with the XP9, though haven't done any whitewater, nor serious packing with it, yet. It pushes a lot of water; paddling with others, we always laugh at the noise that comes from the bow wake.
I'm pretty good at paddling a short boat straight. But, with the skeg up, the XP9 is surprisingly squirrely... harder to keep straight than my 9 ft. Fluid Do-It-Now WW SOT.
My only point of comparison is having paddled a friend's Jackson Rogue 10. It pushes less water, and stays on course better; I didn't need the skeg to help it go straight.
Very helpful
Very helpful, thanks. On ipad now, harder to type but yes the 10 is more comfortable. i guess I have a very ww, knees up stance. Good to hear about your experience with Rogue pushing less water, because that is one I am looking at too.
Go with the 10
– Last Updated: Sep-15-12 11:52 PM EST –
whether you go with the XP or the Jackson. I have paddled both (and all the other competitors) in both sizes. I own a Jackson Rogue 10. Tracking with the skeg down is pretty much the same no matter what the size or the brand. But they differ a lot between brands in whether they perform more like a WW boat or a rec boat with the skeg up. Given your size you should definitely go with the 10. I am 5'10", 185. I fit into the 9's but prefer the 10's, especially for rapids.
one Jackson design flaw
There’s a little nib on the skeg control, meant to keep the skeg lever from deploying accidentally. That nib on my friend’s boat broke immediately. The boats in the store have broken nibs most of the time, too. So, whenever he does much of anything in whitewater, the skeg gets deployed. Very annoying. We’ve been discussing the best way to run a light bit of bungee, or something, over the skeg lever, to keep that from happening.
Best advice is…
…paddle before you buy and see how the boats handle in relation to the type of paddling you’ll be doing. That said, if you’re mostly doing slow and straight, go with the 10. Fast and twisty, the 9. You spend a lot more time paddling than portaging (hopefully), so that should be the primary variable.
Thanks again for the additional insights
Thanks again for the additional insights
xp10 and jackson hybrid
– Last Updated: Sep-17-12 3:09 PM EST –
are the two boats I've paddled. The Jackson is by far the quicker boat in the flats. That being said, I liked xp10 better in whitewater. One of the things I don't like about my xp10 is how heavy it is to carry. The back hatch is hard to get off. I pack a screwdriver in a nalgene bottle behind the seat to help remove the hatch after it is wet. The hatch itself is wetter than expected after running whitewater so I keep a sponge back there to help get the water out. It's really hard to carry the boat with even a little water in it. I end up dragging it alot but it seems to be handling the abuse well. The xp10 paddled well loaded on an overnight and you really appreciate the value of a comfy seat after you've paddled the flats in it for several hours. I broke my rudder in half after having a buddy shove it into the back of a pickup with the rudder down. Interestly, with 1/2 a rudder it still tracks fine. On the Jackson demo I tried, the rudder never did work right, the cable mechanism was messed up. Hope my perspective helps.
OK, thanks again
OK, thanks much. It seems I am still narrowing to the XP10. I have been headed that direction for 2 years, but somehow get confused. So thanks again.