If you are set on the kayak
go with the qcc 700. I also am running the MR340 this year and contemplated kayak VS canoe. (QCC 700 VS Kruger Sea Wind) I settled on the Kruger.
The QCC is faster, by about 1mph, but the canoe is far more comfy.
The canoe will be easier to equip at checkpoints.
The canoe is more stable.
I guess if you are looking to buy a boat for the race, the Spencer Xstream is pretty highly favored by MR 340 vets (as is the QCC). I think because of the length of the race an open boat with a fast hull will be better than a kayak. I also feel that the rudder is the way to go. When you are all worn out and night begins to set in, more control is better. Boat selection has been hashed over on the MR340 forum before, it’s interesting to read some of the points on there, if you haven’t already.
The QCC700 is very maneuverable
You just have to edge it a lot to do tight turns and you may not be comfortable with that. Can you roll? If not, go with a rudder and ignore those who say a rudder is not for turning. After the race you can go back to not using the rudder for turns. The 500 is not easier to turn and is slower.
If you are looking for speed
don’t get the shorter boat.
Get the 18 footer with a rudder.
Unless your are a small paddler the longer boat will be the faster
Any decent racer will tell you that a rudder is a must.
Skegs are fine for tracking, but if you are racing or just plain want to go fast, you don’t want to waste precious time with correction strokes.
I have been in packs in many races and at the turns the ruddered boats always come out of them ahead of the skegged or rudderless boats.
cheers,
jackL
Decked canoe options:
Clipper Sea 1 : http://www.clippercanoes.com/boat_specs.php?model_id=126
Superior Expedition: http://www.superiorcanoes.com/solocanoes.html
They should handle anything that you encounter on the MR 340.
You can use a single blade or double blade readily in either of them.
The Superior is much higher volume.
Shockwave is a seriously fast
canoe.
That PBW Shadow should be interesting.
I can’t wait for reviews on it.
I cant wait for the Chubb River to open
time for a big day trip over to PBW…
But I still will keep the RapidFire. Now will it have to be renamed SlowerFire?
If you are not a racer…
you shouldn’t be makeing false statements !
Either that or you should reeducate all the top notch kayak racers
Cheers,
jackl
Your OP says for “touring”,
but then you go on to say it is for racing.
As both a canoe racer and a kayak racer, if it was me doing a race that long, I wouldn't listen to some of the BS ("not needing a rudder for racing") that is here. I would make up my own mind long before the race by borrowing, or renting a kayak similar to a QCC-700 or a Epic 18 and then on my own, go at a race pace for thirty five miles or so.
Then I would do the same a week later in a fast solo canoe.
I would make up my mind based on how my butt felt at the end of that 35 miler.
If you do decide on the kayak, get it with a rudder, and then cut the rudder down so that just a bit is in the water. That is what a friend of mine did who used to race a QCC, but now is a top notch surf ski racer.
I now have that rudder, and it works like a charm with a tad less drag
I don't know the water conditions for that race (rough or flat), but you might also have to plug in a factor for which boat handles better in rough water, and for that I would lean toward the kayak if the "butt factor" was equal between both.
And lastly, see if you can talk with some of the Texas water safari, (or equal) racers. they are worth a lot of good advice.
Cheers,
JackL
Jackl makes a good point
nearly every race boat I have seen has a rudder, and they are used for steering.
I’m going to have to cut down the rudder on my 700x…hadn’t thought of that. Good tip.
Get a Clipper sea ! I did.
Here is my review of the Clipper Sea 1: http://adventuresofgreg.com/blog/
Video of a Clipper Sea 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKQhtGsxJ48
It’s the best of both world. Canoe/Kayak Hybrid!
Keep a long one for touring.
Get several.
My cut down one (done by Hexsledge and given to me) is eight and a quarter inches long.
The short one is also good for paddling in mangrove tunnels. It doesn’t get caught in the branches when it is up and doesn’t get caught in the roots when it is down.
It only take a minute or two to change from the long to the short, and I have been changing mine back and forth daily depending if I am doing off shore paddles or ones in the mangroves.
cheers,
jackL
L
Jack what do you know about racing *L*
I have two QCC-700s, one with a Skeg, one with the rudder, they both turn fine however i can go faster in a turn with the rudder boat!!! To you NON-Racer types, unless you have a foot controlled skeg, how can you possibly gain more forward thrust while adjusting the skeg with your hand? its kind of like trying to drive your car faster with you foot OFF the accelerator. Also wings are not all that great at Correction strokes. If you paddle a QCC you NEED a wing!!!!
yeah
i need to do the same thing, as i displace waaaay more water than jack, mine sits kind of low anyway. i thought of just grinding mine down on a belt sander or something.
canoe are easier and more fun
I did the 90 miler in a kevlar canoe with my bro and twice solo in west side thunderbolt kayak. In a kayak you are confined and have less room to stretch. A 2 person canoe is twice as easy. minnesota makes great canoes or the grasse river travler. Or wenonah sundowner. Bent shaft paddles are easier. Youtube some marathon canoe races such as 70 miler or ausable falls. They are moving and have time and room to stretch.
I usually kayak 12 mile races and often beat excellent C2 people in their 25# unlimited canoes becuase Ihave a wicked fast mohican ski with turbo wing. In a kayak you are low, therefore you can go narrow. The wing is more efficent becuase it scoops water like a round mouth shovel. Canoe paddles are flat and very easy on the body. If you bull into a big wing, you can go fast but be careful about stress on joints. kayaksport.net movie training Lutz liwowski is going 13 mph on flatwater with no current or wind.
A team is more fun and social. A one man team can be brutal
Stop comparing large wings with ZREs!
relatively small canoe paddles!
You’re way off base with your repeated over simplified statement that canoe paddling is easier on the body than kayak paddling!
In general, how easy or hard a paddle is on one’s body is more related to the blade size and shape than whether it’s a double blade kayak paddle or a bent shaft carbon canoe paddle. Both kayak and canoe paddle blades come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes.
It’s absurd to compare your turbo wing paddle’s effect on your body with a ZRE 8" wide paddle’s effect on your body in a tandem canoe. Not even close to being apple to apple.
Compare the Turbo wing to a 9" x 20" bent shaft canoe paddle and you may be getting to something closer to a equivalent comparison.
My Epic Relaxed Tour and my ZRE Medium 8" wide are comparable in their effects on my body.
My Bending Branches Viper is much harder on my body than my Epic Relaxed Tour.
My Onno Full Tour is much harder on my body than my ZRE Medium 8".