ooooh, that’s a pretty boat!
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yeah, it was fun. I had a personal goal of beating hour and 20mins. Felt good to achieve that. Not sure I would have been able to push as hard without people to chase and people to stay in front of. Also really enjoyed checking out all the different types of boats.
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So how many DFW folks do we have on here? I didn’t (should have) realized some of the local folks from the event were on here. Fun. Looking forward to paddling with y’all again.
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If you aren’t busy, you ought to come out to Caddoween. Lots of people to paddle with and talk to and you’ll probably see a gator.
West Side Boat Shop are known for making racing kayaks. This particular model with a beam of 24" seems to target more novice/intermediate paddlers. The rest of the WSBS models tend to be narrower (and tippier).
Of course, if you really get into racing and being in a much warmer Texas, it may be worthwhile to explore surfskis. Epic has beginning to more advance surfskis that start at below $2000.
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Look for boats on the MR340 forum, rivermiles.com
Although the race in in Missouri, it has many members from the greater midwest including texas.
There are a lot of people in the central/southern midwest, and people offering to shuttle boats along the I35 corridor. Also the Texas Water Safari groups or forums are a good source for cheap, fast boats in your general area.
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great tip, thanks
Hey Josh, Lotsa people like to compete, and if you enjoy it, absolutely, go for it. I found that for me, competitions sucked the fun out of some of my pursuits. What I am good at, is long trips, camp along the way, enjoy the scenes, the sunsets, sunrises, lots of exercise, days off reading paperbacks, and my competition is internal, I found I like white water. With a loaded, 20’ expedition canoe, Green River, Colorado River, Missouri River, weeks at a time. In kayaks, I am not a fan of SOT. Every inch of elevation makes it tippier to no good purpose. The longer the better, hull speed is determined by waterline length. I guess all I am saying, is do what pleases you, what makes you happy and excites to go. 9 foot boat, 19 foot boat, all the same, who you are competing against is your own personal best.
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Get a wing paddle and learn to use it now with your more stable boat. Montana Mike
PS: The wing paddle is also more efficient for touring. Have used nothing but for kayak camping since 1998 with a 19’3" EFT. Multi days in the San Juan’s, Everglades, Apostle Island, Casco Bay, Green & Colorado Rivers , Wild & Scenic Missouri River. M
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EFT = West Side Boat Shop (WSBS) “Extra Fast Tourer”?
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Correct. Two of Doug’s in possession. One about to go to Texas with my Finlandia crew-person. Would be happy to demo mine to anyone coming though the center of Montana. MM
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Her results are thus almost meaningless.
One minor disadvantage with a surfski that I have seen when using it for everyday paddling with a group, is that they are nearly useless in helping with an assisted rescue. There are generally no deck lines or anything else for the person in the water to grab onto. They are generally of low stability compared to a regular kayak as well.
This opinion is based on real life experience. Maybe someone else has worked out a method that works.
Checking numbers again for kicks. If hull speed for 12.5 ft kayak (waterline length would always be less but just for fun) is 4.7 miles in 60 minutes, then hull speed in 6 miles is 75.0 minutes. Josh’s speed was 6 miles in 77.2 minutes. Just 2ish minutes over hull speed = wicked fast? Check my math.
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Yes I think you are right…wicked fast or at the very least pretty darn wicked fast My reference is my solo canoes. I timed 2 of them paddling hard for 5 miles recently and the speeds were around 4.5 mph. I know that my Swift Keewaydin 15 cruises easily at 4 mph but it’s definitely making you pay the price to go 4.5 or better. So my take is I need to leave my pink slips at home or check to see if there is a senior class if I meet Josh.
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lol, naw. I don’t gamble and I’m competing primarily with myself. I had nothing left at the end of the race. That boat is a bit of a barge. My fitness app told my I did 5.9 miles at an average of 4.6 mph but I had to start a second or two early and took me a few seconds at end to turn it off. Now, I’m super curious about what I could do with different equipment.
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Neat! Thanks for doing the math. I know where I lost some time 
I was cutting a bend too tight and got caught by a tree branch. I was really proud of my turn around at the buoy. I could possibly improve a few seconds by getting that turn tighter and not getting caught on that under water branch, but I gave it everything I had so there’s not much room for improvement in this boat. I’m going to use your math when I present my case to my wife about why I need a new boat 
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#1 reason I’m not interested in surf ski is I want something I can put a skirt on and stay dry (at least my lower half) for cold weather paddling. Of course the true northerners in this group would laugh at what I call cold.
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@PaddleLite and @Josh_76116, for what its worth, if you’re just racing for the fun of it, it doesn’t mater what boat you use, so get a boat that fills your paddling needs best. 4.6 mpg avg is a good speed for that 12 ft boat, over a 6 mile course. With your abimity. You could gain up to 1/2 mph avg with any 14 ft boat you use. Focus on efficiency. Its hard to maintain peak power over a 6 mile course.
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