I thought the Rumour was longer
…than 16’. A year or two ago I saw an outdated website description of it (outdated in that it was no longer being made) which listed the length as about 17.5’ or a bit more. My memory might be off, though.
One can always hope. sigh
If it’s really 16’ x 19" I’ll be looking for it, too. The Seaward kayaks we saw in SD were very nicely put together, with useful touches such as replaceable rub strips on the stern bottom.
I’m not so sure about that, Sing
– Last Updated: Mar-27-04 5:11 PM EST –
Have you paddled a Rumour? I've been in Linda's and it's substantially less stable than any skin boat I've paddled. While it may fit smaller paddlers, it's nothing at all like a Mystic or an Anas Acuta in terms of handling, so it's not likely to compete with them at all. The Rumour is the very definition of the term "niche boat" and I can understand why Seaward is hesitant to commit to building them. The market for such a boat is VERY small...no pun intended.
Yeah…
that’s the boat I played with in the pool session. I didn’t feel that much tippier than my SOF. It actually has better secondary. I was able to edge way past the coaming without going over better than my SOF. My SOF is narrower by an inch but doesn’t have much deadrise I don’t think.
It may be a niche for small, more experienced paddlers. But I think small women paddlers would have an easier time adjusting with lower center of gravity.
sing
sing
Well, Linda likes it…
– Last Updated: Mar-28-04 11:21 AM EST –
... (she's definitely in the "small women paddlers" class) but she still considers it a challenging boat. The big difference is that she can't relax in it as much as in her Pintail, Sea Breeze or even her skin boat if the conditions are rough. She tends to be more tired after paddling the Rumour. This is pretty much the same way I felt about the Silhouette, particularly in following seas. For you, the Silhouette would probably feel like paddling a sofa. ;-)