Paddling Perfection, N.Z.
- Slingshot Sea Kayak
'Slingshot' kayak by Paddling Perfection of Auckland, New Zealand
Some of this info is from the company's brochure - except my comments
at the end - which are unbiased - until they give me a kayak.
The
slingshot has good storage space with 135 litres in the front compartment
and 130 litres in the rear. It has a fully retractable rudder with
separate up and down lines and locks down to give positive steering in
the roughest seas. It has foot pedal steering that provides solid
bracing points for feet and is comfortable even with bare feet. The
rubber hatch covers ensure that your equipment stays dry. Slingshot
is a very fast sea kayak, suitable for intermediate to advanced kayakers
who want to cruise yet still paddle the fastest sea kayak on the market.
Construction options
Fibreglass version - 26 kg
Kevlar version - 20 kg
Ultimate version - 16-18 kg
(I ordered the ultimate slingshot version with a manual foot pump &
mast step and the boat weighed 23kg)
Length 5.65 metre
Width 0.52 metres
My thoughts:
I used this kayak in the 2000 Murray River Marathon and
had the fastest time of the sea kayaks and 2nd place compared to the open
TK1's. I didn't feel uncomfortable or get a sore backside even with the
first 2 days of the race being over 90km. Even though the Slingshot's
slips along well on a flat river its best conditions are the rough water.
The Slingshot absolutely flies down wind and catches swells effortlessly. In all other conditions it is still a lot better than other sea kayaks. The only problem is that they aren't cheap, but they definitely are fast. Even though I had a mast step installed they aren't good for sailing because they are narrow and the deck is quite high where the mast step is. Even without a sail up it is faster than other kayaks with a sail.