Robberg Express?

Just wondering how the Robberg Express rates. Do not seem to be able to find much feedback from other paddlers out there. Only the review on this site by RM. How are they for re-sale?

I've been paddling a Robberg for about 6 months and so far I'm very happy with it. I'm 6ft and 75kg and the boat is a good fit for me. It's nice and light (mine's glass, 15kg) and easy to handle on and off the water. More of a rocker than say the Fenn Elite or the Epics and this makes for good turning around the buoys but affects the directional stability in my opinion. It performs well downwind and accelerates onto the runs well. Resale doesn't seem to be very good as you can pick up a good condition boat for pretty cheap here in South Africa. I think it's a good boat for the lighter paddler. The guy I bought it from was heavier (probably closer to 95kg) and he complained about the width of the cockpit. I've had to pad out the cockpit on the sides to make a better fit for my hips. I haven't paddled more than 5 or 6 different boats though so I can't really say how it compares to the majority of what's available on the market. I'm happy with my boat though and probably won't sell it, even if I do end up buying something else in the future.

I am 5ft 9 and 70kg and have just started paddling on it and still "getting into" it. Paddled XT before. Have not tried re-mounting yet, (I try to not fall off) think that will be interesting as it is quite narrow, other than that it is very comfortable cockpit wise and easy to handle as in carry around.

I was just wondering how it compares to the other boats on the market as it does not seem to appear on any comparitive charts etc. Would be interesting to see how it "rates" against the other big players for stability, speed etc.

I have just upgraded from an XT to the Robberg Express and have to say that it feels like a big step! Got to the stage where the XT just felt pretty rock solid in everything I paddled and now at times I feel like a beginner again......Everything just gets very tippy at times! I am going to carry on though and just hope that I have not gone too much above my ability. Is it normal to feel so unstable at times when changing to a narrower, longer ski? How long will it take me??? I have to also say that it feels very fast and when all is going well I feel like I am just gliding and going super fast. (All relative of course). I am lucky that in the area that I am "training" there is a big sand shelf so at high tide I am almost at all times waist deep so can get in quite easily after a roll over. To be honest went for a paddle in the XT today and almost came home to put my ski on geartrade as it was so easy, but I do like the feel of the Robberg when all is in sync, so put that thought away PDQ. Any hints? The reason I went with the Robberg is because I am female, lighter than males and price to be perfectly honest. So far the relationship is love/hate at times but I will try to not be beaten!!!!

Right, I've been thinking about this a lot over the past week or so. Although my opinion of the Robberg Express remains very high, I've come to realise that my paddling ability doesn't match up to the boat (a realisation I wish I'd come to 6 months ago!). Although the Robberg's a great boat and I do feel like I'm making progress in it, I just don't feel like as comfortable as I want to feel on the it. I've decided to buy an Evo as I just don't think I'm good enough for the Robberg after only paddling for 18 months. I demo'd an Evo last week and I couldn't believe the difference. I felt rock solid in it, even though I felt very loose in the seat compared to my Robberg which is quite heavily padded. I'm sure the Evo will feel even more solid once I've padded out the cockpit. Before trying the Evo, I'd kept telling myself to stick with it and that it would be worth the effort in the long run but I just don't see myself fulfilling my potential in the Robberg in the foreseeable future.

I've noticed more and more people on this forum talking about being able to put the power down in a more stable boat and now I can definitely see where they're coming from. A fast boat is no good if you're swimming next to it!