The Focus by Custom Kayaks

Hi, has anyone paddled the new Focus? would love to hear your comments on issues such as ease of remounting (as a synergy2 owner!)stability, general preformance in the waves. it has been out for a few weeks now - has anyone bought one?

As for as I am aware from Mark's blog the gunwales on the new ski is 4cm lower compared to the Synergy which is really what makes the Synergy so difficult to remount. Apparently the volume is lower also which would make it feasable for lighter paddlers compared to the Synergy.

Find one of the Durban paddlers who would probably have seen it around, and might even have paddled one.

All these boats I have never seen.
More research before a new one enters my hands I think.

Seriously RAB, how do you decide what to wear in the morning!!!!
You must at least have a shortlist by now. How about an update on how the search for paddling nirvana is going. A list of what you've tried would be interesting and then why you didn't by them.

I didn't buy them recently because my life took a different track and decided for me that at Xmas time or thereabouts I will be cashed up, so I simply waited and repaired my V10 in the mean time.

Which is a good thing because I am now back in the boat paddling most days and can make a better decision re stability issues as well as cockpit comfort as I am now nice and flexible again.
A couple of boats I tried gave me leg tingles after a while, that may not be the case now.

So yep, I will begin my search a new in a couple of weeks when My life gets less hectic and somebody gives me some money, while I mull over the benefits of differing layups.

Be rest assured I will revive my old thread for everybody's entertainment.


Now what to wear in the morning, that's easy, I'm pretty much in need of an entire new wardrobe, so everything is just as bad looking as the next, pick anything.

Boat wise, I want to revisit the Elite/ Elite SL, the UnoMax is on the short list for sure and there is still a sweet deal to be had on the super lite babyshit vadja.
And that pesky little Stellar that won't let me go.
V12 is always a runner and I want to get in it again now I feel I have my stroke back.

Having said that, I would be foolish not to have a look at a swordfish and it's elk, as I already have a V10 and these may very well be just the go for crap days.

What I do note, is that there is room for at least a couple of more boats in my shed........

I take it from the silence that nobody has actually seen a Focus or paddled in one yet. Rob are you planning on reviewing it in the near future because I would love to know how it compares to the Zeplin and swordfish!

Hi, a different Rob but still a Rob !

I have paddled the new Custom Kayaks Focus.

It is stable and fast. It looks great; a racy and narrow profile from the front and is a full ocean race ski length but its stability is deceptively good. I paddled it 3 times off Marine in Durban. The conditions varied from choppy to flat and also a bigger day with big steep inshore swell. Shore break conditions varied from flat to big breaking sets.

On the flat day I measured my boat speed back to back with my current ski which is considerably more nervous/twitchy to paddle. According to my Garmin, for my paddling, I was at least 1 kmh faster paddling at the same reasonably steady pace for the same effort - result! In more choppy conditions on the DUC dice I was able to maximise the effectiveness of my "limited" fitness and keep up with some significantly more experienced (read - faster) and fitter paddlers. I put this all down to the stability advantage, making me more efficient in the more stable boat.

The Focus has a nice progressive hull shape. It is an evolution of a Synergy not a stretched Horizon. The stability is great and was not my first thought when getting in for the first time on the big day, so much so that I actually forgot about the stability when paddling it....Result! IMHO the transition from primary to secondary stability is what gives a feeling of confidence or not. Uncertainty comes from a change in the speed of the lean and this arise from the profile of the hull. For the Focus it feels very easy and stable. The hull section has a nice progressive curve with a gentle radius transiting from the primary to secondary stability. This makes it predictable and reassuring.

Compared to the synergy the seat bucket is a little lower which again means that it feels more stable as your centre of balance is lower. The sides are also lower so paddlers with shorter backs wont feel as though they are being overwhelmed by it. The footwell is a little narrower to reduce water volume when flooded.

The Focus provides an ideal platform for an intermediate "race" ski - I felt comfortable and stable - and could apply a greater percentage of my possible maximum output for longer without feeling unstable. Therefore I had more boat speed for longer.

In terms of getting back in I jumped out several times and got back in easily enough.

In terms of the shape of the boat you have probably seen the pictures. In the flesh the ski has a narrow nose and widens outwards at the bucket and the deck behind where the majority of the stability arises, followed by a long lean tail where the speed comes from.

Comparisons:

Kayak Centre Zeplin,
The Focus appears less bulky and looks sexier - enough said… lol.

In terms of speed I didn't get the chance to paddle back to back or do a speed test. However I have paddled Zeplin's twice although briefly. In terms of stability if anything the Zeplin is even more stable although I am personally very stable in both skis. The Zeplin is longer. The Zeplin uses a footwell canopy which I personally quite like - and has good bullet bailers. The Zeplin is very low and flat from the footwell back. The nose of the Zeplin has a lot more volume than the Focus and would be more likely to catch the wind and be annoying in a cross wind or any strength - same with a V10 mind.
I haven’t paddled the Zeplin extensively, but I know a lot of people who are very happy with them.

Epic V10 sport
V10 sport - The Focus appeared to be fast upwind comparatively. Downwind the V10 Sport is very fast as it has long broad tail with the width going a long way towards the tail before rapidly tapering to a blunt end. Interestingly the V10S but has a sharper transition from primary flat to secondary stability which can catch you out as you get tired.

Fenn Swordfish - comparatively I have no idea. I know there are a lot of happy swordfish owners who have moved up from XT or down from more extreme skis.

For all the other boats:
Most seem to have a good beginner ski and a good full race ski . For me the beginner ski is ultimately too slow, and the race ski too tippy or twitchy when I'm tired. Maybe I'm overly ambitious.

For the Focus in summary, the design brief, certainly from my perspective was for a ski which I could paddle in the open ocean on longer races of 15km + which would continue to be predictable and stable even when I was tired or if the conditions became tough with an offshore wind. I wanted a fast "Race" boat, to maximise my performance, not a recreational boat. and a not a boat that was watered down from a race boat. Personally I race to maximise my performance. I don’t have the benefit of a lot of time to train or 15 years of paddling experience to call on. I need all the help I can get.

In those terms for me the Focus has hit the nail on the head.

To give you another analogy I ride motorbikes and if you know bikes I ride an Aprilia Tuono. This is a super bike with the fairing ripped off and high bars. You get all the performance with none of the pain. The Focus is the equivalent for surfskis!

Wow Rob thanks a million for going to this much time and effort I REALLY appreciate it
It seems that we share common goals in paddling and after racing my Synergy2 from V&A to Clifton on Sunday I am under the distinct impression that the Synergy2 is not the boat for me to do the Cape Point Challenge in next year. I spent most of my time bracing in the chop rather than paddling hard. Having said that it is a great boat when the wind was at my back on the way home.
I also appreciate your thoughts on stability on long distance races. The dice on a Friday night is a blast in the Synergy when I am firing on all 4 cylinders but I doubt I could keep it up for 30+km.
Thank you for your review from it I will make plans to paddle one when I am in Durban over Christmas.