New model 2018 EPIC V10

Dicko wrote: I suppose stability is all relative. Not a bad effort after one paddle. What could you do after 50 paddles. The big question is, do you buy a ski for the 10% of paddles where you're challenged or do you buy a ski for the 90% of paddles where you feel comfortable. Buy 2 ski's I suppose. 

This is exactly what I was reflecting on last night. I would say 75% of my weekly paddling is flatwater and harbour/estuary chop. 25% though is messing around in the rolling breakers just offshore. I'd say 3-4ft wave height max. With that in mind, I'd take the G3, accept that I'd be doing a lot of bracing in that 3-4ft for a couple of years and the rest of my paddles would be fine. The problem is that I'm also doing 3-4 races per year which would be round cans or light swell racing formats. At that point, I'd probably struggle. Do I buy a boat with my racing as the priority ? (as its the most severe conditions I'll be in). I also only paddle 2-3 times per week. There is no guarantee I'd ever master the V10 G3.

It would probably make sense to train exclusively on the V10 G3, keep the V8 Pro (and use that to do those races) and wait until my skills catch up to do it all in the V10. Mind you, (and taking Robin's point), it may well just be more sensible to buy a V10 Sport as a happy medium and have that as my sole boat until I'm ready to upgrade further down the line. Its more cost effective from my point of view. The problem is there is an attraction to trying to master an advanced boat - even when most of the top masters in my country (I'm 43) really are loitering around using V10 Sports and V8 pro's in the races.

I'd say a jump from a V8 Pro to a V10 is a pretty big one. The V10 Sport is the more logical ski, you'll get more days on the water where you're in charge.

EK Sydney wrote: I'd say a jump from a V8 Pro to a V10 is a pretty big one. The V10 Sport is the more logical ski, you'll get more days on the water where you're in charge.

I'd agree with you normally but many paddlers say the differences between the V10 Sport and the V8 pro are suggested to be virtually negligible.

If you are paddling flats, the V8pro to a V10 isn't leaps and bounds.  Mind you, I paddle very flat water 80% of the time and the the 20% is 1ft wind chop and boat wakes.  I started with a V8 and went to a V14 and eventually I now have a Nelo550 and V14.  The 550 is similar in stability to the V10 I hear.  The only time I struggles was a race in open ocean this past summer where things were confused and lumpy as heck.  I swan a handful of times but managed to finish the 14 miles ok.  And I don't paddle those conditions normally.

I am an advocate of two boats if you can swing it.

A lot depends on the water you paddle in as well. If your water is warm, then falling in isn't the end of the world. The v10 is an easy boat to remount, so there is a little more leeway to challenge yourself. If the boat was deep seated elite boat I would be hesitant. Rob's percentage of rough to flat water is the complete opposite to mine. Our downwinders are organised and follow the shore. I live in Geographe Bay and no matter which way the wind blows there is a downwinder that follows the shore. In winter you need a slightly warmer rashie. The v10 is a perfect boat for my conditions and if it gets rough you can paddle 20 metres off shore (sandy beach with no swell) and still get runs if you need to.

EK Sydney wrote: I'd say a jump from a V8 Pro to a V10 is a pretty big one. The V10 Sport is the more logical ski, you'll get more days on the water where you're in charge.

Yep, I bypassed my chop in the harbour trials (as I found that fine) and headed straight out into very small ocean surf (<2ft). It became very apparent very quickly that I was struggling. Mind you, after an hours paddling I only fell out twice (and can I just say that remounting wasn't that hard in this boat) but I was lucky if I was able to put out 50% of my full power at any point. I guess in such trivial amounts of surf it may well be a step too far. I certainly couldn't imagine racing it. It's a shame as I honestly think the V10 G3 is a great boat. The cockpit and bucket design is really good. (note: I also think it feels more stable in very light chop than it does on flatwater).

A friend of mine suggest the Nelo 550L may be worth considering ? If not that, I guess its back to the V10 Sport plan.

If you can find one the Vadja Next 46 is comparable to a V10 Sport. I am a fan of Epics, I am currently paddling a G3 V10, and a V11, yet the V10 Sport just doesn't work for me. I have had a V8 Pro and the Sport and I found the V8 Pro to be the better overall ski.

Did you ever get to try the new V10 Rob

I hate to revive an old thread, but I'm starting to get curious about the g3 Epic v10.

I've been paddling and racing my v8Pro for the past year. I love the boat and think it is a perfect beginner boat for surfski paddling. As I get more serious about racing I've wondered if maybe I'm ready to move up. I've managed to creep up from a mid pack racer to beating a few guys racing V12 and v14's. Granted, the times I've done that the water was kind of rough. The v8 pro excels in rough water and allows me to apply full power to my forward stroke. I've only paddled a g2 v10 the day I demoed the v8pro and decided it was the boat for me. Ideally, I'd like to keep the v8pro for rough water and developing downwind skills. Most of the races I've done were on rivers or somewhat protected bays. Just curious how you know if you are ready for the next step. Is the new g3 v10 to much of a leap? I found the v10sport to be almost identical to the v8pro speed and stability. 

Thanks

I'd say you've done your time, progressed in a very logical way from a stable ski, paddling it in rough water and getting the feel for it. If you feel the Sport isn't enough of a jump up then go for it with the V10. It's a step up, but nowhere near as big a jump as any of the elite skis.

Epicpaddler, I have a V11, Nelo 560, 510, and the G3 V10 Elite. I sold my V8 Pro Ultra for the V10. For bigger days I paddle the V10 and the 520. For me personally I didn't encounter a huge stability difference, yet a huge speed difference. On really big days I paddle the Nelo 520, especially when the water temperature is cold.
I really like the V10!

The v10 is a lot more stable than you would imagine. More importantly it is a piece of cake to remount. That is an attractive combination in a ski. I would imagine the step from a v8pro to the v10 would not be difficult. Once again do you buy a ski for the 10% of paddles when your challenged or the 90% of paddle s when you feel comfortable. 

The v10 is a lot more stable than you would imagine. More importantly it is a piece of cake to remount. That is an attractive combination in a ski. I would imagine the step from a v8pro to the v10 would not be difficult. Once again do you buy a ski for the 10% of paddles when your challenged or the 90% of paddle s when you feel comfortable. 

I went through exactly the same thing this earlier this year. I had a V8 pro and demoed a V10 G3. On flat water and light harbour chop I found the jump no problem at all. It took a paddle or two to get used to the change in dynamics and I was good to go. However, as soon as I ventured onto open ocean, I found the step up very large (even in light swell) and very noticeable. It was the wrong boat. However, as someone said above, do you buy a boat for the smaller percentage of time you are struggling or where you spend the lions share ? For me, this only reinforced the need to have two boats so that's what I've done. As it is though, I went for a Nelo 550L as the tippier boat to make the jump and progression a little smaller. If i hadn't of done that, I would have gone for the more advanced boat and moderated my paddling environment for the year it would likely take to get used to it.

The surf rudder on the v10 makes it noticeably more stable than the standard rudder.

The surf rudder on the v10 makes it noticeably more stable than the standard rudder.

The surf rudder on the v10 makes it noticeably more stable than the standard rudder.