Has anyone actually paddled a Fennix Bluefin S?

Hi, as this is my first post here I'll intro myself a bit. I live in Townsville, North Queensland, Australia. I have a couple of sea kayaks I've paddled a bit, but haven't been getting them on the water much for a while. Am attracted to getting a stable beginner surfski for maybe the opposite reason most people get surfskis. I'm 65yo and just want to trundle around on the beautiful Coral Sea. There is no surf here, but a fair bit of swell and chop, though Townsville is on a wide bay and also sheltered by Magnetic Island, so there's a gradation of the swell.

I've decided to buy a beginner surfski because, being light and easy to get to the beach, and easy to get back on if I fall off, I think it's much more likely I'll actually end up paddling often than with the kayaks. I do want to learn some skills too, but to do that I've got to be actuallly on the water, so a nice widish surfski seems perfect.

I initially looked at the Carbonology Cruze X (MCImes convinced me to stay away from Stellars in a post on another forum). Then noticed an ad for a second hand Carbon Hybrid Fennix Bluefin S about 3 hours drive away for a decent price. I can't get down there to look at it till Dec 7 - there are actually 2 of them so reasonable chance 1 will still be there.

I've been looking at reviews, forum posts & videos about the Bluefin, but none that I can find are about the Fennix. I've read that after the 2019 fire there was a redesign of the boat, including "finer lines", so an altered hull. I'd be very interested to hear of any experience anyone has had paddling a Fennix Bluefin S. A concern I have is if the finer lines have made it more prone to pitching - not someone that would trouble paddlers using it for surfing, but for my trundling purposes I don't want something that rollercoasters too much on tiny waves.

I'm looking forward to getting my first ski and getting out there, and chatting with you guys about the journey. That's if my trundling doesn't bore you to tears, which I'd understand!

Welcome!

If our experiences here in South Africa are anything to go by, you can't really go wrong with a Blue-Finn. The Fennix version isn't very different to the earlier model; it's still a very stable, very easy to use ski.

And here they have a great resale value; I'm pretty sure the same would hold in Aus.

I'd say grab it! Go forth and enjoy! Welcome to the sport!

Thanks Rob, that's very helpful and reassuring. I got the special ski roofrack today, so I'm committed!

Buy it. That's probably the perfect ski for you. And get a wing paddle as it will help your stability.