Latest Surfski News

Tuesday, 17 October 2023 07:11
“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” I thought to myself a few moments after launching on the brand new V10 4G for the first time. It was getting dark; it was raining; the squalls were lifting sheets of spray off the water… directly offshore. What WAS I thinking? The answer is that I’m a sucker for new toys – and if I get my hands on one, I HAVE to play with it. Damn the weather, full speed ahead… Since then I’ve paddled the boat many more times, in much pleasanter weather. Here’s what I think of this,…
Thursday, 08 June 2023 12:42
East London, South Africa: Angus Warren watched helplessly as the shark’s teeth crunched through the hull of his surfski. “It seemed to go on and on,” he says, “pushing and chomping. I was thinking, why is it not working out that it isn’t food? “I can’t tell how long it took, but I had enough time to shout a couple of times to the others.” The next thing he knew, he was in the water…
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Thursday, 27 April 2023 18:42
CAPE TOWN - Hank McGregor and Josh Fenn convincingly claimed back their Prescient Freedom Paddle title on Thursday in a dramatic race marked by tough conditions and a rain-delayed start.  Conditions were extremely tough - a brisk northwester blowing spray from the big confused chop into the paddlers' faces as they headed out to the island.  Huge breaking surf on the far side of the island ensured a wide line but the wind dropped as the fleet started on the journey back to the finish, making it that much more difficult and energy sapping to catch the runs.  
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Tuesday, 25 April 2023 11:50
Last Friday, however, I paddled with Dawid on a windless autumn evening in Cape Town. Cruising from Fish Hoek to Muizenberg, we paddled together, stopping at all the coves to surf a few waves. In short, the operative word was "fun". This was a different Dawid - off duty - and, well, I've never paddled with anyone so noisy before. Whistling, singing, shouting to folks on shore - yahooing as he caught a wave. Heading home at dusk we crept up behind a group of seals lazing on the surface. Dawid began barking like a five-year-old paid by the bark...until…
Thursday, 09 February 2023 07:39
A look back - aaaaargh! A mountain. Let it go through... A smaller one, with a glimpse of something massive lurking further out to sea. Catch it, catch it! Sprint, sprint, you’re on it, here’s the break zone, keep going, keep going, the roar from behind and the sudden acceleration as a massive foamy caught up to me, keep it straight, keep it straight... Phew. Arrived. Panting. Stop the watch. ok. Made it. Empty the boat, pick it up to prevent it knocking you down. Done.
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Saturday, 26 November 2022 17:16
The South Africans cleaned up today at the most prestigious surfski race in Australia – arguably the most prestigious race in the world - taking five out of the top six places and the entire podium at the Shaw and Partners “The Doctor” in Perth. Defending women’s champion, Kiwi Danielle McKenzie won the women’s trophy.
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Saturday, 19 November 2022 13:01
Gold Coast paddler, Cory Hill, took first scalp in the five-event ocean ski racing series, the Shaw and Partners WA Race Week, winning the inaugural race today, the 24km Fenn West Coast Downwinder from Fremantle, just south of Perth, to Sorrento Beach. In fine conditions with a 16 knot SSW wind courtesy of the famed Fremantle Doctor, the start off Port Beach was intense with the top paddlers in a terse battle to make the first break.   But it was 33-year-old Hill – the 4-times DOCTOR champ who relishes the Perth conditions – who was able to shake the field…
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Tuesday, 16 March 2021 13:54
It’s not easy to catch a rolling, runaway single ski in 30kt of gusting wind – and as they attempted to grab it, Alex and his doubles partner lost their balance and fell into the water. By the time they’d remounted, the single ski was gone – blown away by the strengthening near-gale. They turned and paddled back upwind to find their buddy.
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Wednesday, 03 March 2021 12:08
Accident reports are easy to write when the story ends happily, but this one didn’t and it’s with a very heavy heart that I’m writing this, with a view to learning what we can from it.
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Wednesday, 15 July 2020 09:13
When the NSRI found Duncan MacDonald, he was approximately 6km off Smitswinkel Bay, drifting rapidly further offshore. Gale-force squalls whipped sheets of spray off the waves, reducing visibility almost to nothing. What Happened? Given the small size of the surfski community, there’s always intense interest whenever there’s a rescue. What happened? What did they do wrong? What can we learn from it? Clearly there are lessons to be learnt from any mishap – so here’s a description of what happened, shared with the permission and cooperation of the folks involved in the hope that we might all learn from this…
Friday, 24 April 2020 11:41
Durban – As the continued coronavirus lockdown grips the country, Canoeing South Africa will host a 24 hour Canoeing4COVID-19 event this weekend as a way to raise funds for members of the broader paddling community that have been badly affected by the lockdown.
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Wednesday, 11 March 2020 14:35
“Hey, Rob! Help!” The shouts penetrated the sound of the howling wind and crashing waves – and even through the noise it was obvious from the tone of his voice that something was seriously wrong. I turned and headed back upwind.
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Tuesday, 03 March 2020 14:43
Many paddlers use Personal Locator Beacons, or tracker apps like SafeTrx on their mobile phones. But handheld VHF radios are also a great choice to consider – especially when they’re DSC-capable like the Standard Horizon HX870E.
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Monday, 24 February 2020 12:01
I finally got my hands on a demo Fennix Swordfish S this weekend and did two Miller's Runs in succession to see if I could feel any difference in handling between the 2018 Swordfish S and the new Fennix model.  Conditions were challenging: False Bay was covered in whitecaps, whipped by a combination of a 25-30kt southeaster and small, confused seas.  The result?  I definitely want to spend more time in this boat.
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Thursday, 26 December 2019 10:30
The shark smashed like a freight train into Roger Swinney’s surfski in an explosion of noise and spray, knocking him off into the water.  “I managed to get back on the ski,” he said, “but I fell off again and as I remounted the second time, I saw the swirl and tips of the shark’s fins. “I didn’t see it clearly, but from the force of it and the movement in the water, it looked big!”
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Surfski.info Review: Kayak Centre Zeplin

Sunday, 30 January 2011 08:23 | Written by 
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Kayak Centre Zeplin Kayak Centre Zeplin

A big ski for big people: supremely stable and massive fun downwind (it makes a superb camera platform!)

Zeplin Mark II

Towards the end of last year, Kayak Centre released the updated version of their Zeplin ski – aimed at the beginner to intermediate paddler.

I’ve had a demo boat for a couple of months now, and have paddled it in a variety of conditions.

First Looks

The ski looks big: it has a huge amount of volume in the nose and tail – and the trademark humped hood over the footwell.  (The hood on the first version of the Zeplin was too high and I kept bashing it with my paddle but the mark II is much better.)

Kayak Centre Zeplin

The cockpit hood

As you’d expect for a ski designed to be stable, it has a wide, flattish hull.

Kayak Centre Zeplin

For a larger image, click here

Kayak Centre Zeplin

For a larger image, click here

Kayak Centre Zeplin

For a larger image, click here

Most beginner skis are short; this one is just as long as the elite skis – around 6.4m.

To give you some idea, my Fenn Mako Elite is around 43cm wide at the seat; the Zeplin is 48cm; at the catch the Elite is about 34.5cm; the Zeplin is 43cm.

Kayak Centre Zeplin Kayak Centre Zeplin Kayak Centre Zeplin

Finish

The finish is good – Kayak Centre have been manufacturing kayaks and skis for many years and their experience shows.

In standard glass layup, the ski should weigh in at less than 16kg.

What’s changed?

  • The bucket is narrower
  • The cockpit has moved forward
  • The hood is smaller

Bucket and footwell

The first version of the Zeplin had a massive bucket that I slid around in; this one, while still wide (39.5cm on the inside) is much better.  My coccyx impacted with the bottom of the bucket so I installed my trusty Lincke butt pad which sorted out the problem.

DSC_2147

Paddler's eye view

The Kayak Centre skis have an easy to use footplate adjuster – a lever mechanism manipulates the locks.  Some observers have questioned the reliability of the setup; but my buddy Dale Lippstreu has had an EOS 660 for some months now with no sign of corrosion or wear on the mechanism.  Worth keeping an eye on though.

Footwell Hood

I’m still in two minds about the hood.  It’s pretty easy to remove (being held on with Velcro) and I paddled the ski both with and without the hood.  In biggish downwind conditions the hood made a dry ski even drier; without the hood some water came into the footwell over the sides of the cockpit.

(Equipped with bullet scuppers, the footwell drains rapidly.  This is one of the driest skis I’ve ever paddled.)

I usually carry the ski upside on the roof of my car; when the hood is on the ski, it impacts the car’s roof...  which means you really have to install cradles so that you can transport the ski right-way-up.  Or, as I did, take the hood off.

Paddling the ski

I gave the ski a pretty good workout – in all kinds of conditions, from flat water in Hout Bay harbor, to small, confused chop around the edges of Hout Bay to roaring gale-force downwind in False Bay.

Flat Water

This is a wide, stable ski.  You’re not going to expect to compete with the racing snakes on flat water.  But the Zeplin didn’t feel entirely like a barge – perhaps due to its length (although the nose does stick up out of the water to some extent).  Who wants to paddle on flat water anyway?

Confused chop

One evening I took the ski out into Hout Bay with two other paddlers; one on an EOS 660 and the other on a Fenn Mako Elite.

Conditions were challenging – with classic Hout Bay reflected chop running in all directions.

Paddling in cross-chop the other two found that their stroke was compromised by the tippiness of their skis – while had no trouble at all in keeping 100% of my effort in my stroke.  And I kept up with them with ease.

When we turned downwind, the other two did pull away – but it was instructive to see just what a difference the stability of the ski made when we were going across the chop.

A little while later, this was illustrated again when I was paddling my Mako Elite in choppy conditions upwind in False Bay.  Another friend was on his Zeplin – and actually pulled away from me.  This guy is built like a tank with strength to match – but he’s not nearly as experienced as me.  Again when we turned downwind it wasn’t long before I passed him – but in the chop he had my number.

Big Honking Downwind

I paddled the Zep on a number of classic big Millers Runs – and loved the boat.  In a nutshell – it holds its line well, is maneuverable and, because it’s so stable, it’s easy to put those explosive strokes in that are necessary to catch runs.

Most importantly (and this improved still more once I installed the optional elliptical surf rudder) it had very little tendency to broach.  There is nothing that irritates me more than losing control as I accelerate down the face of a wave...

Kayak Centre Zeplin

Optional Surf Rudder (top) and standard rudder

Finally – because of the stability, it makes an awesome camera platform!

Midwinter Millers HD from Rob Mousley on Vimeo.

Remounting

Because of its width, I found that remounting the ski, while straightforward, was more comfortable when done sidesaddle.

Who should consider the Zeplin?

In my opinion, here’s the sweet spot in the market for the Zep:

  • Bigger paddlers – 85kg and over.
  • Looking for a stable boat.
  • Looking for a bigger boat than the XT/V10 Sport/Horizon – especially in downwind conditions.

What I like

  • The construction quality
  • The footplate adjustment (with the caveat that it’s quite complex with a number of parts to it)
  • The stability
  • The directional stability – I can track down steep runs diagonally.
  • The maneuverability – especially with the big surf rudder, the ski is very nimble downwind.

What I don’t like

  • The cockpit hood – limits your options on the car (carry it the right way up)
  • The drain plug position (the first few times I paddled the ski I wasn’t even aware of it stuck under the hood and I left it unplugged)
  • The small rudder in downwind conditions

Too many paddlers use skis that are too tippy for them

(This is a theme that professionals like Oscar Chalupsky often repeat.)

If you’re a paddler who loves going out in rough conditions, but you find that your stroke is compromised by having to brace all the time; if you find that you’re nervous about going downwind in big waves and wind – try something like the Zeplin.

There’s nothing like being relaxed and able to focus on putting all your energy into your technique.

Kayak Centre Zeplin