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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v10

Tuesday, 17 October 2023 07:11 | Category : Latest Surfski News

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, the latest in Epic Kayak’s lineup of surfskis.

First Impressions

It was difficult of course to judge the boat on that first paddle; besides the “oh-my-hat-I’d-better-not-lose-it” thoughts, I was too focused on surviving the conditions. But two things were clear: my coccyx was compatible with the seat (hooray!) and the ski was very stable. As I made my way along to the coast, hugging the shoreline, side-on to the gusts, whatever else I was feeling, I wasn’t afraid of falling out.

The next day, when the weather had calmed down, I was able to spend some time examining the boat itself.

Firstly, the build quality is truly extraordinary. Epic Kayaks have been building surfskis since 2005 and have well-deserved reputation for the excellence of their boats’ strength and appearance. The hull is rock-hard, the seams are dead straight, the gel-coat wrinkle free.

The footplate, the well tried and tested tiller bar assembly, the rudder pedals and the rudder itself all scream “quality”.

Epic V10 5859

Comfort and Stability – the cockpit

My coccyx is notoriously challenged when it comes to surfski seats: I found my old and beloved Fenn Swordfish S seat so uncomfortable that I had to install a bum pad to stop my backside being rubbed raw; older generations of the V10 had the same issue for me (although to be fair, I seem to be in the minority – most of my buddies don’t suffer the same defect!). In any case, I’m delighted to report that this update of the V10 is compatible with my backside – the seat is one of the most comfortable I’ve ever used.

(Just a side note: I didn’t appreciate just how important comfort is until I paddled the Carbonology Zest X. I had owned an earlier version and was extremely familiar with it. I found the X model to be a significant improvement, but couldn’t figure out whether it had more rocker, less volume or why it handled so much better. The answer – from an amused designer – was simply that the seat had been redesigned. Better comfort; better performance.)

The rails on the V10 4G are low (over 1cm lower than the Swordfish’s for example) and that contributes to the ease of remounting – which I experienced firsthand at the start of a race when I was the only one not to make it over the last wave of an incoming set…

Hull strength

Of course, it’s difficult to assess the strength of any hull until you break it!

But not making it over the last wave of the set described above, was only the beginning… it took me another five minutes, multiple poundings by the next set and another swim finally to get out beyond the break to start my race. The rest of the field had disappeared out of the bay, and I nearly made an expletive-laced quitting decision. (I didn’t and managed to catch the back markers by the half-way mark, and finished happy that I hadn’t come last.)

But here’s the thing: I was very aware that the spectators knew that I was on a brand-new boat. They were delighted by the first wave, which provoked raucous laughter and “helpful” comments – but they became quieter and quieter as my struggle continued. Both they and I were genuinely concerned that the boat might have sustained damage.

Happily, not even a scratch; I was most concerned about the rudder, having been violently thrown backwards by the breakers, but it was undamaged.

Epic V10 0024468

My boat is the “Ultra” layup (11.9kg) – which features a composite skin made of Kevlar fabric, carbon fiber and fiber glass, vacuum bagged over a Nomex honeycomb core and coated with heat-cured epoxy. The result is a rock-hard and seemingly durable hull. No soft spots here.

The “Elite” layup boat (10.6kg) uses the same core but is skinned with 3k carbon fiber.

The boats are listed on the Epic website at $4,695 and $5,295 respectively.

What’s Different about the 4G?

Each iteration of the V10 has led to increased stability – and I find this one phenomenally stable. At my advanced age (60), stability is becoming increasingly important. I feel pretty much bullet-proof in my old Swordfish S – and the same is true of the V10 4G.

The 4G has been given slightly more rocker than its predecessors, but the biggest change, perhaps, is that it’s been given a nose similar to the distinctive shape of the V12 3G: finer, less volume. More on that later.

Epic themselves say that the boat is designed for downwind paddling, the rocker and nose giving “the best downwind performance yet of the V10 series”.

What’s it like to paddle?

One of the joys of Cape Town is that we can paddle the whole year round.  In summer the prevailing southeaster powers our famous/notorious Miller’s Run; in winter cold fronts bring northwesters and we simply go the other way.  The “Reverse Miller’s” tends to have smaller, cleaner conditions, the conventional Miller’s can vary dramatically – but usually offers bigger, sometimes confused seas.

Suffice to say that I've paddled the V10 in a wide variety of conditions, downwind, upwind and on the flat. 

Is it slow on the flat?

You might expect the 4G to be slow – after all it has “increased rocker” plus it’s an “intermediate” boat with the stability associated with greater hull width and consequently, drag, than its slimmer brethren.

What didn’t help was that when the boat arrived, I’d just come out of a series of fitness challenges – injury, covid and surgery – and I wasn’t back to my A-game.

But suffice to say that as the weeks went on, I went from being at the back of our training squad to holding my own with my peer group, even raising some eyebrows during squad sprint intervals.

My conclusion is that the extra width probably does affect the boat – but only in comparison the V12s/V14s of this world and not at the speeds that I paddle at. During those sprints, I was sustaining 11.7-11.9kph, surging onto tiny bumps on the water’s surface. For me, that’s a decent speed. (In any case I regard flat water paddling as a necessary pain – and mere training for downwind.)

Monday, 09 April 2018 10:56 | Category : Latest Surfski News

Just how do you go about improving one of the all-time classic surfskis? Epic Kayaks just launched the third generation V10 – and I spoke to Greg Barton, Epic's CEO and chief designer, to find out how and what he changed in the design.

Tuesday, 31 March 2009 06:51 | Category : Product Reviews

[Editor: Dale Lippstreu is well known for tinkering with his skis - and many of his creations (rudders, rudder winglets, cockpit bulkheads, etc) have featured on surfski.info.  Now he's made what is arguably the most extreme modification yet - to make his V10 Elite into an Ultra, Ultra Elite...]

Monday, 02 March 2009 15:50 | Category : Product Reviews

It has been my good fortune to have an Epic V10 Ultra to paddle for the last month - and it's been a treat. 

Sunday, 17 June 2007 17:59 | Category : Product Reviews

ImageIt's not often that a totally new ski from a new manufacturer is released onto the market - but we were lucky enough to lay hands on just such a one in the form of the Oceans Pro ski from Honcho Surfskis. 

Here's what we found.

Sunday, 27 May 2007 14:27 | Category : Latest Surfski News

ImageImagine that little Johnny hands his essay in to his university lecturer.  "I've copied someone else's paper," he says, "but it's ok, I've only used 70% of it and I've improved some of the details."  "It's a great piece of work," he adds, "the original had very good reviews."

Unlikely?  This appears to be exactly what Damien Daley has done with his "70%" copy of the V10, the "XLR8 Odyssey" surf ski.

 

Saturday, 10 March 2007 05:58 | Category : Product Reviews
ImageIn July 2006, Rapid Ascent (one of Australia's leading Adventure Racing organisations) undertook a massive evaluation of different categories of kayak – including surf skis.
Wednesday, 08 November 2006 12:35 | Category : Latest Surfski News
ImageIn the last two years the surf ski market has seen a revolution in terms of ski design.  Skis have become more stable and faster.  In fact, fast, stable skis, with a single footwell and adjustable rudder pedals have become the norm.

 

How has this come about?  At least part of the reason is that Epic were prepared to invest heavily in R&D to design and develop the V10 surfski.  The very name gives a clue to the amount of effort that went into it - the V10 was the 10th version of the design

 

Tuesday, 12 September 2006 20:45 | Category : Product Reviews

Image 

Finish and appearance

Epic lifted the bar by introducing computer aided design and a CNC machined plug for the first V10.  The new Ultra skis have lifted it further.  The vacuum moulding process and nomex/honeycomb laminate totally eliminates the waviness or "oil canning" which is usually present in GRP products laid up by hand.  There is a small amount of waviness remaining in the seams but no doubt somebody will solve this as well in the not too distant future.

 

Sunday, 18 June 2006 22:31 | Category : Latest Surfski News

ImageOne of the perks of writing for Surfski.info is that I sometimes get the opportunity to test drive new skis... and the latest was the Kayak Centre V10. 

 

Kayak Centre, in Durban, have a license to manufacture the Epic skis for the South African market and the first production units arrived in Cape Town at the end of May.  I went in to (the all new refitted and snazzy) Brian's Kayaks and Sports to have a look at the skis (they had a V10 Sport there too) and the following weekend I took the V10 for a paddle in Hout Bay.

 

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