Awesome boat, I bought the exact same one a year and a half ago, could not be any happier with such a fast sea kayak! And I am glad I am not the only one who noticed the design flaw in the size of the front day hatch compartment. I wear size 12, or 46 in EU size, and I could not get my NRS booties in there with the pedals :/ Was reallly disappointed! @epickayaks need to fix this asap. When the water is colder I now wear neoprene socks and a size up neoprene shoes so that my feet can fit in there, that is the only way. But seeing you cut the damn compartment out makes me want to do the same thing as well to be honest :) My back support also broke at some point when going out of the yak as I leaned onto it (6.3 tall and 220lbs dude here), but I did not even bother fixing it, just placed some foam on the back part of the cockpit rim so I can lay back a bit when needed. Now what I did and that may help you... I took the footrest apart, drilled two additional holes bellow the two existing ones in the lower section (one hole on each side, exact spacing as the existing ones vertically), so the the whole part of the footrest now sits higher by about 2cm. It's not much but means a lot for my big feet. The corners of the pedals were now scratching the cockpit on the side so I trimmed them a tiny bit, Then after that, I had a friend who is skilled in repairing kayaks glue in a Nelo rail for a heel support. So now, I get as much leg drive as possible as the entire foot is supported. You'll find a bunch of videos with this kayak on my channel and Instagram btw, I post regularly. Cheers and good luck at the race!
I do not paddle with my knees together, slightly apart. You can easily paddle with knees locked to the underside of the cockpit. I've never felt like I would capsize. Boat is incredibly stable. Add a skirt and you can really roll it with out going in. Of course using the paddle for bracing. The rim is strong. I train by loading the boat with weight. It does effect it but remains stable. Very important to have it balanced. The seat is not a tight fit, it's comfortable. I'm 170 lbs. You cannot adjust the seat without a drill and tools. Only the pedals.
Hi Bobby, thanks for providing such a good overview. Still having some questions, I'm evaluating whether this would be the right boat upgrade for me,but nobody has demo paddle stock, yet a alone one to look at, only available ex importer. I take it that you power stroke with knees together and up, hence with the feet in the middle of the board touching the day hatch pan. Is it possible to also paddle with knees apart wedged under the rim? Could you change posture based on conditions on the go without having to do steering board adjustments? Some reviews indicate that there is no distinct secondary stability limit, the X18x sport is hard to edge, so does this mean should you loose it, you will follow through with going in? How strong is the cockpit rim, is it likely to crack with a rear deck wet entry "cowboy scramble" style? How is the boat handling affected by weight, ie lightly loaded for just an day trip exercise run (say 230pounds) versus a full gear camping load? I understood you saying seat is not adjustable, do you mean not easily adjustable without tools, or not at all without doing a mod? You indicate the seat is snug, what is your hip width? I'm asking to assess the wiggle room, my current kayak is very snug and I have to have break every two hours or so to stretch out a bit.
Great video!!! Thanks for sharing.
Great kayak! That's my next kayak!
Awesome boat, I bought the exact same one a year and a half ago, could not be any happier with such a fast sea kayak! And I am glad I am not the only one who noticed the design flaw in the size of the front day hatch compartment. I wear size 12, or 46 in EU size, and I could not get my NRS booties in there with the pedals :/ Was reallly disappointed! @epickayaks need to fix this asap. When the water is colder I now wear neoprene socks and a size up neoprene shoes so that my feet can fit in there, that is the only way. But seeing you cut the damn compartment out makes me want to do the same thing as well to be honest :)
My back support also broke at some point when going out of the yak as I leaned onto it (6.3 tall and 220lbs dude here), but I did not even bother fixing it, just placed some foam on the back part of the cockpit rim so I can lay back a bit when needed.
Now what I did and that may help you... I took the footrest apart, drilled two additional holes bellow the two existing ones in the lower section (one hole on each side, exact spacing as the existing ones vertically), so the the whole part of the footrest now sits higher by about 2cm. It's not much but means a lot for my big feet. The corners of the pedals were now scratching the cockpit on the side so I trimmed them a tiny bit,
Then after that, I had a friend who is skilled in repairing kayaks glue in a Nelo rail for a heel support. So now, I get as much leg drive as possible as the entire foot is supported.
You'll find a bunch of videos with this kayak on my channel and Instagram btw, I post regularly.
Cheers and good luck at the race!
I do not paddle with my knees together, slightly apart. You can easily paddle with knees locked to the underside of the cockpit. I've never felt like I would capsize. Boat is incredibly stable. Add a skirt and you can really roll it with out going in. Of course using the paddle for bracing. The rim is strong. I train by loading the boat with weight. It does effect it but remains stable. Very important to have it balanced. The seat is not a tight fit, it's comfortable. I'm 170 lbs. You cannot adjust the seat without a drill and tools. Only the pedals.
Thank you for taking the time to reply; much appreciated
Hi Bobby, thanks for providing such a good overview. Still having some questions, I'm evaluating whether this would be the right boat upgrade for me,but nobody has demo paddle stock, yet a alone one to look at, only available ex importer.
I take it that you power stroke with knees together and up, hence with the feet in the middle of the board touching the day hatch pan. Is it possible to also paddle with knees apart wedged under the rim? Could you change posture based on conditions on the go without having to do steering board adjustments?
Some reviews indicate that there is no distinct secondary stability limit, the X18x sport is hard to edge, so does this mean should you loose it, you will follow through with going in? How strong is the cockpit rim, is it likely to crack with a rear deck wet entry "cowboy scramble" style? How is the boat handling affected by weight, ie lightly loaded for just an day trip exercise run (say 230pounds) versus a full gear camping load?
I understood you saying seat is not adjustable, do you mean not easily adjustable without tools, or not at all without doing a mod? You indicate the seat is snug, what is your hip width? I'm asking to assess the wiggle room, my current kayak is very snug and I have to have break every two hours or so to stretch out a bit.