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Topics - LeeBee

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1
Gear Talk / Catch 22 SUP Paddles
« on: October 18, 2018, 04:35:12 PM »
Anyone out there have any experience with the Puakea Catch 22 SUP paddle? Puakea builds top quality outrigger canoe paddles, and claims there are a lot of similarities between the blade designs between both.

2
Flatwater and Touring / Mistral Flatwater Boards
« on: April 30, 2018, 07:12:25 PM »
Fellow paddlers,
I am marketing Mistral hard race boards in the USA, we handle two flatwater specific models the brand new 17' 6" x 24" Stealth at 306 Liters and 30.7 lbs. with steering/fin and the Vortex XL 14' x 24" at 269 liters and 23.6 lbs. Please check them out at our web site;  www.nplpaddlesports.com

LeeBee

3
Downwind and Racing / Mistral Race Boards
« on: April 28, 2018, 06:45:27 AM »
Fellow Paddlers,
I am bringing Mistral's 14 ft. and Unlimited models to the US with my first shipment arriving in early June. The brand new Interceptor is 17' 6" by 24.3" wide and 364 liters will excel in downwind conditions but its designer Steve West has kept the rocker less extreme and the board will perform well as more of an all around model than some competitors. Please take a look at our web site www.nplpaddlesports.com for more information on this and Mistrals other new models.

Reads,
LeeBee

4
Gear Talk / NSP Ninja 14' x 25"
« on: August 22, 2017, 04:18:46 PM »
I am looking at the 2017 NSP Ninja 14' x 25" for flatwater paddling (exercise) here in Southwest Colorado, but have no potential oppoprtunity to paddle one. I currently paddle a BlackBox 14 x 26.25" which I find as very stable, but a bit low on volume for my 195 lbs. Has anyone out there tried the NSP, especially if your weight is over 180 lbs. Thanks

5
Gear Talk / iSUP Storage Issue
« on: October 26, 2016, 06:52:25 AM »
A while back i posted about storing my iSUP inflated vs. rolling it up. I kept the board at 2-3 psig to where it held its shape enough to put it sideways on a pair of wall racks. Over the course of the past 6 months of doing this I now notice the rocker of the board has increased a bit. In hindsight I think because the top of the board with the deck pad is stiffer there is a tendency of the bottom to stretch a bit more than the top creating the rocker. I wonder if rolling up the board with the deck to the outside of the spiral might reverse this over time. At least it should reduce the tendency for the bottom to stretch more than the deck. I would appreciate your thoughts on this and to learn from my experience. Thanks

6
Looking at the Creed Talon 11 and Three Brothers CC (or the identical shaped Irish Twin) both brands seem similar. Just looking for a fun shorter board for playing around in the typically mushy surf we get along the Texas Coast, and for intro to SUP for friends on flat water. The dimensions on both brands seem similar, curious on stability and construction quality form anyone who has tried one or both. Thanks

7
Gear Talk / 2016 Naish Javelin 14' x 26"
« on: August 20, 2016, 08:13:36 PM »
Anyone out there have any experience with the 2016 Naish Javelin 14' x 26"? I can get a new one for $2100 which seems like a steal, but I cannot get a shot showing the rocker line as to whether it will be good on my flat water conditions?

8
Gear Talk / Mistral Emotion iSUP
« on: June 29, 2016, 07:09:50 PM »
Got my new Mistral Emotion iSUP last week and have paddled it a few times, and thought some folks might be interested in my comments. The board is 14' x 28' x 6" with a volume of 374 liters. Listed max rider weight is 247 lbs. Quite flat rocker with only a little at the nose. Less than the Red Paddle race, similar to the Starboard based on pictures. Max. inflation pressure is 15 psig, and it is a good workout pumping it up due to the volume and a relatively small diameter pump. Weight is about 24 lbs.
I am 6'2" and 195 lbs. so my comments reflect that. On my local flat water lake with little wind or chop, the board seems fast with good glide. I would say 85-90% of my BlackBox UNO. It is very stable, even for a large beginner with reasonable balance. That said with the high volume I would go to the smaller 12' 6" model if you are under 175 lbs. In 15-18 MPH winds and an 8" chop it is a lot of work to go to weather, as there is a lot of windage (the rider too). The UNO might be 30-40% faster. under these conditions. This is a very big board, but it seems stiff. My comments are based on using a Gladiator Elite Fin, which just fits the fin box. Not sure when Mistral is coming to the US but this is a nice board for us bigger paddlers.

9
Gear Talk / Fastest Paddler on Earth
« on: May 31, 2016, 03:24:56 PM »
Saw the recent post on Conner Baxter winning the recent Lost Mills 200 meter sprint on a 21" wide Starboard. Based on the title I did a little quick research, and I'm afraid they will need to put SUP in it. As an aside, Seychelle Hattingh and American paddling a Mistral Vortex (14' x 23.4") won for the women. The times for men and women winners were 53.12 and 1:02.5 seconds respectively.
Now as to speed, the men's 200 meter record in a C1 (17 ft.) Olympic canoe is 38.137 seconds or 28% faster, and for the K1 kayaks (I know; double bladed paddle) it is 33.818 seconds or 36% faster. I wonder what Conner could have done on an extra narrow unlimited board? The C1 and K1 are about 17' x 16" and the paddlers often 6'5" tall and 240 lbs., see them on a YouTube video, it is amazing to watch.

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Gear Talk / BlackBox UNO (Tekbox) First Paddles
« on: May 29, 2016, 09:19:15 PM »
Finally got the water softer and a bit warmer after a long winter here in southwest Colorado and go to paddle my 14' x 26.25" BlackBox UNO a couple of times this weekend.
My local lakes are small (1-2 miles across) with typically 5-15 MPH winds and a small (6"-10") light chop. I am pretty big at 6'2" tall, 195 lbs.and 73 years old but with good balance.
First the board goes into the wind beautifully with excellent speed, and good glide. The deck is quite flat but sheds what little water gets on it quickly. I would not think it will do as well in chop much larger than this, as there is essentially no rocker at the bow. The board is very stable, essentially the same as my previous Amundson 14 TR-X (but much faster in flat water), and going across the light chop feels very smooth due in part to the rather soft rails until near the last 4 foot of the board. Downwind in these light conditions I need to play around with foot positions and my GPS but it feels fast. On flat water it seems to glide forever. I feel I could do fine if the board was another inch or two narrower, provided they keep the current 250 liter volume. For flatwater paddlers think this is a very good choice, but I suspect folks larger than me would want the 28" higher volume model.

11
Gear Talk / Depressuring an iSUP for Storage
« on: May 23, 2016, 06:21:27 PM »
I would appreciate any thoughts on the issue of how far to depressure an iSUP for storage. I have a 12' 6" Imagine Mission inflatable with I paddle at about 20 psig. Since I have the space to not have to fully deflate the board after use,  frankly I think rolling it up may be worse long term. I was curious have far to drop the pressure for storage, I am a bit concerned at 20 psig for a week or two might stretch things.
Thanks for your input.

12
Gear Talk / Mistral Race Boards
« on: April 23, 2016, 07:09:20 AM »
As a long time windsurfer having used Mistral products I was curious about their SUP line and went to their site and blog to find out they make a very high end flat water 14 ft. race board called the Vortex, along with the corresponding 12' 6" model called the Slipstream. I have been in correspondence with the Mistral folks in the Netherlands, and along with the attached photos have learned they are planning to enter the US market soon. Per their Facebook page and Blog, the Vortex has been winning all sorts of races in Great Britain and Europe, and their downwinder the Equinox also has been quite successful. A nice feature of the 14 ft. models is the can carry up to and beyond 209 lbs. which is great for us heavier paddlers on these narrow boards. I think Mistral will be making some announcements fairly soon on their plans.

13
Gear Talk / BlackBox Tekbox UNO 14 x 26.25
« on: March 03, 2016, 08:00:31 PM »
Got my new toy this week, and while our local lakes here in Colorado are still "hard" I wanted to post a few comments based on seeing it for the first time, and not seeing much, if any, prior comments on one in the Forum. The board was reviewed by Paddleboard Specialists, if you want to see a video, albeit with a light weight (155 lb.) paddler. I think it will be a perfect flat water board for us larger (195 lb.) folks. Very fine entry, very parallel sides on the outline, boxy rails, and very little rocker until the last 30" at the tail. the rocker profile looks a lot like the SIC X-14. A very slight double concave along most of the length.
Extremely nice construction quality, and just under 28 lbs. (measured) weight with fin. Just need that water to soften up... 8)

14
Gear Talk / Fanatic Falcon Flatwater 2015 Model 14' x 26.5"
« on: February 13, 2016, 10:06:08 AM »
I am about 6' 2" and 195 lbs. and paddle on very calm lakes. A chop is about 4". Anyone out there have any experience with the Fanatic Falcon Flatwater 14' x 26.5" wide for someone my size. I am sure it will be perfectly stable, curious about speed and glide. Also any idea on weight, as the Fanatic site does not list one? The 2016 model with the "destroyer" shaped bow is 22 lbs. I have an opportunity to buy a "leftover" at a good price.
Thanks

15
Gear Talk / RRD Arrow Race Board
« on: January 05, 2016, 03:57:54 PM »
Has anyone out there paddled an RRD Arrow 14' x 28.25" (brushed carbon), looks like a nice flat water board for a larger paddler?
The price for a new 2015 model looks very attractive.

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