Review: Liquid Logic Stomper 90

a Stomper 90 in Kiwiland

Just by judging my first looks at the Stomper fresh out of the bag - well done boys. This kayak (like all LL kayaks) really looks nice, that's how its supposed to be.
I'm 1,89 m (6`3``) and about 85 kg (187p) and wear shoe size 46 (12) so you have to see all the things I have to say about the Stomper in this context.

on the shore:

The first thing I noticed when I sat into the Stomper was that it doesn't really have a lot of space for a creeker this size. But even though my knees where kind of tight on the side walls the thigh braces were too high. Maybe this is because of my slim legs :) I had to put in some extra foam to tighten my legs up a little more. Due to my shoe size I had to cut a hole into the center wall, which provided me with comfortable foot space (which I have to do in every kayak).

The Seat is very easy to adjust and comfortable, for my taste it is a little too low. It is fixed to the hull with only two screws right and left of the cockpit, you have to tighten these up really hard or the seat seat will loosen up in time.

The storage seat system is a really cool idea, question is with all that developing that went into the bad ass outfitting system why the backband jumps off the holders on the side every time you tighten it up a little. This can be annoying and would be an easy fix by lengthening and shaping the holders different. Also the thigh brace screws let some water in. So I took them all out and sealed them to tighten the hull. This are little things that I don`t like about new kayaks :(

on the water:

I paddled the Stomper on a lot of different types of whitewater. First of all, the kayak feels smaller than it is. This is probably explained with the big front and back rocker, which shortens the actual waterline and makes the Stomper super easy to turn. 

Doing laps on the Kaituna

They way it looks - the way it is, this kayak wants to be boofed. As long as you keep the nose up it will go over anything without really loosing any speed. In this kayak you will keep your nose up and you can wait for the hard stuff to come. Good thing is that due to the shape it is really easy to boof, so if you blow it you know it was really your own fault... 

Even though it has got such a rockered shape the Stomper is not a slow kayak. It´s not as fast as the Raptor or even the Magnum but it's fast on the first few strokes and that's what you need most of the time when creeking. Compared to the Magnum it is definitely less agile going into eddies and running lines through bigger rapids. This may be explained with the forgiving edges especially in the back hull, which make you put a little more effort in keeping the kayak on your desired line. This effect gets more interesting the pushier the whitewater gets, but gives the kayak a lot of stability...

Shotover

On bigger drops and holes it leaves straight and fast on the bottom and doesn't turn the corners like other kayaks with big rockers tend to do. So as long as you boof and stay active you'll stay out of trouble.

Things change a little by the time you screw up. The stern and the rear are relatively flat on the top so by the time you get water on top it will slow you down. If you get water on the back, the stern will go up but most of the time a little tightness in your rear hole will be enough to get you through the hole :). When you're used to it and you know what's coming it's ok, since you know the Stomper will probably leave trouble behind. 

Kokatahi (p: S. Stromeier)

Conclusion:

So after paddling the Stomper 90 on little creeks at home, bigger technical whitewater like Soca cataract at about 90 cum, pushy creeks like the Kokatahi, big water like Nevis Bluff and several easy rivers, I can say I fell a little bit in love. If I would change something I would but a little more volume behind the cockpit and make the sidewalls at the back end of the cockpit a little higher. Also I would sharpen the edges at the back a little and think about some details regarding the outfitting. But every kayak is different and the Stomper is definitely a very good, safe and fun creeker.

Greetz and lots of fun in 2013 (maybe with a Stomper),

Flying on the West Coast, NZ
(p: S. Stromeier)

Reiner Glanz

Nevis Bluff from GBP Productions on Vimeo.

Ophion paddles-Katana double review (SLO, EN)

OPHION KATANA

Katana is a new product of a relatively new Slovenian paddle brand Ophion. Ophion innovations and quality set a high standard and produce an ultimate paddle quality. Designed and rigorously tasted by international team members, make this paddle a paddling pleasure. Saša Rejec stands behind this words and makes the innovations real!

 I got an opportunity to use Katana carbon with straight fiberglass shaft turned for 45° on the latest expedition to Chile and Argentina, to do some no mercy testing. Katana is designed for river running and creeking. It is strong and durable and at the same time offers great stability and comfort of use; this is why I love it. It has great balance and smooth catch from the start till end. For me quick power distribution from the start is very important for precise and dynamic strokes.

I have done at least 35 class 5 rivers with no significant signs of damage and great feeling of safety. Ophion is not a big company and it hasn’t got long tradition, but let the products speak for them self!

 text: Andrej Bijuklič

OPHION KATANA

Next to a never ending debate about which kayak is better and why, kayakers prefer to argue about their paddles. Years of participating in such disputes have led me to believe that we’re mostly all just a bunch of “wise-guys”, that will rather say complete nonsense, than admit that we don’t understand exactly what we’re talking about. Opinions about what length, blade size, shape, material and paddling technique is the best can vary a lot – if not completely. Being a smart ass myself, I will say that the fact is that different things work for different users. For example, for me one of the worst paddles I have ever owned is one of the most praised ones in the world: Werner Stikine bent-shaft. I loved the shape of the blade but I bought a bent-shaft instead of straight shaft, which I had tested before. That bent-shaft completely clashed with my paddling technique and I just couldn’t get used to it. Most people adore it and I couldn’t stand it. On the other hand, the last paddle I had used before Katana had shorten on the blades for almost 10 cm in one year, without me even noticing – talking about what length is the best for you. The point is, if the paddle works for you, if you’re comfortable paddling it and if you can forget about it when you paddle, then it is a great paddle for you. So here’s my take on Katana. I manage to forget completely about the paddle and worry only about my lines when I paddle it. It took me only a few minutes to get used to it. And just because of that I find it great already.

 If you have to know it, I am 174 cm tall and I have been using a 201 cm long Katana for the last year (ok, it is 200 cm long now). I am not without preferences about paddles, but in years of testing, I still can’t decide whether bigger blades have advantage over smaller, neither can I tell which blade shape is better just by looking at it. I paddle Katana (which is medium sized) and what is most important to me is that the blades are stable in the water and that they don’t twist. That’s a check for Katana. What has become my preference is a flexible and small diameter shaft. That is why I chose to take a Fiberglass straight shaft. In my experience this flexible shaft can take bigger hits, because it can flex and it doesn’t crack on the impact as the stiffer material might. It also feels easier on the joints. But the truth is that I don’t have any real proof of it as I can only paddle one paddle at a time and can’t compare its performance to any other paddle directly. What’s important is that I love paddling my Katana. I used an old Ophion design in the past and I could never get 100% used to that one. Whether it’s its looks or performance, I don’t have any second thoughts about Katana, which is why I intend to use it in future as well. Great job Ophion! And if you’re reading this review to decide whether you should buy Ophion or not, take this advice: Try it first and see if it works for you!

Text: Andraž Krpič

For more information visit:

www.ophionpaddles.com or www.alpinaction.it

Poleg neskončne razprave o tem, kateri kajak je boljši in zakaj, kajakaši najraje razpravljamo o svojih veslih. Leta sodelovanja v teh debatah so me prepričala, da smo v glavnem vsi samo kup pametnjakovičev, ki raje govorimo popolne neumnosti, kot pa da bi priznali, da včasih ne razumemo popolnoma o čem govorimo. Mnenja o tem, katera dolžina, velikost lista, oblika, material in tehnika veslanja je najboljša, se lahko zelo razlikujejo - če ne v celoti. Ker sem pametnjakovič tudi sam, bom rekel, da je dejstvo, da različne stvari ustrezajo različnim uporabnikom. Na primer, eno izmed najslabših vesel, ki sem si jih kdaj lastil, je eden od najbolj hvaljenih na svetu: Werner Stikine z zakrivljenim ročajem. Všeč mi je bila oblika lista, vendar pa sem kupil upognjeno verzijo, namesto ravne, kot sem jo testiral. Upognjen Werner ročaj pa nikakor ni ustrezal moji tehniki veslanja in nikoli se nisem mogel navaditi na to veslo. Večina ljudi ga obožuje, jaz pa sem ga sovražil. Po drugi strani, pa se mi je zadnji veslo, ki sem ga uporabljali pred Katano, skrajšalo po enemu letu uporabe za skoraj 10 cm, ne da bi to sploh opazil – torej raje ne bi govoril o tem, katera dolžina je najboljša za vas. Bistvo je, da če vam veslo ustreza in če lahko med veslanjem pozabite na veslo, potem je verjetno to veslo primerno za vas. Torej, glede moje izkušnje s Katano: uspelo mi je povsem pozabiti na veslo in lahko sem se osredotočil le na brzice. 

Vzelo mi je le nekaj minut, da sem se vesla popolnoma privadil. In že zaradi tega se mi zdi to veslo super. Če že morate vedeti, visok sem 174 cm zadnje leto pa veslam z 201 cm dolgo Katano (ok, mogoče sedaj že 200 cm). Sicer nikakor nisem brez preferenc glede vesla, pa vendar se po letih testiranja še vedno ne morem odločiti, ali imajo večji listi prednost pred manjšimi, niti ne morem samo »na pogled« vedeti, katera oblika lista mi bo bolj všeč. Uporabljam sicer srednjo velikost lista, kar pa mi je najbolj pomembno je, da je veslo v vodi stabilno (da ne zavija po svoje), kar pa Katana je. Izbirčen sem predvsem grede »štila«, saj imam rad predvsem fleksibilne in ne preveč debele (največ 29 mm premera). Zato sem se odločil za ravno fiberglass verzijo. Po mojih izkušnjah fleksibilen material manj utruja sklepe in vezi, hkrati pa je bolj odporen na udarce, saj se bolj upogiba in ne razpoka tako hitro, kot bi kakšen bolj trd material. Toda resnica je, da nimam nobenega pravega dokaza za to, saj lahko uporabljam le eno veslo na enkrat, tako da posledic veslanja z določenimi vesli ne morem neposredno primerjati. Pomembno je, da uživam, ko veslam s Katano. Nekaj časa nazaj sem uporabljal starejši Ophion model, ki mi sicer ni bil slab, vendar se ga nikoli nisem 100 % privadil. Vendar pa tako glede izgleda, kot tudi izvedbe, nimam nobenih pomislekov glede Katane, zato bom to veslo zagotovo veslal tudi v prihodnje. Odlično Ophion! In če berete ta komentar, da bi se odločili, ali bi kupili Ophion ali ne, še ta nasvet: Testirajte in se odločite sami!

tekst: Andraž Krpič

Za več informacij oglejte si Ophionovo stran na:

www.ophionpaddles.com ali na www.alpinaction.it

Peak Semilong Winter topdeck (IT)

Peak Semilong Winter topdeck

Nuova giacca d’acqua della marca Peak, novità 2012, pensata principalmente per le specialità agonistiche slalom e discesa. Realizzata in nylon traspirante con impermeabilizzazione a 10 metri.

Cuciture castrate, collo a cono in neoprene superstretch, polsini doppi, lattice interno e neoprene superstretch esterno, paraspruzzi modello standard.

In acqua: da alcune settimane sto utilizzando questa nuova giacca Peak per i miei allenamenti in slalom. Ho avuto modo di testarla in varie condizioni atmosferiche, con il sole, la pioggia o l’aria fredda che in questa stagione soffia al mattino e mi ha sempre protetto efficacemente utilizzandola sopra ad una semplice maglietta in polipropilene.  Essendo pensata per un utilizzo invernale, la prima impressione che mi aveva dato era che il tessuto utilizzato fosse troppo leggero, rispetto ad altre di pari categoria, ma poi ho avuto modo di ricredermi.

Indossata ha un ottimo taglio anatomico, aderente ma che ti permette ogni movimento senza tensioni, il collo a cono è in neoprene morbidissimo, ripara dall’acqua e dall’aria perfettamente senza stringere nemmeno durante i percorsi più impegnativi. I polsini sono giustamente doppi,  lattice per non far passare l’acqua e neoprene superstretch esterno per ripararlo.

Il paraspruzzi è il classico Peak Standard da slalom già collaudato con successo, ottima tenuta.

In slalom si richiedono alla giacca prestazioni a volte difficili da abbinare, come robustezza e leggerezza, libertà nei movimenti ma taglio aderente, temperatura ottimale sia durante la prestazione che durante le fasi di recupero e devo dire che con questo modello si riesce ad abbinare tutte queste caratteristiche . Ora anche con temperature invernali ci si può allenare senza dover indossare molte maglie, a tutto vantaggio delle prestazioni!!

Buone pagaiate!!!

Gio Mortin

Watershed Ocoee dry bag (EN,SLO)

                             Watershed Ocoee dry bag with photo padding

I love taking photos of extreme kayaking, but furthermore, I work as a rafting photographer, which means I take my DSLR camera to the river more or less every day during the rafting season. I accompany rafts with my kayak, so it is essential that I store my camera in a watertight and shock resistant box or bag. I have been using a Pelicase hard box, until I broke it in the middle of the last season. I had to buy something fast, as Pelicase repair was about to take more than a month. Pelicase was great for taking rafting photos but it also always made me nervous on more extreme descents, as I couldn’t manage to fit it anywhere else but in between my legs, which poses a safety risk. So I opted for something different. Dry bags are probably the only good alternative to hard cases, but normally wrapping my camera into a towel and fitting it into a dry bag made me worry about damaging it. I heard some good reviews of Watershed bags so I went to Alpin Action store to inspect it more closely.

            Pietro, a store owner, suggested Ocoee duffel. I was firstly impressed by a duffel shape, which makes putting something in and taking it out much easier than from a regular bag. Watershed bags have a ZipDry seals and don’t use the annoying rolling system, which almost never seals a bag completely. ZipDry is really easy to open and close. All the material and craftsmanship looked really good and overall it seemed like a great piece of gear. But I kind of suspected it would before I went to check it out. My trust issues were concerning more the impact protection.  What I didn’t know is that you can also buy special photo camera padding with smart dividing set. Even though this padding is light and relatively thin, it seems to really protect from impacts well. My last issue was its big price. But hey, I needed it for work and ending up with two Pelicases didn’t seem like a good alternative. I bought it and I’m still really glad I did. Maybe a Pelicase is a little better for my work, where I need to take the case in and out of the boat really fast and I don’t need to securely place it anywhere. But when I go paddling for myself, I newer think twice about taking the Watershed. I am very relieved that I don’t need to have that hard box in between my legs anymore and for now I fully trust the Ocoee duffel in the back of my boat not to leak even if I swim. Though I hope I’ll never get to test that.  

 Text :Andraž Krpič

Watershed Ocoee suha torba z oblogo za fotoaparat

Izredno rad fotografiram ekstremni kajak, poleg tega pa delam tudi kot fotograf raftinga, kar pomeni, da med rafting sezono vzamem svoj DSLR fotoaparat na reko bolj ali manj vsak dan. Ker rafte spremljam s svojim kajakom, je bistvenega pomena, da fotoaparat hranim v vodotesnih in na udarce odpornih škatlah ali torbah. Polovico sezone sem delal s Pelicase trdim ohišjem, dokler ga nisem sredi sezone počil. Hitro sem moral kupiti nekaj novega, saj mi je bilo rečeno, da bo Pelicase na popravilu več kot mesec dni. Pelicase je odlična za fotografiranje raftinga, me je pa tudi vedno delal »živčnega« na bolj ekstremnih spustih, saj ga zaradi velikosti uspem spraviti samo med nogami, kar predstavlja tveganje za varnost. Zato sem se odločil za nekaj drugačnega. Suhe vreče so verjetno edina dobra alternativa plastičnim škatlam, vendar pa me običajno ovijanje mojega fotoaparata v brisačo in tlačenje v suho vrečo skrbi, da se bo poškodoval. Slišal sem nekaj dobrih kritik glede Watershed vreč, zato sem šel v trgovino Alpin Action, da si jih bolj podrobno ogledam.

Pietro, lastnika trgovine, mi je za fotoaparat predlagal majno torbo Ocoee. Najprej sem bil navdušen nad oblike torbe, ki omogoča veliko lažje vstavljanje, kot v navadno suho vrečk. Watershed vreče imajo ZipDry zapirala in ne uporabljajo neugodnega sistema zavijanja, ki skoraj nikoli ne zatesni vreče v celoti. ZipDry je zelo enostaven za odpiranje in zapiranje. Material in izdelava sta videti res dobro in na splošno izgleda torba zelo kvalitetno. Ampak to sem nekako sumil, še preden sem si šel torbo sam pogledati . Bolj me je skrbelo vprašanje zaščite pred udarci. Kar nisem vedel je, da lahko kupite tudi posebno oblazinjenje za fotoaparat s premičnimi pregradami. Čeprav je ta podloga lahka in relativno tanka, se zdi, da resnično ščiti pred udarci. Moje zadnja skrb je bila njegova velika cena. Ampak nekaj sem nujno potreboval za delo in čez kak mesec ostati z dvema Pelicasoma se mi ni zdela dobra alternativa. Torbo sem kupil in prav nič mi ni žal za to. Mogoče je Pelicase malo bolj primeren za moje delo, kjer moram vzeti zadevo iz čolna in jo dati nazaj zelo hitro in pogosto ter me zaradi lahke težavnosti reke ne skrbi za varnost. Toda ko grem veslati zase, ne pomislim dvakrat preden vzamem Watershed torbo. Zelo mi je odleglo, da mi med nogami ni treba imeti trde in nevarne škatle, saj torbo z lahkoto zatlačim za sedež. Pa tudi za zdaj povsem zaupam Ocoee torbi, da v primeru »plavanja«, ne bo spustila vode. Čeprav upam, da mi tega nikoli ne bo potrebno testirati..

tekst: Andraž Krpič

Stagna LevelSix (IT)

Sapevo che non mi avrebbe deluso,il materiale Level Six è ottimo,dopo aver già testato la giacca d'acqua e avendola usata per un anno intero con grande soddisfazzione ,come non parlare della stagna! Innanzitutto quello che mi sorprende è la vestibilità calza perfettamente non è ingombrante ,ti permette di fare tutti

i movimenti articolari senza essere ostacolato,ottima la cerniera posteriore che se anche posizionata dietro ti permette di chiuderla e riaprirla senza l'aiuto di altra persona ,questo grazie ad un nastro ben robusto fissato sulla zip della stessa ,da non dimenticare la funzionale seconda cerniera posizionata nel basso ventre per "urgenze pipi"!!!Ottimo il materiale in lattice usato per i polsi e il collo è di buona qualità,morbida e bene avvolgente.Se poi ci soffermiamo allo studio delle rifiniture interne tutte elettrosaldante non si può che notare la qualità che mette in primo piano la cura della lavorazione a cui è stata sottoposta questa muta stagna ,che la posiziona a mio avviso tra le migliori marche  da prendere in considerazione se avete intenzione di acquistarne una !

Ciao Gigi Codinotti

Keen - Gogre Boot (IT, EN)

KEEN – Gorge Boot – It

Si sa che ognuno di noi ha le sue preferenze in termini di marche, quando si tratta di scegliere l’attrezzatura da kayak e tra le scarpe io non ho mai avuto dubbi, le 5Ten erano sempre lì in cima alla lista degli acquisti, suola con un grip eccezionale anche dove vedevo gli amici con altre scarpe scivolare miseramente, io sempre in piedi fiero dell’acquisto.

Questa volta però ho voluto dare una chance alle Keen Gorge. Si tratta di uno stivaletto in neoprene (spessore 3mm), ma a differenza della stragrande maggioranza dei suoi simili che ho visto in commercio finora, hanno una suola nel vero senso della parola, non un qualcosa che oltre a farti cadere non appena le guardi, ti si disfano dopo qualche uscita in torrente.

Il grip è notevole, l’ho provata personalmente su rocce bagnate in forte pendenza apposta per verificarne la tenuta ed il test è stato superato con successo. Per me questo è già più che sufficiente per avallarne l’acquisto. Tutto il resto concorre a “confezionare” l’oggetto e renderlo gradevole alla camminata.

Il fatto di essere alto sopra la caviglia permette un supporto più sicuro soprattutto durante le discese in ambienti sconnessi con il kayak in spalla.

All’interno c’è una soletta in EVA che le rende soffici ed è trattata con un rivestimento antibatterico chiamato AEGIS che dovrebbe minimizzare il fetore tipico di questi oggetti (da verificare…)

Tra la suola e la struttura in neoprene, tutto intorno alla scarpa, c’è un rinforzo in gomma  piuttosto robusto che dovrebbe assorbire i colpi derivanti dal camminare in ambienti non proprio semplici. La punta è ricoperta da uno strato in gomma più rigido tipo quello utilizzato nelle suole delle scarpette da arrampicata per intenderci e prosegue nella parte inferiore fino a ricoprire tutta la zona dell’alluce, praticamente dove viene esercitato lo stress maggiore.

Le regolazioni e i fissaggi sono tre, tutte con velcro e sono posizionate sul collo del piede, alla base della caviglia e in cima alla caviglia. Sono studiate in modo da rendere semplice la calzata e la rimozione, ma allo stesso tempo, se regolate correttamente, mantengono il piede ben aderente all’interno in modo da evitare la perdita in caso di nuotate.

Il neoprene costituente la scarpa dovrebbe essere sufficientemente caldo da poterle utilizzare a piedi nudi, ma in caso di pagaiate in climi particolarmente freddi, è consigliabile l’utilizzo di una calza sottile (2mm) in neoprene. Quindi valutate questa opportunità, quando scegliete il numero.

Se dovessi pensare ad un aspetto negativo direi forse la parte che ricopre la caviglia è un po’ larga quindi per coloro dotati di caviglia sottile si potrebbe avere la sensazione di ballare all’interno, ma non credo che esistano problemi di sfilamento non desiderato. Inoltre vedo un po’ difficile il drenaggio dell’acqua, in quanto vi sono solo quattro buchini per lato, ma direi comunque nulla di particolarmente grave.

In sostanza, queste Keen Gorge Boot mi sembrano un bell’oggetto e spero che non mi facciano rimpiangere le fedeli 5Ten. Raccomandate!

Disponibili presso il negozio di Alpin Action a Trnovo ob Soci o sul sito www.alpinaction.it

Buone pagaiate

Beppe Caramella

KEEN – Gorge Boot – En

All of us has his own preferences in terms of brands when selecting our kayak gears but when talking about shoes, no doubts, 5Ten were always the first choice for me, the best sole ever, with an exceptional grip even where I used to see my friends with different shoes miserably sliding down, I was always standing, proud of my purchase.

But this time I wanted to give Keen Gorge a chance. It’s a neoprene boot (3mm thick), but unlike the vast majority of its fellow I’ve seen so far on the market, they have a sole in the true sense of word, not something that make me fall over as soon as you look, they break just after a few paddling weekends.

The outsole traction is considerable, I personally tested on wet rocks on steep slopes and the test has been successfully passed. To me this is more than enough to justify the purchase, all the rest contributes to make up the boot and make it pleasant to walk.

Its high wearing above the ankle allows a stronger support above all during scouting, portaging and when reaching the put-in while carrying the kayak.

Inside there is a removable EVA molded footbed with AEGIS microbe shield which should minimize the typical bad smell of this kind of shoes (to be checked….).

Between the sole and the neoprene structure, all around the shoe, there’s a rubber reinforcement rather robust, which should absorb shocks arising from walking in areas not really easy, the shoe tip has a layer made of a more rigid rubber like the one used for climbing shoes soles and it continues at the bottom to cover virtually the entire toe area where the stress is exerted the most.

There are three Velcro adjustments and fastening and you can find them instep, at the base of the ankle and on top of the ankle. They are designed to make it easy to fit and remove, but at the same time, if correctly adjusted, they keep the foot tight inside so as to avoid the loss in case of swimming. The neoprene itself should be warm enough to use the boots with bare foot, but if you find yourself paddling in particularly cold areas it’s recommended to wear a thin neoprene sock (2mm). Therefore, keep this opportunity in mind when selecting the size.

If I were to think of a downside, I would say maybe the part that covers the ankle is a bit wide, so for those with thin ankle may feel “to dance” inside, but I don’t think there are problems of unwanted shoes removal. Also I see a bit hard water drainage, as there are only four tiny holes per side, however nothing particularly serious.

In essence, these Keen Gorge Boot seems a thing of beauty and I hope I don’t regret the good ol’ 5Ten. Recommended!

Available at the Alpin Action shop in Trnovo ob Soci or at www.alpinaction.it

Have fun and always be careful on the river!

Beppe Caramella