Maelstrom Vaag kayak question,

[Paul Sylvester]

Anyone had one of these and care to comment on rocker, surfing and playability for a Vaag?

Been curious about these and one has come up for sale in Maine.

  Suppose it will go quick but maybe if I get some feedback it will push me to drive up.

 thanks

[EEL]

Paul:

Surfing and rough water were reported to be the forte of both Vaags.  No personal experience, but rocker and hardish chines suggest good rough water boat.  I read once the seat was actually positioned to maximize surfing performance.  Price is good for sure.  If memory is correct, the people who bought Lincoln Kayaks were big fans of the Vaags and using them at Popham  FWIW.

Ed Lawson

 

[PeterB]

I heard some bad things about the boat  design from experienced paddlers who demo' d it  at Sullivan Falls.The boat's  pronounced rocker seems to  have been  achieved by bending the boat at midpoint:  it sweeps up to the bow and to the stern from some midpoint close to the cockpit. No real analysis  on how this  affects maneuverability or performance. Build quality is  reported to be okay but not outstanding.
The biggest issue with the boat is that the day hatch is on center, and with drainage trough and  slots this results in an extreme low point , a larger than normal  depressed area  just behind the cockpit. In rough water,   the boat does not shed water here, and waves can pile up on the back deck, destabilizing the boat.  Experienced BCU 5*  type  paddlers were capsizing a lot at Sullivan falls due to this.  That said , this could be a quirk which the paddler just gets used to and overcomes  in that normal course of breaking in a new boat  , and the boat was popular for a time   - I saw  quite  a few  of them at Popham Beach, maybe part of  a Canadian group  that visited  there regularly.  

Edited October 3, 2020 by PeterB

[Paul Sylvester]

Thanks,  That makes sense on the day hatch.  The rocker reminds me of the anas acuta with a heavy paddler. Probably plows some water with weight aboard?  

[EEL]

Paul:

I believe the rocker is more extreme than the AA and does have a "broken" look as mentioned by Peter since boat's rocker starts  steeply midhull.  Seems that some NSPN member owns one as I have seen one in a "signature line"  My thought when they came out was someone had taken the ALAW Bach design and radically taken it to the extreme.  Not having paddled it, just my guess that it is one of those boats that has the potential to do one thing extremely well, but everything else is a muddle.  FWIW, the AA is by no means a fast boat, but when I have taken mine out on three day camping trips its pace was not bad at all compared to unladen and remained relatively fun to paddle along shores.  I did not have the impression it plowed like a Romany when overloaded, but it would plow through breaking wind waves making for a wet ride.

Ed

[Jim Snyder]

I read a lot of positive stuff about these boats in reviews. I think Paul should buy it!