Re: [Paddlewise] recommendations...Pygmy Osprey HP??

Bill, I've paddled the Coho and the very similar Arctic Tern extensively
(I own the Tern), and I've paddled the Osprey HP in calm conditions. The
HP is a little bit faster, but only very fast paddlers would notice this.
At cruising speeds, the HP is *not* significantly faster than the
Coho/Tern. As far as ease of handling, turning, and rough water
performance goes, the Coho/Tern are much much better than the Osprey HP. I
found the HP very difficult to turn even with a lot of edging and strong
sweep strokes, whereas the Coho turns quite well. I noticed that the Pygmy
HP demo kayak I paddled had a rudder installed even though the boat does
not weathercock, so presumably this is to aid in turning only. So to sum
up, if you are not a competitive racers, or at least someone who likes to
paddle fast and "beat" your friends, I would go with the Coho/Tern which
are superior boats in every other way, especially if you plan to take the
boat into rough water or surf. And if you plan to do a lot of that, I
would get the Arctic Tern, because it surfs much better than the Coho. 
Cheers, Kevin

                         -------------------------------
                         |        Kevin Whilden         |
                         |     kwhilden_at_seanet.com      |
                         |   Kayak Academy Instructor   |
                         | http://www.halcyon.com/kayak |
                         -------------------------------

On Fri, 30 Jul 1999, William J. Oetjen wrote:

> Hi again paddlers,
> 
> 	I'm making one last request for feedback from people with
> experience with the HP, before I order something.
> How's it in surf?
> How's it in rough coastal conditions?
> Is it really that much more efficient and fast than perhaps the Coho??
> 
> Thanks,
> Bill
> woetjen_at_zoo.uvm.edu
> 
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