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Normally I would be very happy with the beautiful weather today: sunny and a SW-2bft-wind.
For test-paddling the Epic 18XS more wind would have been nice.
However the paddle-day was planned so we took of at DenOever for a trip to Oudeschild. Not following the tidal stream but traversing two 2,5 knot streams.
The first leg stream was from the side and the wind from behind. To keep course during this leg, I had to use the rudder very frequently because the kayak wandered of course. It could however well be that this was due to the circumstances because my paddling mate in en Mariner encountered the same. Nevertheless I mention this because it has an effect on the steering: Although the rudder worked very well and very direct, the frequent operation made the feet tired and a bit cramped when the knees are tucked under the deck. This has to do with the difference in angle between feet and the ruder-operation-flaps. May be, as a suggestion, these flaps should have the same angle as the feet.
When the knees are not tucked under deck everything is OK; logical because the angles of feet and flaps are the same in that situation.
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Today the wind was blowing with 5 bft: an ideal opportunity to check different courses in the wind. I left home paddling with the "Alkmaardermeer" as destination.
Total distance was 17 km which I paddled with an average speed of 8,5 km/h. Paddling directly into the wind reduced it to 7-8 km/h while in a sheltered stretch I easily reached 9 km/h.
Paddling with the fin retracted the 18XS weathercocks significantly. If it is blowing like today you have to work hard to compensate for this. With the wind blowing less sharp, the kayak responds better to your paddelstrokes.
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Today in a few free hours I paddled 10 km in light conditions with a 3bft wind.
I used a midwing-paddle and I cruised at approx. 9-10 km/h. Sometimes reaching 11 km/h when the wind helped me a bit by pushing me.
A sprint over 125m brought me at 11 km/h. Certainly, when a strong paddler has the power, a higher speed can be reached. I write this because having read about 14 km/h.
The kayak always responds instantly to the rudder!
After blocking the rudder, by retracting the fin, the kayak weathercocks slightly. I compensated this with sweepstrokes and edging.
I also tried to use the fin as a retractable skeg by retracting only a bit. This however is not very easy to adjust very accurately with the rope. Certainly not when you are paddling in bad weather.
I prefer however using the rudder.
The operation of the rudderpedals with you feet is convenient; especially when you paddle with the knees unlocked (not tucked under deck)
When I walked home, carrying the kayak in one hand, I noticed that there are no more sharp edges on the inside of the cockpit-rim.
Further, but that is no surprise under the current conditions, I was happy with the stability of this kayak: primary as well as the secondary stability.
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This evening, the kayakclub planned a surfing-session at sea. Although I did not paddle the 18XS yet, I decided to join in. Conditions were calm: almost no wind, BUT with a lot of swell from a storm at sea a day ago.
To get used to a kayak normally I paddle a testkayak at inlandwaters first, but this seemed a perfect situation to start testing right away.
I started with the rudder locked wich is, to my opinion, the way for leaving the beach. This possibility, to retract the fin, is an enormous improvement compared to the fixed fin in the older versions where the fin ploughs through the sand.
With the fin retracted, the kayak was very lively on the waves. Much more than I expected from such a long craft. This evening the waves were not very high; somewhere between 0,5-1 m. But the waves ran quite long before tumbling over. Surfing was real fun. The 18XS was fast enough to pick up a wave easily. Having picked up a long wave surfing is real sensation. Especially when you unlock the rudder and use it to maneuver on the wave.
The waves were not very steep but now and then, when a higher, steeper wave came by, I got the impression that the 18XS will not pearl very easily. Instead the bow stays high on the water instead of diving, thus making surfing more safe. A pity for you if it is you hobby trying to pearl (don't forget your helm;-))
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Today I picked up the Epic-18XS at Kanoshop.nl for testing.
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Een 3 luik.
Zoals in de vorige clubkrant stond heeft onze geachte voorzitter een solotocht door Nederland gevaren. Voorafgaand aan die tocht had hij Jos, Henk en mij uitgenodigd om het laatste traject op het wad een stukje mee te varen. Door weersomstandigheden veranderde dat plan en was er geen begeleiding meer mogelijk omdat hij naar huis ging. Maar Jos, Henk en ik hadden al 3 dagen vrij genomen en verheugden ons mateloos op dit doordeweekse intermezzo.
We hoefden er niet veel over te braadslagen: we besloten unaniem dat we toch gewoon gingen varen! Weer of geen weer! Omdat het weer toch wat onbestendig was werd het een drieluik van afzonderlijke dagtochten.
Luik 1
De eerste dag, een maandag, was er onstuimig weer voorspeld. Daarom zochten we een beschutte hoek op: De Kreupel werd onze eerste bestemming. Die vrees voor slecht weer was totaal ongegrond want wij vonden het prima vaarweer.
We gingen te water in Medemblik en voeren in rechte lijn naar de Kreupel, een eiland dat ongeveer ten Noorden van Andijk ligt. Op het water verbaasden we ons erover dat er zo weinig andere mensen in bootjes te zien waren. Sterker nog, we zagen helemaal geen mensen. Ze moeten zeker allemaal werken. En ons missen ze niet, want de wereld draait gewoon door. Ongelofelijk!
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Today I went to Huisduinen for a clockwise circumnavigation of the Noorderhaaks (Razende Bol); a challenging area in case of heavy weather. But today there was only an easterly 4Bft; predicted to increase to 6 Bft near the evening. I was accompanied by 4 club-members, all eager to use the opportunity the weather offered for a tour in late November.
Wieger did the planning and proposed to try to complete the circumnavigation in 2 hours; in this case we could plan both crossings of the Marsdiep on the outgoing tide.
We left Huisduinen and made the crossing to the west-end of Noorderhaaks while wind and waves came from right-behind. The 16X asked quite a lot of attention to keep course in the low waves which were constantly pushing me of our course. I was concentrated to use the rudder the right way and I realized that this behaviour in keeping course is very similar to for instance my AnasAcuta's (also a manoeuvrable kayak), which I used for years without a variable skeg.
So there is nothing wrong in the design. The only thing is that in a kayak outfitted with a variable skeg you have a choice: you can use the skeg and thus change the behaviour of the kayak. Or you choose not to use it, just relying on your paddle-technique. Discussing this, Jan told me he seldom uses his skeg (in a Nordkapp Jubilee) for this reason and not to become dependant on the skeg. Only if necessary for some reason he does so.
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Last week the weather was rather unpredictable. Quite a lot of wind during the week; sometimes too much to paddle, but it was expected that Sunday the wind would increase to approx. 5-6bft with its limit in the evening at 7bft.
So, time for paddling the 16X in seaconditions is what I thought.
I found Roel and Maarten (both paddling an Atlantic) willing to accompany me to the Voordelta in the south of Holland.
Starting at 11h the wind blows as predicted at 3bft but instead of increasing gradually, the wind just decreased to almost zero during the afternoon.
No problem as I was in good company: we had a very pleasant tour.
Starting from the south end of the Brouwersdam we headed West first to visited a sandplate for lunch.
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In the last weeks I had not much to mention about progress of the test with the 16X . Is a matter of time (work, vacancy, ...) and no paddling-mates available at the days there was enough wind.
There are three things to mention however:
16x versus Baidarka
On a certain Wednesday-evening it was rather rough weather and I went, together with Wieger, for a paddle on the lake nearby the club. As I didn't plan to paddle from there I paddled my Baidarka which was at the club.
What's interesting is that, after having paddled quite a lot in the Epic16X the weeks before, the Baidarka felt like an very unstable kayak.
It's not that I had problems with that, but it was such a difference that I can only conclude that the stability of the 16X is very good. I concluded that before, but now the difference is clear as well.
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After the exercises with the 16X, I continued with the Greenland paddle that I took with me for that purpose.
I was wet anyway, 
.