Eskimo Speedo White Water Kayak

I'm selling my German made Speedo kayak in used condition. It has the usual scrapes on the bottom but nothing serious. It's a lovely kayak and has great manoeuvrability. Can be used for White water or surf. I have not been able to take it out due to prolapsed disc, hence the sale.

Comes with airbag for rear but does not come with a paddle or spray deck. Collection only but could deliver for fee depending on distance. Eskimo Speedo review www.playak.com: Easy current crossing, safe eddy hopping, joyful wave surfing - the new FREERIDER 270 does it. A boat for open currents and boulder gardens, as well as for fast and powerful whitewater. For paddlers enjoiing precise strokes and a plus of speed, more than New School rodeo moves.

  The evolution of the speedy, modern Xeno hull, combined with a comfortable non tiring seat position and plenty footspace, make the FREERIDER 270 a top class whitewater kayak. Review from www.paddling.com When I test-paddled the Speedo, I felt like Will Smith in "Independence Day" when he takes the helm of the alien craft and shouts, "I have got to get me one of these! " My interest was first piqued by demonstrations at Gauleyfest, where the designer made it outperform most boats (I give a lot of credit to his ability) and then stood on the deck to illustrate its strength and stiffness. The latter was impressive, especially considering Eskimo doesn't employ internal support pillars, deeming them unnecessary because of the construction. Eskimo blow-molds with high molecular plastic, producing a very tough, light hull.

Their process also allows for bi-color hulls, if that makes a difference to you (mine is white deck/orange hull). In addition, they've carefully thought this out to minimize the need for hole drilling in the hull. The thigh pad mounts are on the cockpit rim. The grab handles are integral to the hull and the drain plug is part of one of their bases. The boat performs like a buff Diablo, which is to say great.

Fast with hard edges to slalom through the rock gardens. The ends are fairly low volume, but it's still a strong surfer. The seat and pegs adjust and it's a pretty comfortable boat. Well-suited for a medium-sized male, but plenty of margin to go up or down from that. There are a couple nits to pick.

The backband setup does not allow it to adjust forward of the rear edge of the seat. Might not be a problem for some, but I'll probably re-engineer it. Somewhat more of an issue is the two longitudinal grooves in the bottom. While there are performance design explanations for these, they become a problem if you're sliding over a rock a little sideways. You can get hung up and flipped real fast when a groove drops onto the node of a stationary obstacle.

But, the bottom line is that if you want a very high quality boat that scoots and cuts like a waterbug, this would be a tough boat to beat.