Wenonah Recon

Shep · Post by **Shep** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:01 pm

I think Wenonah's decision to make a new 13' canoe makes a ton of sense from a business perspective. I would guess that 80% of their retailers do not stock whitewater canoes in general. The Recon looks like a boat that people expect to see in a shop, and don't have a hard time imagining what you could possibly want to use it for.I see it as a bit of a Trojan-Horse play... That's one of the benefits I see of the Outrage and Outrage-X... There is a local shop that sells TONS of tandem boats, and they just bring in 2-3 Outrages a year, and have them available when someone walk in the door and shows an interest. The Recon can fulfill the same function for shops that don't sell Mad River.

Shep

TNbound · Post by **TNbound** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:59 pm

Shep wrote: There is a local shop that sells TONS of tandem boats, and they just bring in 2-3 Outrages a year, and have them available when someone walk in the door and shows an interest. The Recon can fulfill the same function for shops that don't sell Mad River.

Shep

And potentially be a much better boat (in design and build). I haven't been impressed with the newer Mad River boats I've seen in shops. The one that comes to mind is a Outrage X that sat in a local store for maybe 2 or 3 years that had gunwhales that were clearly asymmetric. Probably ferried really well one way, though that isn't much of a selling point.

rainfoot · Post by **rainfoot** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:17 pm

Here is an article:

http://www.trailspace.com/blog/2011/08/ ... recon.html

DougB · Post by **DougB** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:21 pm

Having experimented myself with velcro and outfitting I'm very suprised to see this approach. Velcro, water and the stress put on WW outfitting don't mix. It's not good for reliably holding in more than the ankle blocks unless this velcro is something special.

The boat itself does look like an Outrage with a perhaps more edge in the center? I'm suprised they didn't go for the 11' Outrage vs another 13'.

Bob P · Post by **Bob P** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 7:39 pm

DougB wrote:Having experimented myself with velcro and outfitting I'm very suprised to see this approach. Velcro, water and the stress put on WW outfitting don't mix. It's not good for reliably holding in more than the ankle blocks unless this velcro is something special.
.

Not all Velcros are created equal. There are some very sticky (industrial) variations. It's all a matter of how good the adhesive is, rather than the hook-to-loop strength.

Smurfwarrior · Post by **Smurfwarrior** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 8:47 pm

I fiddled with it, appeared to be standard stuff (velcro).

Lappie · Post by **Lappie** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 9:05 pm

I never had a velcro failure... but adesive is an other story... If you sow it to a vinyl patch first and then glue the patch down, it should work!

Shep · Post by **Shep** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 10:46 pm

I haven't work with Northwater stuff too much, but I generally like more "industrial"-grade outfitting. That said, I think they are only putting velcro in a few select spots. Notice that the saddle has a ridge to keep it in place side-to-side, and then they are using it to put the knee-pads in. The thigh straps are attached to vinyl anchors with multiple attachment points, no velcro needed. I think it will work well for most paddling. I expect we'll get reviews on it's roll-ability soon.

Shep