C-Forum

...what's the verdict? I know a bunch of you have them now and am soliciting your opinions on them after the season. Let it all hang out. (I'm not switching from OC... if that is what anyone is thinking)

i dont know personally, but ive heard theyre good decked boats for the bigger fellas, theres one locally, and i want one, im a open boater, looking to move from a 12' 10" ESQUIF to a 9' 2" robson, only problem is the price, its just expensive to get another boat, no matter what it is. plus i am looking forward to an easier roll, and paddling more in the montana winter, may make things more accessible for me. though, everything is up in the air.
-isaac

I paddled one once, it was pretty cool. hard to tell from one 15 min session, but it's not a liability boat -- not something you'll completely regret or something really tippy. hopefully others can fill you in more.
Alden

I'm still getting used to my Fink, so I'm not ready to give a final verdict yet. I didn't get it until the end of creek season last year, and spent the summer playboating, so yesterday I took about my fifth run in the Fink. Overall I think it's really fun to paddle. It's fast, stable (once you get used to the secondary stability vs. the primary stability), is great at punching holes and excellent in big water. However, I don't like the depth of the bow v. the stern (I'd rather have more symmetry), the flared sides that make big water easy also make rolling slow, and the jury's still out on the outfitting - after using thigh straps for ten years, the bulkhead and beavertails still feel foreign to me. Also, I'm 6', 200 lbs. and the cockpit feels small when I'm in it - hope I never slip out of an eddy and vertically pin stern-first b/c I'd never get out.

The rain just started here in Oregon, and the creeks are coming up, so I'll get to test it out on some low volume runs in the next few weeks. I think it will be good.

I'm still getting used to my Fink, so I'm not ready to give a final verdict yet. I didn't get it until the end of creek season last year, and spent the summer playboating, so yesterday I took about my fifth run in the Fink. Overall I think it's really fun to paddle. It's fast, stable (once you get used to the secondary stability vs. the primary stability), is great at punching holes and excellent in big water. However, I don't like the depth of the bow v. the stern (I'd rather have more symmetry), the flared sides that make big water easy also make rolling slow, and the jury's still out on the outfitting - after using thigh straps for ten years, the bulkhead and beavertails still feel foreign to me. Also, I'm 6', 200 lbs. and the cockpit feels small when I'm in it - hope I never slip out of an eddy and vertically pin stern-first b/c I'd never get out.

The rain just started here in Oregon, and the creeks are coming up, so I'll get to test it out on some low volume runs in the next few weeks. I think it will be good.

Hello Craig,
I've done 25+ river runs in the Fink, from class 2 to 4-5. I've had to make some adjustments in my technique and outfitting to feel comfortable in the boat, but it is all coming together. I can tell you that it is a far superior boat to the converted Perception Stikine I paddled previously and that I am considering selling my Dagger Cascade. The comments I have made previously on the boat (Spring of 2004) still stand as accurate after much more experience in the boat. My roll has improved dramatically in the boat with a small change in technique - so the boat now rolls very easily. The boat just keeps getting better and better.
SYOTR,
Bruce

Bruce - how have you changed your roll? After taking two swims in class III-IV big water last spring, I was nervous to take the Finkenmeister on anything harder. I've practiced the roll and now hit it consistently (I now keep my head completely down until I've swept past the centerline of the boat), but it's still slow compared to my roll in my other boats, so I'm still hesitant to take it on any harder runs. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Matt

I really like my Finkenmeister, of all my boats as well as others I have paddled so far, it's definitely the one I want to be in when pushing my limits. for more info, check out my posts in previous threads.
As for rolling it, it is definitely harder to roll than for instance my Delirious. In the Deli, any sloppy rolling attempt will get me back up, while the FM requires definitely proper technique. I would say it's a bit harder to roll than the Atom I paddled before, but definitely easier than any open boat I tried out so far.

martin

Hi Matt,

I was up on the Rogue in early October and ran into an OC1er named Carl Posten from Portland. He was very envious of my Finkenmeister and paddled it around a little. I think he wants one. I mentioned your name and he says he knows you.

About the roll.... I use a C to C roll which requires me to tuck my T-grip hand in close to my belly for a setup, before sweeping out. In my other boats this worked well when my T-grip hand was centered. But the Fink is very bowed in the center, and as a result my blade ended diving during the sweep out. To get around this problem I moved my T-grip hand off-center (I'm a lefty and I moved my T-grip hand more left during setup) . This moves my hand away from the bulge in the center and helps me get the blade against the boat. Then I sweep out the blade along the boat and to the surface. The blade doesn't dive and this makes the difference.

Basically, change your setup to be sure the paddle ends up on the surface during the sweep out. The Fink is so bulbous along its bow center line that it tends to pull your paddle deeper during the sweep out. That's the gist of it.

Hope that overly complicated explanation is helpful.

SYOTR,

Bruce

Hi Bruce -

That name sure rings a bell, and I'm sure I'd recognize him if I ran into him on the river, but I can't picture his face right now. Hope you had a great time on the Rogue - I love that run. Regarding Finkenmeister roll, I set up with the blade out of the water and beside the boat (almost like a kayak setup) reach for the sky as hard as I can when I sweep, and then pull my t-grip hand into my belly only after I finish the sweep. That's helped me keep the blade close to the surface during the sweep and roll. I think my problem is that I got lazy in my Atom, Cascade, etc., and learned to rely on the shape of those boats to finish the roll for me. Can't do that with the Finkenmeister - it's making me re-learn to finish my roll.

thinking of ordering one, and had a few more questions, pertaining the rodeo abilities that the boat is capable of... as fare as squirts, is the bow with all the volume, pretty hard to stall on? and does the boat cartwheel well, or not?
thanks for the info
-isaac

Bearboater,
Don't own one, but I have seen and paddled one. I'm thinking it is designed to NOT do rodeo moves. I think it is meant to be a river runner/ creeker and therefore non-squirty and stable. But hey, I don't know for sure.

Come to think of it ....Has anyone seen any interviews with the designer or reviews (other than those posted here)?

hey isaac,
the bow on the Fink is downright HUGE. I don't think you could bowstall it unless you weighed more than the combined weight of all the beer I have ever drank. So yeah, no bowstalling unless you weigh more than a moose. And Cartwheeling too. It's big. Sounds like the Wheelboy might be more that sort of boat. More of a violin and less of a bass.

I'm not sure, but I seem to recall you can squirt the Fink's stern. You would have to ask an actual Fink owner though.

Bruce and Larry, are we going to paddle the South Merced when I come out next year or what?
Alden

Alden, one training season on whimpy BC creeks and I'm all over joining u guys on the upper south merced...

And who is coming to BC and does some creeking here with me?

German Kanumagazin had an interview with the designer of the Finki. Yea, not really the park and play kind of guy...

Cheers, Jan

well, id have alot of learning to do before attempting a stern squirt in the first place, im mainly a river runner/player, not too into the huge stuff, but getting there. its so hard to find a decent used boat round anywhere, considering that there are a total of 1 or 2 decked c1s in western montana, a perception gyramax in missoula, and a fink in bozeman at a robson dealership.

As far as the boat goes, if one is looking to get into a decked boat, and is in the over 200 crowd, and considering cascades are hard to come by, is this a good boat for a runner/small player?
-isaac