C-Forum

hey guys, i'm an experienced oc1'er and kayaker. mostly class 4-5 creeking. i want to get into c1. i've heard about the burn being a good c1 creek boat, but how about the jefe? it's the boat i already have. i know most people say go wide and flat, but i'd like to hear from people with experience using a jefe as a c1. thanks

Works well, I had one for some time, then moved up to a grande as i put on some muscle bulk (nearly 30#). I'll add more info later, on break at work currently.

I am by no means a C1 expert, but I have a Jefe Grande C1 and I really like it. Haven't paddled any other C1's, so I can't compare, but I am 5'10", 140 lbs, and it's treated me pretty good so far. I open boat about 95% of the time, but do pull out the C1 every now and again.

I'd say that if your paddling style suits it, the jefe/grande are two of the best c1's out there... but, it's led by the nose somewhat, so you have to stay on top of it all the time; want to carve a tight turn? you've got to use strokes on both sides to initiate and drive the boat through... Want to make an important ferry? you better get your angle right and lay down the power, because if your nose gets turned, you're not getting it back round.

Obviously, if you like it as a kayak, you know that... but the effect is magnified by being in a canoe where you have to make every stroke count... If you're paddling a flat hulled OC that can carve on edge and spin when flat, you'll need to adapt... They respond well when treated like a slower version of a slalom boat.

That aside, the rounded hull has two advantages... you tend to glance off rocks rather than catch them, which in turn lets you choose how you angle the boat laterally when flaring off rocks (as opposed to flat hulls where you have to get the hull flat to the rock for best effect) and it's uniformly stable with no noticable stability transitions, you can get your body lent right over one or two strokes seamlessly, then come back in over the boat.

For reference I'm 6'3"(ish) and at 80kg (176lbs) i found the Jefe tippy with a 6" saddle and ok (just) with a 4" saddle, at 95kg (210lbs) I'm finding the Grande is pretty stable and positive with a 5" saddle (I could probably go higher too), the extra width and slightly flatter bottom helps a lot...