Pyranha Prelude

grinner · Post by **grinner** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 3:54 pm

Hi
I'm looking for a new boat. At the moment i'm paddling a savage skeeter which i am beeing lent because it isnt been used. I am beein tought on white water with it and am doing well. But i need a boat thats newer and more tight on me. So i saw the pyranha prelude. I dont wont anything too expensive because i hopfully getting some of the money from selling my other boat. ( it a dagger g- force that was going to be converted to C1, but i had paddled a OC since i started and me and sprey deck dont go together well) I also need a boat that comes with its outfitting already. But most of all it needs to be good on flat water. I am young (14) and am not too big(about 5foot 4) and i need to be able to paddle it fast and be able to move it around and get speed up in it. I did used to paddle a spanish fly and liked it, but i kept falling out as i wasnt attached as much as i am in the skeeter and i found it harder to paddle. So its got to be something easy for me to paddle on flat and white water, not too expensive, comes with its own outfitting ( i dont mind putting it together aslong as i dont have to pay alot to outfit it) and be able to try and roll it(I will put more padding in it for that but i will use old bits of foam i have)

So would the prelude be any good for this.

Thanks

Joe

NateOC · Post by **NateOC** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:25 pm

Hi Joe,
Check out the Esquif Spark. (Do you want something that is for playing or racing or what?) I am also fourteen and just a couple inches taller then you and am getting one this weekend. It bow surfs great, and is really fast. I like it on flatwater as long as it is not too windy, because it's got lots of rocker.
I have not paddled the Prelude, so can not compare the two. The Spark is not full royalex, it's actually royalite which is a shaved down version of royalex.

Good luck finding a boat,

Nate

riverright · Post by **riverright** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:46 pm

From what I hear the prelude is an excellent boat. As far as fit is concerned, you may want to consider getting a outfitting system with straps as opposed to a bulkhead.

The bulkhead boats you've been paddling seem to be too loose for you, I wouldn't expect stock outfitting on a prelude to be any different. A system with straps would definitely give you some flexibility and some room to grow into the outfitting as well.

I know you can order factory outfitting from esquif, but not sure of other manufacturers.

Good luck,

brad

grinner · Post by **grinner** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:07 pm

Hi
I am looking for i boat i can carry on learning white water in, use on flat water and when i get good use it on waves. At the moment the bulk head system is standard, no foam has been added on it as its not mine. Sadly the local shop here in england hasnt got one i can demo and i have never seen them at holme peirre pont. At the moment, sue to the changes at Holme Peirre POnt some of the course i normally run in the skeeter i dont think i will be to happy runnig it. I have surfed some small waves and havent fell out.

I dont wont to use straps at the moment as i dont wont wot happend in my kayak with the sprey deck happen in the canoe. ( i forgot to pull my sprey deck) So i was thinking about building up the bulk head more, so hopefully when i grow more all i will have to do is cut bits off.

Cheers

Joe

kanur · Post by **kanur** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:45 pm

Grinner, you will find a Prelude is very similar to a skeeter in handleing but is much dryer. The downside is they are expensive and while they come with outfitting it is not easy to install and get it right. I can't imagine the bulkhead fitting anybody as it comes. You want to be sure to get full contact with the thigh hooks and this will require trimming and adjusting the angle. If you do it right it is a very secure fit.
I am on my 3rd season with mine and love it but I should add that I have flattened the bottom and pulled in the thwarts to take some rocker out to make it more like an Ocoee. This is the way the origanal Savage model was and it makes it much snappier and faster plus gives it some initial stability. I did one of these for a friend who is around 5'4" and it works great for her, she hasn't been in her Skeeter since. Hope this helps.

Dennis

grinner · Post by **grinner** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 8:51 pm

Hi
I dont know how old the skeeter i paddle is. Its a county council boat and was used by a few kids that wonted to try it, so it has been bashed around. When i got it the airbags wernt secured in properly and were down, so i had to re-tye them in. I dont think the airbags could take alot of preasure because they would probably come out.

How hard is it to put the outfitting togeather init Kanur. In the UK the spanish fly and the prelude are the cheeper white water boats to buy. Can anyone send me any pictures of the outfitting in their prelude. My email is joegos01@hotmail.com if you wont to email them.

Cheers

Joe

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:00 pm

newsflash The Prelude is an open skeeter. No lie!

grinner · Post by **grinner** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:18 pm

Craig Smerda wrote:newsflash The Prelude is an open skeeter. No lie!

I dont get it.

NateOC · Post by **NateOC** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:20 pm

I still think you should get a Spark!

grinner · Post by **grinner** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:30 pm

But there too expensive, then i have to pay for the outfitting. I dont know if the local canoe shop sells the prelude, they sell the zoom, but thats too expensive. But i would probably break the spark by dropping it when its cold. I need a boat thats gonna last till it falls appart.

Joe

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:43 pm

Get a Zephyr... not a Zoom. (imo)

The Prelude is a skeeter if you cut the bottom off the skeeter and add sides. Trust me.

kmcinturff · Post by **kmcinturff** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:54 pm

I have one and love it. By far my favorite canoe that I have ever paddled. I will never own another royalex or royalite boat if I can help it. Mine is on its third season, without any patches. I had to do a lot of shaping to the foam, and gluing extra foam. The thing that helps a lot (I don't know why they don't come with this) is to glue 3" minicell along both walls inside the cockpit. That way, when you roll up you will have several less gallons of water in the boat. Shaping the foam to fit the sides is a bit of a pain, since the sides of the canoe are not straight up and down. I think the spanish fly comes with the side foam, so should the prelude. I also shaped the foam on the thigh hooks so that my knees were farther apart, and I moved it way down, so my knees are really tight. I then put a few tubes through the saddle so water can equalize between the left and right side of the saddle. The boat is pretty stable full of water (its been through sections of the Ocoee olympic course full of water, without much problems). It is a little hard to roll. It is great on creeks, and doesn't get caught in holes as bad as my other boats. Craig on this site has some photos that helped a lot.

Kevin

kanur · Post by **kanur** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 9:54 pm

The Prelude is a skeeter if you cut the bottom off the skeeter and add sides. Trust me.[/quote]

I wish they would do that to the Spanish Fly

Kevin, I have also cut the foam to get my knees as far apart as possible and have a 3" hole thru the saddle for water to transfer. I tried to order the outboard pieces of foam like the bulkhead glues to for filler with no luck. Last year I added hip pads for the first time and now I wonder how I paddled without them.

Grinner, Installing a saddle bulkhead combo is a big job but not impossible. Check, check, and double check everything before you open the glue can.

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 10:10 pm

patience me boy... patience.