Esquif Nitro....best of both worlds?
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- jatakasawa
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Esquif Nitro....best of both worlds?
I may acquire an Esquif Nitro this weekend. I've seen 'em on small water and big water. Saw one on the Lower Gauley this past fall. Spotted the same one on the Lehigh river and several on the Youghigheny. Now, short of steep-creeking, is it safe to assume a Nitro is a good boat for all around WW use....could I paddle technical and tight creeks comfortably and yet feel good about running the L. Gauley?
Chester the Brace Monkey.
- jatakasawa
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Thanks for the info. The Nitro will be by my only boat for a while. I just sold my Mad River ME and thought about getting a small playboat..ie.; Phantom, Prelude or Zoom...but then I thought that I'd be limited to creeking instead of being able to hit big water and creeks. The Nitro seems like a good balance for now. Thanks again.
Chester the Brace Monkey.
- marclamenace
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Ditto on that. The big advantage of the nitro would be to me luggage capacity. You can do overnights easily in a nitro that's why so many people have them around here as a one boat do-it-all.djutzi wrote:I wouldn't worry about a Zoom or Prelude not being able to handle big water. I've seen plenty of people running some pretty big stuff in boats like the Zoom, Prelude, Solito, etc.
Watch out; that river has rocks on the bottom.
- jatakasawa
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a nitro was the first open boat i bought, and my one-boat quiver for quite a while. i got into the boat coming from a borrowed encore. my skills weren't great, nor was my confidence level when i got the boat. i had a rather steep (read wet and inverted) learning curve in the boat and got my tail kicked a for a bit....then i finally got the be comfortable w/ the edges and the stability that the boat has to offer once you trust it.
i still have the boat, though i haven't paddled it much lately, since getting the fly. i like the boat, can't quite say i love it. it does lots of things well and it did work well as my only boat for a while.
hope those two pesos worth are helpful...[/b]
i still have the boat, though i haven't paddled it much lately, since getting the fly. i like the boat, can't quite say i love it. it does lots of things well and it did work well as my only boat for a while.
hope those two pesos worth are helpful...[/b]
ain't nothin but water, rocks, and gravity
- jatakasawa
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nitro
Yup,what he said,i.ve got a nitro and a h3 255 c-1,good to go.Was looking to trade for a fly or something but in no hurry to get rid of it.Great boat for learning and playing,i find a little big for real small creeking,hence the c-1.But a great all around boat.Love it for western big water.Get it,and get a pump!!you won't regret it.
That wasn't carnage,watch this...
I happened to test a prelude and a nitro last weekend, paddling a viper11 as my own boat.
And I must say I really didn't like the nitro. It is soooo stable, you really have to pull hard to get that boat tilted.
The grain of salt is that I was mainly paddling a prelude . And I didn't have my viper there for comparison.
What I do am sure of, is that the nitro is a rather slow boat, but in comparison with my viper it runs a whole lot dryer.
The Nitro wouldn't be my first choise, but hey, that's a personal preference!
And I must say I really didn't like the nitro. It is soooo stable, you really have to pull hard to get that boat tilted.
The grain of salt is that I was mainly paddling a prelude . And I didn't have my viper there for comparison.
What I do am sure of, is that the nitro is a rather slow boat, but in comparison with my viper it runs a whole lot dryer.
The Nitro wouldn't be my first choise, but hey, that's a personal preference!
if the question was...
As for these two questions:
2. depends entirely upon you
... I would not call it the best of both.Esquif Nitro....best of both worlds?
As for these two questions:
- Now, short of steep-creeking, is it safe to assume a Nitro is a good boat for all around WW use....
- could I paddle technical and tight creeks comfortably and yet feel good about running the L. Gauley?
2. depends entirely upon you
- jatakasawa
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Tony..I like how you added that note about getting a creeker in a year or so. I was talking to Tom and telling him I was thinking about looking for a C1 instead of an OC1...going from one extreme to the other. But I'm glad I'll be back in an open boat....the progression will feel more natural.
As for the Gauley....it beckons and I must oblige.
As for the Gauley....it beckons and I must oblige.
Chester the Brace Monkey.
I am new to solo canoeing, so take what I have to say with a helping of salt. Most of my modest experience is in tandem boats.
I acquired a used Nitro and started paddling it late this winter, and here are my initial thoughts after ½ a dozen outings. First time out, easy class II (first time solo paddling, too), the boat sent me swimming three times (likely my inexperience), and I had difficulty getting into all but the biggest of eddys. In flatish water, I find the boat to be squirrelly. The boat turns on a dime. If have found that if you paddle it too fast forward, it will spin around backwards (perhaps I am too far back?). In heavier water (class II+), the boat chews up the meat of drops with a stability that is confidence inspiring. It seems like the boat likes turbulence more than flats.
As I’ve become more accustomed to it, the boat is becoming more responsive to my steering inputs and eddy attempts. I am looking forward to getting it on some more continuous Class III stuff to see how it handles bigger drops.
I acquired a used Nitro and started paddling it late this winter, and here are my initial thoughts after ½ a dozen outings. First time out, easy class II (first time solo paddling, too), the boat sent me swimming three times (likely my inexperience), and I had difficulty getting into all but the biggest of eddys. In flatish water, I find the boat to be squirrelly. The boat turns on a dime. If have found that if you paddle it too fast forward, it will spin around backwards (perhaps I am too far back?). In heavier water (class II+), the boat chews up the meat of drops with a stability that is confidence inspiring. It seems like the boat likes turbulence more than flats.
As I’ve become more accustomed to it, the boat is becoming more responsive to my steering inputs and eddy attempts. I am looking forward to getting it on some more continuous Class III stuff to see how it handles bigger drops.
- FullGnarlzOC
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Bigger/more stable than the det. you'll be fine. grip it and rip it.
http://www.gnarlzoutdoors.com
Silverbirch Canoes - North American Distributor
Email: tom@gnarlzoutdoors.com
Silverbirch Canoes - North American Distributor
Email: tom@gnarlzoutdoors.com