Hydro-Force Ventura X2 Inflatable Kayak Set

Amazing

I'd been looking at a number of inflatable kayaks for some time; I have an inflatable dinghy and outboard which I use with my small yacht. However, this is cumbersome for occasional use, as I don't keep it inflated all of the time, and it is too big to take around in the motorhome. I therefore wanted something that could be used for both, exploring rivers and creeks with my wife or granddaughter. I'd initially been looking at the Sevylor Adventurer, as I liked the idea of a protective nylon outer hull. However, you need to spend another £50 to £70 on pump, paddles etc., on top of the £200 cost of the kayak. That's when I came across the Bestway offering. Looking at the reviews and images, there didn't seem to be a great deal of difference between this and the Sevylor (apart from this being not only cheaper, but also "ready to go", with pump and paddles (I already have lifejackets and bouyancy aids). In addition, Stour Valley Spas had a brilliant offer, which was £172 including express delivery. I went ahead, and have not been disappointed. The package arrived in excellent condition, less than 48 hours after I placed the order. On opening it all up, the instructions are a little sparse, but there's really no complexity involved, just working out the mini Boston valves and seat placing. From opening the box to first time ready to was probably 25 minutes, as you need to familiarise yourself with it. However, this gets much quicker. It doesn't come with a manometer to check pressure, but has a scale and ruler to ensure you don't over-inflate. The seats are flexible but firm padded board-type affairs, with integrated pockets in the seat backs. They are easy to adjust for fore and aft and rake, and support is excellent. While some other boats have detachable skegs, this comes with two fixed stability fins. Horses for courses; you don't need to clip on a (losable?) skeg, but when inflated it doesn't sit level on the ground, and you probably wouldn't want to load it too much until it was afloat. I haven't spent too much time on the water yet, but first impressions (quick-flowing tidal water at Reedham Ferry in Norfolk) suggests it will be directionally stable, and not too much risk of rolling. Clearly, though, you'd want to be cautious about going too far from land in rough conditions. But then that's a given, and no different from my dinghy. Deflating is fairly easy, although the floor needs one to hold the valve (it's not a Boston), but the pump can be reversed to assist. To get it into the smallest space, you need to make the lengthwise folds first, and (as with many inflatables) it doesn't necessarily want to stay folded. However, I use webbing straps, and a large nylon sailing drawstring gash bag that keeps it all in place (it doesn't come with its own stowage bag). Overall I'm delighted with it, and I'm sure we'll have great fun getting to places that the dinghy wouldn't allow (albeit using muscle power rather than four stroke!).

Ho dato 3 stelle perché ancora non l'ho provata e nel caso modificherò la recensione in futuro. Ad ogni modo, una volta montata sembra un ottimo kayak e secondo me vale il prezzo pagato. Per quanto riguarda le pagaie, anche se non sembrano essere di ottima qualità, posso dire che non mi sembrano eccessivamente pesanti e penso vadano bene per l'uso destinato al kayak. La sacca portaoggetti è traforata quindi sicuramente entra l'acqua, ma ci sta comodamente la pompa e c'è spazio anche per altro. Per quanto riguarda i sedili sembrano funzionali al loro scopo di alleggerire gli sforzi alla schiena e le tasche posteriori penso abbiano una capienza di circa 10L ( non nutro molte speranze per la zip, che credo sia meglio non sforzarla troppo, andando a riempire la tasca fino a farla esplodere). Per il resto... non vedo l'ora di provarla! -------------------------------------------------------------- Aggiornamento 11/05/2020 L'ho provata in un lago vicino casa per 4 ore e si è comportata benissimo. Gonfiare in maniera uniforme i canotti laterali per avere una stabilità ottimale. Le pagaie pur non essendo bellissime svolgono comunque bene il loro dovere, unica pecca, l'impugnatura; consiglio vivamente l'uso di guanti per evitare ferite alle mani.

O minha avaliação é baseada na experiência de utilização do caiaque de 10 vezes num período de 50 dias. Prós: fácil de encher, montar e desmontar (10 minutos no máximo); leve; capacidade de carga ótima; fácil de limpar Contras: os remos são muito curtos; pelo fato de ser inflável, o caiaque esvazia facilmente em contato com a aǵua fria - como solução levo a bomba de ar junto ao caiaque para uma recalibragem na volta do percurso.

Se trata de un kayak bastante completo al venir con todo lo necesario para meterlo en el agua y comenzar a navegar. Solo lo he inflado para comprobar que está todo perfecto. En cuanto a la medición de la presión, con el manómetro que trae no soy capaz de medir la del flotador que hace de suelo (de los laterales perfectamente), al tener una válvula distinta. Por lo demás, puedo decir que su calidad es buena y espero disfrutarlo al máximo.

Heute ausgepackt und ausprobiert. Die Verarbeitung macht einen guten Eindruck. Das Kajak hat 3 Luftkammern, die durch das stabile Gewebe des Bootes geschützt sind. Es war nach 10-15 Minuten aufgebaut (Anleitung hatten wir daheim vergessen), d.h. wir haben die beiden Finnen aufgesteckt, die drei Luftkammern mit der Pumpe (die ist dabei) aufgepumpt, die beiden bequemen Sitze (Gewebe und weiche Formteile) eingebaut (Sitz mit Klettband am Boden fixiert, Lehne über zwei Riemen gehalten - denkbar einfach und funktionell), die Paddel zusammengesteckt und die Halteseile festgeknotet. Dann ging's raus auf den See. Das Boot lässt sich gut steuern, dank der glatten Bodenunterseite kommt man gut voran - das macht richtig Spaß. Das Paddeln macht viel mehr Spaß als in einem gewöhnlichen Schlauchboot, man sitzt bequemer und fährt flotter. So schnell wie mit einem festen Kajak ist man natürlich nicht, aber das hatten wir auch nicht erwartet. Dafür lässt sich das Boot gut im Auto transportieren - ideal für uns als Freizeitpaddler. Wir sind zu zweit und auch mal zu dritt gefahren - kein Problem. Selbst im Stehen bin ich mal gepaddelt (ist ja gerade in) - Dank der Stabilität des Bootes geht das auch. Kleine Abstriche: Das Boot wird ohne Tragerucksack und Spritzschutz geliefert. Dieses Mini-Manko ist es aber nicht Wert, einen Stern zu streichen. Fazi: Wer nicht ein Original-Kajak aus Hartplastik haben möchte, ist mit diesem Boot meiner Meinung nach bestens bedient.