Hi all, I am Tom, a University of Bristol Canoe Club member. I started paddling 3 years ago at university and have been hooked ever since. I have taken on two committee roles within the canoe club in the past two years, including captaining our club this year, as I am dedicated to getting more people into this amazing sport.
I started out using club kit and then bought a second-hand Pyranha Burn III, which served me well as a stable platform to build confidence. However, I was looking for something that would be a little bit more fun on the river and challenge my paddling technique. I demoed lots of boats on the Tryweryn from Radical Rider (I highly recommend going here to test kayaks, as they have all sizes and makes). After a day of paddling many boats, it became clear that the Ripper 2 Large was the one for me. I am quite a tall paddler at 6’4”, and I have long legs, so a lot of the boats I tried were uncomfortable. The Ripper 2 Large, with its raised knee position, meant I was able to be comfortable and in control.
I am currently a solid grade 3+ paddler and trying to push to grade 4. I mainly paddle my boat in Dartmoor and South Wales (my local kayaking spots), and the Ripper 2 is well-suited to many rivers here. The kayak’s large bow rocker makes it surf really well, which makes even lower-grade rivers super fun when you find play spots. The tail of the kayak is great for playing around in eddies and on taily lines. For me, in the large model, there is just the right amount of playfulness so that you can have fun while not feeling like you are constantly going to be back-looped when doing more creek-style paddling.
Another great feature of the Ripper 2 is its sharp side rails, meaning that it turns really well into eddies. This allows you to snap into small, even boat-length eddies with ease. The straight line speed of the kayak, combined with its bow rocker, allows it to skip over holes and “boof” over edges. This made me feel much more comfortable when paddling the Upper Dart and the Aberglaslyn Gorge for the first time.
As someone who is now leading new paddlers in our club, I believe that the Ripper 2 Large provides the perfect level of stability, control, and fun to demonstrate and hopefully inspire newcomers to the sport. The kayak also, despite the slice of its tail, has ample room for equipment.
I would thoroughly recommend the Ripper 2 Large if you are a taller paddler like myself and want a boat that is capable of doing pretty much all rivers and messing around without having to buy multiple different boats. I look forward to continuing to develop and learn in this boat, and I look forward to hopefully paddling this and other Pyranha boats in the future.
Thanks,
Tom