Last weekend I had the pleasure of spending my birthday with my wife, good friends and in the most amazing freestyle boat I have had in my 20 years of boating. Most boats are one-dimensional and are good at specific aspects of freestyle, but fail to meet the standards at other playspots. Many of my previous boats have either spun well, cartwheeled, looped big or paddled downriver, but never did any one boat excel at it all…until now. The 2010 Jackson Kayak All Star does everything so well, it is a dream to paddle. On the Ocoee River, I realized that each move I have executed throughout the past 20 years was suddenly easier and more consistent allowing me to feel as if I was running the Ocoee for the first time. What a great experience it was while productive as I was able to take the opportunity to work on almost every move depicted in the Triktionary. Make sure you get in this boat and try it, I cannot recommend it enough. The All Star will change your view of freestyle kayaking and make all the moves you are working on so much easier to hit. So, If you see me on the river, please don’t hesitate to ask to try it out. It is truly indescribable so give it a shot and see for yourself. The following are top ten reasons to paddle the 2010 All Star though I’m sure you will find there are so many more.
10 reasons you should paddle
a 2010 Jackson Kayak All-Star
1. Speed/ Faster- The 2010 All Star is faster than 2007 All-Star despite being 4 inches shorter. It actually holds speed better toward the corner than any other boat I have ever paddled. This makes setting up for moves easier, better downriver freestyle moves and more consistently surfing those hard to get waves like the top wave at Hell Hole.
2. Edge to edge transition- The boat has great edge-to-edge transition. Whether getting speed to the corner or carving to the top of the pile the edge to edge transition is great for setting up for moves. In addition the boats edges aids in your downriver creativity because you can change from one carve to another so quickly.
3. Comfort- The boat is narrower but has more knee and foot room making you train harder with no breaks. With the Happy Feet, Happy Seat/ Thruster Combo, 200 beaded Sweet Cheeks there is nowhere you do not have contact with your body parts that are essential for doing any freestyle trick. The new hip pad design holds your hips into the backband giving you more response when you are upside down or trying to roll quickly. Comfort also plays a key roll in your learning curve. If you can not stay comfortable in the boat you can never paddle it as long as you want to. Being comfortable definitely aids in learning faster.
4. Volume Distribution- With all the volume around the cockpit you are more retentative, get air more consistently and have a better center of balance, giving you an easier time sticking all the moves. The volume distribution also aids in paddling downriver because you can still turn the boat quickly but it resurfaces well in the waves and holes.
5. Hull- Many features are either easy to set up on by bouncing down the face or spinning on the corner. This boat is amazingly good at bouncing down the face or spinning to the corners. This makes all features extremely fun because any move is possible. The hull of the boat that gives you endless possibilities at any playspot will not limit you. The boat spins, carves and surfs better than any boat I have paddled yet.
6. Downriver Ability- This is one thing many people were worried about because the boat is so short but do not worry because this boat is a dream to paddle downriver. The boat length, resurfacing ability, edge-to-edge transition, speed and comfort make it hard to put into words how fun it is. Just take it out and see for yourself. You can make a class 2 rapid feel so much harder but still stick the lines on the class 4 rapids.
7. Boat Length- The boat is shorter making moves easier because you have less swing weight and will not hit bottom. The length also aids in completing moves because you can throw it around faster and stronger. Just go back to your favorite spot and you will hit more moves in a day than ever before. With this length the downriver moves will really open your eyes because you can commit to rapids that usually would not have the depth to attempt them.
8. Old School Ability- Even though the boat is short it still held stability on edge and on ends. This enables splats, blasts, bow and stern stalls, wavewheels, blunts and super cleans to be more prevalent and consistent. When you can throw a huge loop into 50 ends without stopping the possibilities are endless. The future is now upon us. Get in the boat as soon as possible.
9. Multi colors- Get your boat with the colors you want and have your niche on the water.
10. Goes bigger- Because of all the things we have talked about the result is bigger/ faster moves. You can throw more consistent big moves because of the length but when you get to the right spot you can absolutely go huge. This boat is unbelievably amazing and I cannot wait to get it out on the Locust Fork (Home of NAWF) and the Mulberry Fork of the Warrior.
Because I had so much fun on my birthday I decided to tell you my top ten things that I did on my birthday weekend.
Top 10 things I did on the Ocoee River for my birthday.
- Paddled the 2010 All Star on a river with thousands of playspots.
- Brought my wife (Great company and you get more photos.)
- Got into a Mega Rocker at Hell Hole and did huge enders and pirouettes.
- I saw a black bear, Gray Fox and Emily Jackson Troutman. No Nick though
- Taught a playboating clinic the first day I got there with a Father and Son from Texas.
- Did a 5 second mystery move at Flipper in a plastic boat.
- Took a friend down the entire river for the first time. (Way to go Kelley)
- Did a Macho Move so big I landed looking right back at the raft in front of me.
- Mountain biked 4.5 miles downhill Chilhowee Mountain in 20 minutes.
- Threw a 50-point cartwheel somewhere on the Ocoee River.
After 20 years of boating and it being my 20th year on the Ocoee River I want to tell EJ thank you. David and EJ have completely outdone themselves on this new boat. Way to go guys. I am proud to say that I paddle for Jackson Kayaks and look forward to building a foundation to start kid’s programs in the Southeast.
Hope to see everyone on the river soon.
Jeremy Adkins
Triktionary.wordpress.com
NAWFest.com
Until Next Time!!!
Tags: 2010 all star, Triktionary, alabama, all star, flyinskeleton, freestyle, jeremy adkins, kayak, nawfest
