KAYAK REVIEWS Xplore by Tiderace Sea

Xplore—a proven expedition with a performance edge, a balance between load carrying, speed and seaworthiness. This kayak is capable of multi-week expeditions in the toughest conditions. The dynamic position gives paddlers all the feedback they need to tackle challenging seas. Its computer-honed hull shape squeezes away residual drag at a fast cruising pace, making this the leanest touring kayak in the Tiderace range. This hull is designed to give a reactive and responsive ride—it rewards the paddler who enjoys edging through the turns and catching waves while paddling downwind. The Xplore is suited to paddlers ranging between 5' 6" and 6' 3", and weighing up to 238 lbs. (17 stone/108 kg). –Aled Williams, designer

Length overall 17' 11 ½" Reviewers Beam 20 7⁄8" GL: 5' 11", 165-pound male. Day , wind to Volume 12.8 cu. ft. 10 knots, 1-foot chop. 45 pounds of cargo. Cockpit size 16 ½" × 30" RG: 6' 2", 220-pound male. Day trip, wind at 15 knots, Cockpit coaming height: gusting to 18–20, waves to 2 ½ feet. No cargo. Forward 12 ½" TW: 6' 1", 180-pound male. Day trip, Winds to 25+ knots. Aft 7 1⁄8" Wind waves to 4 feet. No cargo. Height of seat 1 ¾" Weight 60 ¼ lbs.

THE REVIEW The seat is bolted to coaming First Glance flanges and can be adjusted fore The Xplore is a “great-looking long and lean kayak, and aft. “It is short, allowing with nice lines and a smooth finish. It feels rock solid— easy entry and exit from the absolutely no oil-canning. The inside seam is glassed cockpit without catching a heel, except for the last foot or so of the bow and stern. and while it was a little steep at There is excellent reinforcing fiberglass in all the right the front for my taste, it was places. It is solidly constructed overall” (GL). TW “ex- comfortable” (TW). The back- pected the Xplore to be heavy but I was pleasantly sur- rest, a padded plastic band that prised to find that I could hoist it on one shoulder pivots on the seat hangers, is without any extra effort. It even felt a bit lighter than adjustable by undoing the pivot comparable designs.” bolts. It “flexes just enough to al- Recessed deck fittings anchor “stout perimeter lines low laybacks” (GL) and “provided and shock cord. A couple of loops of shock cord pro- support to my lower back without vided spare storage; a nice touch. The rigging pinching or binding” (TW). The was sparse immediately behind the cockpit making a padded thigh-brace flanges offer reentry challenging” (TW). RG didn’t miss “excellent control and comfort, the deck lines: “There is a generous area with pressure spread across a broad immediately behind the cockpit rim to grasp while area of the thigh” (GL). The thigh securing one’s paddle-and-float combination to remount braces “contacted my legs a little the . That’s my preference, anyway.” too close to my hips and my legs Fit and Outfitting were forced a little straighter than I The keyhole cockpit is “fairly long and it was easy for would prefer. For shorter legs the fit me to sit down in the seat and bring the legs in after- would be excellent” (TW). “The thigh ward one at a time. The cockpit volume is fairly low, braces bit into my thighs a bit, but without a lot of space behind the seat or in front of held me well when I was upside the foot pedals. Overall the fit was excellent for func- down” (RG). tion” (GL). “The cockpit opening was adequate but RG reported “the skeg jammed on a not large, a nice compromise for my size. I found the pebbly beach, but I’ve never seen a skeg width to be just right” (TW). RG’s size-13 feet were not jam on pebbles. At least the cable “completely comfortable.” The foot braces had “con- didn’t kink.” Neither GL nor TW had trou- trol rods for quick and easy adjustment. They felt ble with the skeg: “I found the control easy quite solid and provided excellent energy transfer for to slide and the skeg did not chatter or aggressive paddling” (TW). flutter while I was paddling” (TW).

12 Sea Kayaker | June 2011 Stability and Maneuverability very good sprint The Xplore’s initial stability was rated as speed and ex­ BEST FEATURES “low—it feels tippy” (GL), “light” (RG) cellent cruising • Speed and “a tad bit more tender than some speed.” The Xplore • Tracking expedition kayaks; it isn’t a kayak that I “feels fast. Accel­ would select for bird-watching or pho- eration is effort- TO IMPROVE tography” (TW). Secondary stability less. I was able • Thigh-brace fit was, respectively, “moderate—you lean to cruise at 3.5 up against a pretty secure edge,” “mod- knots without est—the kayak can be edged securely putting forth a significant exertion. It with the spray deck edge in the water” was fast to accelerate, making surfing and “predictable—in high winds and large wind waves a blast” (TW). rough seas the Xplore provides constant Rescue and Rolling feedback letting you quickly respond to The Xplore’s “thigh braces, solid foot pegs the waves.” and low back deck made performing a The Xplore “tracks very well with just variety of rolls easy” (GL). “It required a tiny bit of yaw. Though it is not a little effort to roll, but the lack of second- quick turner, steering with leaned turns ary stability meant I needed to be sure I was very good” (GL). “Highly edged, was fully upright and balanced. It was aggressive turns require attention to not conducive to lazy technique. The balance. Minor course corrections Xplore is well suited for reentry and roll- The accommodations aboard the Xplore require minor input that the Xplore ing techniques” (TW). Wet exiting responds to wonderfully” (TW). “should be practiced because the narrow place. With a load of 45 pounds aboard, GL noted “moderate weathercocking keyhole demands a summersault-type the Xplore “turns easily with no notice- in a 10-knot breeze and one-foot chop, exit or one leg at a time. Reentry and roll able effect on speed once the kayak got enough that I felt the need to drop the was easy sliding in with straight legs to up to cruising” (GL). skeg. Without skeg help it was hard enter the cockpit. I did a cowboy reentry Bottom Line work turning downwind, but the skeg in moderately rough waves without GL thought the Xplore “favors the long worked perfectly to eliminate weather­ much difficulty. Most water drains from haul, with nothing left out. Easy to roll, cocking when partly deployed, and it the cockpit with a single lift from the it has great tracking, fast cruising speed leecocked to aid downwind turning bow” (GL). and ample and easy gear stowage. when fully deployed.” For TW “the han- Cruising Expedition paddlers, put it on your dling was excellent and manageable in RG thought he “could get a week to ten short list.” RG noted “the design is moderate winds. The Xplore had a ten- days’ worth of gear aboard.” “The small meant for fast touring but it is still dency to weathercock with beam winds compartment on the foredeck was my agile, responsive and quick. The finish but that was manageable using the skeg. favorite feature. I was able to stash safety and attention to detail is exceptional. With winds of 25 knots or so the Xplore gear, cell phone and lunch in an immedi- Its speed for a good touring pace or tended to point 15 degrees to either side ately accessible location without upset- quick acceleration to play in features is of a head-on course. It did not want to ting my balance or risking flooding a quite useful. A versatile craft, for a go straight into the wind. The Xplore compartment” (TW). The KajakSport one-boat quiver.” For TW, “though the was a relatively dry ride. The bow was hatch covers are tethered and “kept the fit was a little uncomfortable, the buoyant and did not pearl when surfing interior bone-dry, despite being awash Xplore was fun to paddle and has all wind waves, and waves splashing onto for several miles” (RG). GL also noted all the traits of an outstanding touring the foredeck shed quickly and cleanly.” compartments were dry after trials. TW kayak. It would be better suited for ad- Speed found “about a half-cup of water in the vanced kayakers who are comfortable For RG the Xplore was “highly efficient day hatch after paddling in storm condi- with their skill set or for aggressive in- at getting to speed for a typical touring tions and practicing rolls and rescues.” termediate paddlers who are enjoying pace.” GL noted it had “OK acceleration, The composite bulkheads are glassed in the challenge of acquiring new skills.”

MANUFACTURER’S RESPONSE that suitable deck mounted tow systems may be fitted easily. We would like to thank Sea Kayaker and the reviewing paddlers for The Xplore family of expedition comprises three model sizes: their assessment of the Xplore. The design specification we set our- Xplore S, Xplore and Xplore X. The S and X are scaled to suit smaller and selves for the Xplore was ambitious. Our aim was to build a boat that larger paddlers respectively. The Xplore tested was an early model and bettered the competition. It had to: go faster and turn quicker, be more adjustments were made to subsequent production with attention paid stable and respond quickly to paddler input, be tough for expedition to the seat/thigh brace dimension. Primarily designed as a load-carrying abuse yet light to carry, and be comfortable for hours on end yet fitted expedition kayak, the Xplore was also designed to be responsive and for precise control. A tough challenge! agile when paddled empty. The Xplore benefits from a computer de- The core employed in the hull and deck laminates prevents oil-canning. signed hull which is shaped to provide maximum efficiency at a fast Our hull and deck moldings overlap at the seam, this join is bonded, then cruising pace of 4 knots and above, a feature noticed by all testers. tapes are glassed both inside and out to give quadruple thickness— Tiderace wishes to thank the testers for appreciating the Xplore as bombproof! This construction method also allows us to bond and glass a high-performance expedition kayak. We set our sights high when in the composite bulkheads for maximum strength. The four-hatch designing this boat; we’re proud that it delivers. layout maximizes internal storage space. The rear deck is kept clear so –Tiderace Design Team

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xplore Manufacturing Data SPEED VS. RESISTANCE Designed: 2007 (2011 model year tested) Resistance in pounds. Standard construction: Classic: TCT laminate Speed Winters/KAPER Broze/Taylor* with unidirectional fiberglass and epoxy. 2 knots 0.93 0.91 Optional construction: Hardcore: 3 knots 1.94 1.94 woven fibreglass deck and hybrid of fiberglass 4 knots 3.53 3.59 and Kevlar/carbon hull. Hardcore PRO: 4.5 knots 5.07 5.00 Righting/Heeling Moments (Fixed-weight) Vacuum infused fiberglass deck and fiberglass/ 5 knots 7.65 7.57 Kevlar/carbon fabrics and core in the hull. 6 knots 13.63 13.75 Standard Features: Thigh braces, composite *auto mated with the Gertler program seat and adjustable foot braces, four-hatch by Robert Livingston layout with lightweight covers, reflective deck HYDROSTATICS lines, compass recess, and skeg.

Weight: Classic 58.4 lbs. (26.5 kg) Hardcore Waterline length 15' 8.2" pounds Foot 56.2 lbs. (25.5 kg) Hardcore Pro 51.8 lbs. (23.5 kg) Waterline beam 20.1" Price: Classic, $3,749 U.S.; Hardcore, $4,199 U.S.; Draft 5.5" Hardcore Pro, $4,649 U.S. Prismatic coefficient 0.50 Degrees of Heel Availability: See website for dealers Wetted surface in sq. ft. 21.90 Stability Curves* Manufacturer: Tiderace Sea Kayaks, Center of buoyancy 46.5% — 150 lb. paddler, no cargo +44 1768-840-179, [email protected], (Hydrostatics calculated with a 250-pound load.) — 200 lb. paddler, no cargo www.tideraceseakayaks.co.uk — 150 lb. paddler, 100 lb. cargo — 200 lb. paddler, 100 lb. cargo TECH TALK: Readers interested in the full set with additional data. An explanation of the of hydro­statics can find them posted on our terms and procedures used in the kayak test website at www.seakayakermag.com along program is also available on the site. *Formula revised December 2009. (Not comparable with stability graphs generated prior to December 2009.)

1 year: US: $23.95 USD Canada: $25.95 USD Other countries: $33.95 USD www.seakayakermag.com

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