Big Gun
Running the Box of Climax - Russell Fork Gorge
Riot has definately redeemed themselves in the eyes of many SE creekers after the release of the Kix with their new Big Gun. Riot said that it would make hard runs much more managable and they hit the nail on the head. I found myself able to recover from blown boofs and bad lines easier in the Big Gun than in any other creekboat that Ive paddled. It almost babysits you down the creek. The Big Gun is very bouyant and pops to the surface quickly. The displacement hull is a nice touch and adds alot of hull speed and makes for soft landings off of big drops. The D3 seat is a nice touch and allows you to get a nice snug fit in the moulded in thighooks. The lack of a foam wall and thighhooks makes getting in and out of the Big Gun really easy. Here is a review I posted on BoaterTalk:
The Big Gun has some nice features: First there are 4 attachment points around the cockpit for extra safety. Secondly the cockpit is very large and easy to get out of. Thirdly there is no bow pillar which makes the Big Gun rather comfortable and roomy. The Big Gun has large plastic handles that are very comfortable. Also it has the D3 seat for adjustment. Finally and possibly most importantly, it is made of Xytec plastic which is bomber. Very strong and Wear resistant. My Kix was made of Xytec and after freefalling 25 feet into a 10' deep pool and breaking my foot, the Kix didn't have the slightest blemish, break or crack!
I had a Kix before and the it was a good big water/creek boat, but didn't seem to handle well in funky water and steeper creeks for me. I think at 225lbs I might have been a little heavy for the Kix, but not the Big Gun. The largest paddlers can fit easily into the Big Gun, it's huge.
Right off the bat I noticed 2 things: 1) it's speed and 2) its stability. It is super quick and really stable/easy to roll. It seemed to babysit me the whole way down the river. At tower falls I blew my boof and instead of crashing and burning, as soon as the super bouyant bow hit the water it flattened the boat out and kept me from either pitoning or getting surfed in the nasty hole. I really liked this. It is really easy to boof, I just picked a bad spot to launch from.
It also excells at punching holes, which I found to be particullary pleasing. At 2nd drop of tripple drop I plowed straight into the guts of the hole and punched right through it like a hot knife in butter. Also I dropped into the meat of the hole in El Horendo and learned about the Big Guns ability to resurface which is excellent due to the large amounts of volume.
All in all I am really liking this boat....if you want something to babysit you, this might just be your boat. I was a little anxious about running the RF this weekend because I missed about 3 months of paddling this summer/fall after a nasty crash on the local waterfall, but I have to say that this was by far the easiest day I have had on the Russell Fork.