Day 60 - Prijon 'Seayak'

The first kayak I owned was a Seayak. It was the first purchase I made when I moved to South Florida from Wisconsin ten years ago. At the time my apartment was sparsely furnished with items loaned to me by friends, even my bed was a borrowed mattress on the floor. I didn't have a microwave, and my dishes consisted of a single complete setting of bowl, plate, knife, fork, and spoon. But having just completed a long canoe trip down the entire length of the Wisconsin River the summer before, there was nothing I wanted more than to get back on the water. Somehow all of the things most folks consider necessities took a back burner to a new kayak.

After finding a local kayak shop in the phone book (Atlantic Coast Kayak Company) I stopped by for a visit and timidly demoed a couple of kayaks sharing space with alligators in the freshwater canal next door to their store. I quickly realized that some instruction would be a good idea so I booked a class. The next weekend I found myself in a basics class taught by an energetic instructor (suffering from a terrible cold) his name unfortunately I have long forgotten. I was hooked on the Seayak though and shortly there after spent the better part of the first three paychecks from my new job to take a brand new yellow Prijon home to my empty apartment. The rest is history.

Today my brother Aaron has that very kayak and is still using it with his wife to explore the small lakes, rivers, and Lake Michigan shore line near their home in Manitowoc WI. When I climbed into the cockpit of the new Prijon on our dock this morning the fit brought back memories of that old boat, but things have changed with the Seayak over the last ten years. They've added a front deck day hatch which is an excellent idea, the bow seems to be fuller volume than I remember, and the rudder is a new and improved design. My outing for today was a two hour private lesson with a gentleman named Steve. We did a review and tune up of strokes he's learned over the last couple weeks and then paddled over to Mariners Cove to work on solo capsize recovery techniques. Paddling the Seayak brought back memories of my first outings in the canals behind my place in Fort Lauderdale but one thing I didn't remember is the Seayak edge turning as well as this one did today. Of course I didn't know how to edge much back then either. I still enjoy paddling the Seayak but the depth of the cockpit (and resulting height of the seat back) are much deeper than I prefer these days. I also prefer a kayak a bit narrower than the beamy 24" that the Seayak measures at it's widest point. It should be said though that anybody looking for a stable, easy edging, super tough, comfy kayak shouldn't turn their nose up at the Seayak.

Seayak Review

Manufacturer = Prijon
Brand = Prijon (imported by WildWasser)
Model = Seayak
Type = Touring
Material = Plastic
Length = 16'-1"
Width = 24"
Weight = 58 lbs.

Location = Mission Bay (private lesson)
Time = 9:00 AM
Distance = N/A
Duration = 2:00
Avg Speed = N/A
Conditions = Partly cloudy and nice