Njord – Justin Boocock

Friday, November 4, 2016 (Launchings, Njord), 2 comments

A new Njord from down under (Tasmania).

"Hi Bjorn,
Thought I'd send you a photo of the new boat and a few words to put on
your web site.

Launched the new boat after the winter build. This is my first wooden boat build so wanted to keep it pretty simple - butt joints and bog. I'm not a fan of perfection when it comes to a kayak that I plan to heavily use but did want it light and strong. I went for 5mm WRC with 1.5 layers glass inside and out. I omitted bulkheads and hatchs because i wasn't confident on making them water tight and hate maintenance. I added air bags for buoyancy, to be removed if required for gear stowage. I also went for a skeg just behind the cockpit for easy access. Turned out pretty good considering my lack of sanding – 16kg and stiff as. Even looks ok!

The paddle. I've only been out once so far but it was a great test paddle in 25 knots, cliffs and waves. I found the boat a bit stiff in the water to start with but got the hang of it pretty quickly. The boat is quick to accelerate and maintains a high speed with ease. The deck is pretty low but I presume that helps with the wind. Skeg works a breeze to keep tracking in cross winds. Plenty of stability.

I would consider going a bit shorter, say 530cm to help with manoeuvring but that would decrease speed. I would also like to locally raise the deck around knees but this would be hard with strips. So all in all I think it is a great all round boat that is a joy to paddle and looks good.

Thanks Björn. Time to get amongst it!
Justin"