B O A T i N s i D e r
Not just in the Z.one, right on the mark.
Photo viRGinia MaRShall
go the distaNce
PYRANHA’S Z.ONe HAS THE HEART OF A RIVER PLAY BOAT LION
WHEN RoCkY BALBoA hit theatres in 2006 after & kayak Uk) magazine even awarded the boat Our testers noted that the Z.One’s narrow, fast
16 years sans Rocky, film aficionados scoffed that their Kayak Design of the Decade award in 2004 hull accelerated like a rocket on peel-outs and
Stallone and crew were striving for the impossible before the InaZone was outmoded by rodeo fever made for quick and slick transitions when carving
in trying to recapture the glory of the greatest un- and newer freestyle designs. in and out of eddies or working a surf on a dynam-
derdog story of our time. Still, we bought tickets With the Z.One, Pyranha designer Graham ic wave. The Z.One’s fast hull also means that the
and watched anyway, curious to see how Sly’s ag- Mackereth says he wanted to create a boat that boat carries its speed and direction after just a few
ing pecs and old-school moves performed after was more stable, manoeuvrable and comfortable strokes, giving developing paddlers a predictable
all these years. than its predecessor. He set out to design a kayak platform from which to focus on the river.
Where Rocky VI failed (as, of course, we knew that would help beginner and intermediate pad- Mackereth says there’s one more important de-
it would), kayak designers seem to have scored dlers improve their paddling, but also feel familiar mographic he had in mind while designing the
a knockout. Boat designs of yesteryear that until to fans of the InaZone. “We wanted the Z.One to Z.One, “Older paddlers who want a cool kayak
recently were derided as outdated—even embar- be a really sporty classic kayak that could catch that allows them to surf and play a bit without hurt-
rassing—have been reconceived and released waves, surf, eddy hop and just make it fun to carve ing their body or ego.”
anew. Last year’s sentimental sensation was your way down a river,” he says. In appealing to these Rocky fans on the river,
Liquidlogic’s Remix. This year, flashback fever Mackereth began by tweaking the InaZone’s Mackereth has created a real contender for the
has jumped the pond, with English boat builder hull shape—lengthening it and increasing bow modern river play belt. —V.M.
Pyranha unveiling the Z.One, a resurrected and rocker to give it greater speed and lift—then mov-
redesigned InaZone. ing on to the deck where he raised the knees and
PYraNha Z.ONe s/M/l
According to Pyranha, when the InaZone was rounded out the sidewalls. Offered in three sizes LENGTH ........................................ 8’1/8’4/8’7”
introduced in 1999 to a market predominated by that stretch from 8’1” to 8’7”, the Z.One’s length
WIDTH .....................................25”/25.5”/26.8”
Necky Jives, it quickly became the most popular is compensated by a highly rockered stern that
VOLUME.............................. 48/56/69 US GAL
planing hull boat in the world. Playful and user creates a surprisingly short and nimble waterline.
friendly, it was the kayaking everyman’s do-it-all Mackereth says softer edges and a loose hull
WEIGHT................................35/37.6/39.4 LBS
boat. In our 1999 freestyle kayak test, Rapid stat- make long surfs on even shallow, fast waves a
PADDLER ..... 100–185/140–210/165–250 LBS
ed the InaZone was “well on its way to being the breeze and the slicey, low volume tail is quick and
PRICE .........................$1,099 US/$1,299 CDN
best all-round playboat.” Playboating (now Canoe stable to squirt.
pyranha.com
Rapid early summer 2009
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