“It’s great to see a little
extra length coming back into style with creek boat designers. You can dig in and be rewarded. I’ve missed the feel of the jet ferry.”
“As nutty as
its designer.”
DAGGER
NOMAD 8.1
Sometimes wandering creek boat designers come up with just the right length/rocker combination that satisfies the needs of big water speed freaks and technical creekers alike. With the Dagger Nomad they seem to have nailed it—it has enough length for the speed and momentum needed to punch holes, and sufficient rocker to lend it agile manoeuvrability and enough bow lift to get you up and out of the water. The sculpted decks shed water smoothly, but you seldom have to worry about water loading your edge and sending you for a rinse— the Nomad’s generous rear volume rides you up and over holes with little tendency to backender. Iniside, the reviewers liked the Flipswitch backband for quick ins and outs. The backband locks you into your pre-set position with the flick of two switches. The step out front pillar is such a simple safety feature we wonder why it’s not standard on all creek boats. With more volume, length and
resulting speed than its predeces- sor the CFS, the Nomad is more of an all round creek boat taking Dagger into pushier waters and expeditions.
DRAGOROS S I MAFIA
Maverick designer Corran Addison’s latest contribution to creeking is as idiosyncratic, non-conforming and potentially rewarding as the rest of his creations. The Mafia’s sweeping, gradual rocker deliv-
NOMAD 8.1 Overall ........................... 9.6 Acceleration ......................10 Manoeuvrability ..............9.5 Stability .............................9.7 Resurfacing ......................8.9 Boof-ability .......................8.9 Outfitting ...........................10 Tracking .............................10
ers lively manoeuvrability that’s accentuated by the pronounced edges allowing skilled paddlers to redirect their lines midway through a rapid or carve into eddies like they’re in a playboat. Control them and the edges allow for great tracking, ignore them and the same edges and large flat surfaces are caught and de- flected when paddling through holes, waves or across currents. With great acceleration and a short, rock-
ered stern the Mafia was born to boof. Pen- cil a drop, however, and some testers were surprised at how slowly the bow resurfaced. Dragorossi claims this is intentional. The bow is designed to maintain forward motion while resurfacing—like a torpedo—to get you down- stream and away from the recirculation without backendering. Dragorossi has introduced a breathing tube
Length ................................. 8’ Width .............................25.5” Weight .........................42 lbs Volume ........................68 gal Weight Range 120–170 lbs Price ...................$1,299 Cdn ...................................$999 US
www.dagger.com
CREEKERS’ FEEDBACK: Step out pillar. Six rescue points. Drain plug. Seat doesn’t adjust easily. Excessive hull wear around seat. Not easy to access storage behind seat.
coming from the enclosed stern compartment. It is designed to be grabbed and lifted to your mouth so you can breath in the event of an un- derwater pin. It’s hard to say if you’d have the presence of mind to use it in an emergency, but full marks for ambition and innovation. Less radical but still innovative is the seat
and foot bulkhead that are mounted on rails, making fore-aft adjustments just a matter of re- moving or loosening four finger-bolts and slid- ing the whole assembly where you want it. The tapering hull shape requires a nar-
row knee position, making it best for smaller boaters who are willing to give up some pre- dictability and forgiveness in order to gain re- sponsiveness. Ideal for low-volume rivers and technical moves.
MAFIA Overall ............................7.7 Acceleration ........................9 Manoeuvrability ..............7.8 Stability .............................6.7 Resurfacing ......................8.7 Boof-ability .......................8.6 Outfitting ..........................6.1 Tracking ............................7.3
Length ..........................7’ 10” Width ...........................25.25” Weight ............................. n/a Volume ........................72 gal Weight Range ..150–240 lbs Price ...................$1,699 Cdn ................................$1,400 US
www.canoa.it/dragorossi
CREEKERS’ FEEDBACK: Stern hatch to easily access storage area. Cool breathing tube. Difficult to pad hip area. More expensive.
creekboats 39
RAPID
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