When finished the trip with the Shadow, see previous post, I was so curious about the Legend that I quickly put a backrest in it and took it to the water. After the hard seating in the Shadow the Legend was a delight. I fit exactly in the seat and the simple backstrap is a lot more comfortable. Also entering the small ocean going cockpit is no problem at all and may be even easier than the Shadow's cockpit where the thigh braces are in the way.
To my surprise the Legend didn't feel that tippy at all. Strange, I would expect it less stable than the Shadow. Of course the secundary stability must certainly be lower than the Shadow. That makes me think that with more weight the Shadow may feel less tippy also. May be I am too light for the Shadow with my 95 kg. Or may be you need some luggage to let the Shadow come out of it's shadow.
The Legend gives me a 'sporty', quick feel, somewhat like the Explorer. The maneuverability is may be a bit less than the Shadow but on edge it still carves it's turns. So, this first impression was very positive. In the evening I fitted some deck elastics to prepare for a longer trip the next day.
That day I made almost the same tour as the previous day with the Shadow. The wind was also a 2 Bft, so no serious waves but safe circumstances to test a new boat without rectrectable skeg. Well, I have to say I never missed a skeg during this trip so I need some more wind for further testing it's weathercocking behaviour. The Legend seems a fast and easy driven kayak but I don't have good speed measurements yet.
The stability of the Legend makes more sense to me than the Shadow. The transition between primary and secundary stability is more fluent. Actually, you can't feel a switching point at all. So, I don't have a problem with the stability. For me it feels about the same as the Explorer. Of course in perspective: the Skarabee, Orion and Seajett are far more stable. The Baidarka probably less but that's already a time ago.
After this trip I was rethinking my experiences with the Nigel Foster boats. Before the weekend, I got my hopes up the Legend but I was afraid it wouldn't be stable enough. And I considered the Shadow to be a more stable alternative. As it proved now I really prefer the Legend. Of course there are options to improve the behaviour of the Shadow: a better fitting seat and a different backrest. Should I try to improve these things and hope for a much better boat? But why keep the Shadow as the Legend feels good? To keep it for expeditions on sea with lots of luggage? The amount of cargo you can take with you is not that much more than in the Legend. And for kayak sailing it will be less suited than the Skarabee. So, I am not sure. On this moment the Legend is exactly the boat I was looking for: a real sea kayak and a sporty boat next to the Skarabee.
Hi, your blog is interesting to me, especially as I also had an Explorer & sold it to buy a Legend. I liked the Explorer a lot but not as much as my Valley Aquanaut LV (RM). Where the Explorer really excels though, is surfing and also it is, along with the Impex Force, the most neutral and directionally stable kayak in wind, that I have owned.
ReplyDeleteBut unfortunately, it left me with a sore back, I don't know why. I upgraded the seat with a current version and it helped but didn't end my discomfort. So when I saw a new Seaward Legend for sale, heavily discounted, I put down a deposit and sold my 2 kayaks to buy it.
About 4 months on, I love it and am very happy with the upgrade. I wish that the skeg was a little longer, the rear deck lower (a nice feature of the explorer & aquanaut LV) and that there was a security bar / towpoint behind the rear cockpit combing & some additional deck fittings on the foredeck, just to help attach a mesh deck bag. And I would prefer a flatter seat pan but that's always subjective. The legend is a pleasure to paddle in rough & calm conditions. I find it surfs very well (& I'm talking about surf, not ocean runners) and avoids pearling, though not as well as the explorer. I'm making up a lightweight footboard for it, which I think will add to it's versatility and have raised the seat a few mm, so I could glue a foam pad to the deck, under the seat as I was already seeing wear from beach sand trapped between seat & hull.
Despite the seat being slightly higher than stock, I'm happy with it's stability and I've removed the excellent IR backband and fitted the simple NDK one that came with the explorer seat replacement, simply because it weighs significantly less. My legend is lighter and easier to lift on and off the car than any other 17' kayaks I've owned, apart from the locally made Nadgee & Mirage kayaks. It responds so beautifully to edging and I don't see myself ever selling this boat, while I am still able to paddle. They seem quite rare in Australia and I guess that might be because Nigel Foster is not as good at business and marketing as some of the other manufacturers that have survived in a tough market. Personally, I think his Whiskey 16 design is great as well and also doesnt get the recognition it deserves.
Hi, thanks for your comment. Your experiences with the Explorer and Legend seem identical to mine. Here in Holland Nigel Foster boats are also quite rare. I now have sold the Legend because the fit was too tight but I am still very happy with my Shadow.
DeleteA belated thanks for replying :)
ReplyDeleteStill happy with the Legend, still not a fan of the seat pan, but have moved house & need a good shed to work on resolving this. I did want to say that from experience with many different kayaks, dead flat deck or straight hull panels have no place on a sea kayak! This is what let down the explorer & greenlander pro IMO. They work well in some conditions but present too much of a hard edge to water or wind in other conditions. Foster designs have subtle curves & lines that soften the impact & due to good design, work with those forces to provide a better performance and resiliance in conditions.
I have no doubt your bigger version is the same, it only gets blown about a bit because of it's greater volume.