After a couple of weeks of test paddling on Beaver Pond and Horsetooth Reservoir including some windy winter condition JKK Supernova kayak was added to my paddling fleet.

First thing I had to do was to customize a cockpit. A narrow hanging seat was removed and seat hangers trimmed off from the cockpit coaming. Then, the Guerney’s bumfortable foam seat was permanently installed. The same operation I performed on my Thunderbolt kayak years ago. I still may need to work to wedge that seat to a better angle. And, I have some other customizations in my mind.

Supernova is a strong candidate for the next year Missouri River 340 race with a goal to finish self supported below 50 hours. Well, I am still not sure if I really want to paddle that long race in a kayak, but paddling Sea Wind canoe again will be just too easy. I have the entire winter and many trips on the South Platte River to figure that out.

Related posts:
3 Pictures from November Paddling on the Horsetooth Reservoir
3 Kayaks: JKK Supernova, WSBS Thunderbolt-X and Sisson Nucleus 100
First Snow Paddling with JKK Multisport Supernova Kayak
JKK Supernova, a Multisport Racing Sea Kayak from New Zealand – Review by Jeremy Rodgers
How to Choose a Boat for an Ultra Marathon Race? The Case of Missouri River 340
Outfitting Thunderbolt Racing Kayak – Sliding or Guerney Gears Bumfortable Seat?

These words of wisdom are popular on web, but I’ve found them in a little book: Four-Word Self-Help: Simple Wisdom for Complex Lives by Patti Digh, the author and several more books and 37days.com blog. A lovely Christmas gift!

It may be somewhat oversimplified recommendation from the perspective of training for ultramarathon paddle races. I would perhaps replace “less” and “more” by “smart”. Nevertheless, it’s an essence of a healthy lifestyle and a good mantra to repeat to yourself during the incoming holiday season.

Keep paddling as long as you can find a liquid water!

I added these words to my stock photography portfolio.

Words, phrases, slogans, questions, alphabet sets, abstracts … I have more than 1000 pictures in the portfolio created with vintage letterpress printing blocks, a variety of fonts, both wood and metal. Wood printing blocks have nice ink patina. These pictures are available for licensing as royalty free digital downloads starting with $2 or/and as prints. I am also happy to create custom images. Please contact me for more information.

Related posts for those interested in a more advanced training:
Carter Johnson on Training for Ultra Marathon Kayak Races
How to Sit in Water and Paddle a Surfski for 260 or 300 Miles by Carter Johnson
13 Tips on Training for Endurance Paddling Races from West Hansen
Dawn Stewart “SandyBottom” on Training for Paddle Racing – A Cruiser Approach

I am still testing Jeremy’s JKK Supernova, a racing sea kayak from New Zealand. I did a couple of 5-7 mile runs on the Horsetooth Reservoir in a winter scenery including pretty windy conditions. Paddling was much drier than it would in my Thunderbolt kayak. The Supernova feels much more comfortable with my bumfortable foam seat. However, for a better comfort, I would have to trim the seat hangers as I did in my Thunderbolt.

I shot a few pictures of the Supernova together with Thundebolt-X kayak designed by Doug Bushnell from West Side Boat Shop. Supernova appears to be a few inches shorter than Thunderbolt, but much wider, and has much higher volume. Thunderbolt cockpit is placed more forward than in Supernova. I am going to measure these kayaks by myself. Data listed by manufactures are not very accurate.

Next, I added Sisson Nucleus 100, a multisport kayak from New Zealand, to the picture for a reference. I like that Grahame Sisson is specifying the sizes of cockpit opening for his kayaks.

These three kayaks have very different cockpits:
- Sisson Nucleus: a very roomy cockpit with a small opening (shorter than Supernova), but quite wide, tiller bar steering
- Thunderbolt: a long open cockpit, tiller bar steering,
- JKK Supernova: a roomy cockpit, but a very narrow opening, sea kayak fit, pedal steering

I had a chance to do some test paddling with Jeremy Rodger’s JKK Supernova kayak. It happen just after first snow storm in Fort Collins, so I had a pretty scenic paddling on Beaver Pond in the Arapaho Bend Natural Area. I am trying to compare this kayak to my Thunderbolt-X from West Side Boat Shop from a perspective of a long distance self supported paddling and racing.

JKK Supernova is a multisport kayak from New Zealand – the same length as my WSBS Thunderbolt (21′), 1″ wider beam (19″), but a much bigger volume and a lot of cargo space with bulkheads and hatches. It is a racing sea kayak. Jeremy wrote a review of the Supernova for my blog a few years ago.

First impressions of the Supernova: fast, stable, quite responsive, much more maneuverable than Thunderbolt.

The Supernova cockpit is pretty small and tight. It is really narrow!. The cockpit opening is only about 14.75″ wide while I have 16″ in my Thunderbolt kayak, and a generous 17″ in Sisson Nucleus 100 which has the same beam as the Supernova. So, the owners of wide hips beware.

Related posts:
How to Choose a Boat for an Ultra Marathon Race? The Case of Missouri River 340
Valley Kayaks Rapier 20 and WSBS X-par Missile: Can I Fit My Butt into a Narrow Racing Kayak?
Outfitting Thunderbolt Racing Kayak – Sliding or Guerney Gears Bumfortable Seat?