Canoeist Magazine July 2000

Review : Wild Things  'Wild One'

A custom rotomoulded GP kayak

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At a time when most white water kayaks can be turned over and used as coffee tables it makes a change to meet a new general purpose kayak. This boat has been a long time coming but it is now a reality and, as the first design rotomoulded by Kevin Andriessen, designer and manufacturer of Dirty Habits wave skis in a previous existence, the quality is good. The hull is well rounded with barely a hint of V, the volume well spread so that it rises in a gentle curve to each end. I find the slightly concave foredeck rising to a more square section at the knees aesthetically pleasing, reminiscent of one of the Olympias of thirty years ago. On the other hand, the cut off small transom stern looks odd although harmless enough. Perhaps it helps get that last dribble of water out of the drain plug. The deck is completed with webbing hand grabs fitted through plastic tubing. Stick on graphics will later be replaced with moulded in equivalents.


There is full length rear ethafoam and a plastic seat, the position of which can be moved 20mm with an Allen key. The seat position and the length of the foam are set to fit the size of the customer. The full plate footrest is secured with two knurled wheels on each side and I was just able to change its position while on the water, helped by a cockpit long enough for me to raise my knees. The cockpit is completed with foam thigh padding and a webbing backstrap.

The intended use is rivers up to grade 3 and equivalent surf. We tried it on rivers up to about grade 3-. On a river wave surfing session it did not have the manoeuvrability of shorter boats but was not totally outclassed. On the other hand when we set off on a run of over 30km it had the edge in speed. Adequate buoyancy at the ends meant it did not have nasty habits on rough water. I found it a very easy boat to use and when a lightweight novice took it on flat water at the finish he was able to potter in it very happily. The boat is moulded in repairable superlinear polyethylene. I did runs of a couple of hours each on low rivers where I had to slide over limestone rocks in places. In the final analysis there were the inevitable scrape marks but nothing of any significance. There was enough room in the stern to carry some kit. I could get a large BDH container in and out with difficulty. If it was my own boat I would trim away some of the foam at the front of the rear pillar to make it that bit easier to pull the container out.

For many people the price will be one of the attractive features. For a boat of this quality you would generally expect to pay rather more. There is also a cheaper version with notch footrests and lacking the drain plug, backstrap and foam thigh grips. The only drawback here is that it is only available to clubs and centres and may not be bought by individuals.


As a final bonus, rather than waste the offcuts from the foam they are trimmed into car roofrack cradles, useful for someone starting out from scratch and trying not to spend too much money on the first day.