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Pyranha’s most compact half slice kayak to date, the Firecracker, was released last week and the hype and excitement surrounding it hasn’t slowed since. With demo boats being available so quickly, we have already gained some great feedback from customers - highlighting its explosiveness on the river, its short slicey stern, accompanied by plenty of bow rocker and volume at the front to keep you high and dry on the serious stuff. Ultimately, the concept of the Firecracker has been around as long as the Ripper, with an expectation that the Ripper may not be as popular outside of North America due to the length of the stern not suiting countries with lower volume rivers… how wrong they were!
Having created one of the most revolutionary whitewater kayaks in recent years, and then doing it again with the Mk2 Ripper, Pyranha decided it was finally time to transform the Firecracker from a concept into reality. Rivers in the UK, generally, are shallower and possess less volume than those in North America, therefore, the more compact Firecracker will come into its own when wanting to plant that stern into eddy lines, leading to the bow flying up in the air, to complete one of the most satisfying moves in a kayak, a taily. So this begs the question, is the Ripper for UK paddling done, and is the new kid on the block taking things over? Unfortunately for your decision making process, we don’t think so… both kayaks possess a range of positive attributes for British paddling, making choosing one tricky.
The Ripper is longer than the Firecracker, with the medium coming in at 274cm, around 30cm longer than the 242 Firecracker. In this instance, this extra length converts to a faster kayak, which the Ripper is well known, and loved for. This speed allows the Ripper to fly over steep drops and maintain momentum beautifully through turbulent water. This is undoubtedly a confidence inspiring asset to have, helping paddlers drive their Ripper exactly where they want it to go, especially on bigger days. In addition to this, The Mk2’s stern rocker and reduced volume has resulted in a tail happy boat which enjoys getting vertical. With plenty of volume up front to keep you high and dry, arguably, the Ripper is the ultimate one quiver kayak.
As a result of the Firecracker being a more compact kayak, it is easier to throw around, get vertical, and snap into the smallest eddy’s imaginable. There is no doubt the Firecracker will result in you paddling down the river with a massive smile on your face. From surfing out holes to throwing down tomahawks, it will do it in a way that’s snappy and exciting. One thing to consider… what do you see yourself doing the most of? If you’re constantly trying to push your grade and what you’re capable of, there is a high chance you may already have a big creek boat to get you down the scary stuff. In which case, the Firecracker is the perfect partner in crime for days when the volume simply isn’t there, but you still want to get out and have fun on the river. If you’re a bit more like myself, and enjoy the simplicity of owning one boat, the Ripper potentially has more scope in terms of the rivers you can tackle. With this being said, it once again comes back to the question of what you see yourself doing. If you’re more about paddling within yourself, and are not so bothered about reaching your max heart rate on grade fives, the Firecracker is more than capable of taking on solid whitewater, with its wide, planning hull constantly boosting confidence, and its short stern helping to facilitate all the fun stuff in-between.
More confused? We hope not! Two excellent boats, ultimately created to have fun on rivers. Both of which boast features not seen by any other boats on the market at this time. Best of all… we have both of these kayaks on demo, so why not try both and make the decision for yourself?
