David Arnaud - Thinkliquid.net

Remember that feeling, back in the late 90's-early 2000's, when every new boat was a revolution? When each new design opened a new world of possibilities and eventually put a huge grin on your face? Well, that was my exact feeling when I could finally test my Fluid Element on Hawaii sur Rhone at flood levels. Here's my totally biaised review of my new favorite boat.

Some time ago Andrew Pollock already showed us what the Element was capable of on the South-African ocean waves. Truely inspiring footage and action that had me waiting anxiously for the good waterlevels in Lyon this spring, thinking about the shiny red Fluid Element I had received earlier this year.

Andrew Pollock and his Element:

Unfortunately the river gods didn't hear my complaints and the wave remained at a quite low level for months, with a nice foampile but very little green to carve on. Just when I was packing my stuff for a creeking trip to Corsica last April, the level quickly rose and reached 1600 cumecs, a level we call the « ramp ». I could finally test my Element, late on a friday evening, right before crossing the Mediteranean the next morning.

At 1600 cumecs the wave is kinda long, and slow. It used to be interesting with the older generation of longer freestyle boats (Dominatrix, sub-7 and such) but it lost its interest with the newer butt bouncers. They are generally too slow to really enjoy the surf, and to avoid flushing these boats must remain stuck in the big foampile which is not very user-friendly. They're also too slow to catch the wave from the eddy. Not great.

In my Fluid Element my session was a total blast. Not only could I catch the wave from the eddy (which I haven't been able to do since the Dominatrix), but I could freely move all over the green part of the wave, even in the flattest sections. The Element is really, really fast, especially considering its short size (about the size of a standard freestyle boat). By watching the footage afterwards, I realized I was a bit too far backwards and that I could have safely move my seat forward to be even faster. But at the time the boat already felt so fast that I didn't even think of it.

The Element can carve very aggressively and radically, but yet it remains forgiving enough. In fact it is actually quite easy to paddle considering its high level of performance. It is still a bit more demanding than an average freestyle boat, but after 30 min I was totally at ease. The performance/user-friendliness ratio has been set very high with the Element. It is much easier to paddle than what you could expect given the hard, radical edges on the hull, and I think this is where the Element seperates from the pack. We've seen some high performance boats in the past, but their performance was obtained at the cost of user-friendliness. Now at last, this kayak combines an outstanding level of performance with the ease of use that makes it accessible for most WW paddlers and not just river gods.

After surfing for a while and enjoying the carving abilities of this baby (a true joy in itself), it was time for some moves. Needless to say the boat spins efforlessly. Clean 540° and 720° were the standard, but this was expected. The true question was to know if the Element would allow for aerial manoeuvers or not. In fact, it can bounce – but only if you use hard edge transition. It won't bounce if you let the hull flat on the surface, and this is good news for the ocean paddlers. Bouncing can be fun, but on bigger waves it also means getting out of control in no time and eventually getting crushed. So while bouncing is definately possible, you have to make it happen. The bounce in itself is smaller than on a freestyle boat, but combined with the greater speed of the Element, the air you get might well be just as high. Backblunts and flashbacks were easy to launch – even easier than front moves! It will definately take more time to really take advantage of the possibilities offered by this boat, but I can already feel a BIG potential.

My first session in Lyon in the Fluid Element:

All in all I think the Element represents the missing link between the surf kayak world and the freestyle boats. It combines the best of the two worlds in a user-friendly design that will make you instantly enjoy your surf. The kind of boat that makes you want to shake the designer's hand and offer him a good bottle of Cotes du Rhone. I've put one aside for you, Celliers ;-)

Now I can't wait to test it on a steeper wave – I know there's still a lot to be learnt from such a boat, and I love that challenge. It feels like exploration again, at last. I haven't had that feeling in a long time! It's raining outside. If only the level could rise a bit in Lyon again!

One happy Element paddler

Oh, and here are a few pics from yesterday, a last minute update before heading for the Pyreneans creeks. At last, a sunny session with decent a level on the left channel! Even if a bit low, the wave was super fast and fun (and hard to surf)!

I must say the last few months have been hectic! I've been very busy working on various events and projects lately.

It all started last february with the Winter Outdoor Games. After participating in the first three editions of the summer version of this world-reknowned event, this time I was working for the organization. I spent a few days following the teams in the Mont-Blanc area, capturing incredible skiing, snowboarding, mountaineering and speed-flying action.

At work, with the Mont-Blanc in the background. Photo: P. Fragnol / Nissan Outdoor Games by Columbia

I was also lucky enough to fly two times over the Mont-Blanc, to shoot action from the air. An helicopter flight over the Alps is a truely unique experience, and during the flights back to the dropzone the pilots gave us some really radical sensations. I couldn't even imagine what those machines were capable of in terms of maniability. Better have a strong stomach and light lunch!

Antoine Montant, speed-riding. Photo P.Fragnol / Nissan Outdoor Games by Columbia

Wing-suit jump from the helico. Photo P.Fragnol / Nissan Outdoor Games by Columbia

During the end of the week I was in charge of answering the multiple media requests for footage of the event, as well as managing the screenings of the 2 giant screens displayed in downtown Chamonix. With several thousands spectators and all major sponsors in the audience, there was little room for error! In the end it all went well.

Philippe Fragnol, local legend and famous photographer, became a good friend over the week. Photo David Carlier / Nissan Outdoor Games by Columbia

After the Winter Outdoor Games, it was time for some sunny destination. I spent a week in Libya working on an adventure race called the Libyan Challenge. The race is 180km long, and runners only have access to water supplies during the race - which means they have to carry their own equipement and food. The winner of the event completed the distance in about 31hours, while the slowest participants took about 3 days reach the finish line. This was a great experience in a truely unique destination. The Akakus desert offers fantastic scenery, and the Libyans proved to be very helpful and enthusiastic about the race. I am not a runner by any mean, but witnessing the race from A to Z and spending some time with the participants was very rewarding. It takes a lot of focus and determination to enter such a race, and I came to admire many of the racers for their courage and energy in those harsh situations, when you're exhausted and you know you still have 100+ km to the finish.

Proudly posing in the Libyan desert while the sun's rising

After Libya, I was back to the Alps, in Switzerland, for the Verbier Xtreme which was the final stage of the inaugural Freeride World Tour. Just like I did in Chamonix a few weeks earlier, my mission consisted in managing the video content for the organizers as well as the giant screen. Once again I was very happy that I had equiped myself with a high-end HD editing workstation during the winter! My super-fast machine brilliantly edited, encoded and burned hours and hours of video for the various requests we received.

The Freeride World Tour podium in Verbier

Finally it was time for some rest, and time to go paddle as well! But this I will tell in another entry.

David