It’s always a gamble when mixing design features together to come up with something new and exciting. Ideas that sound good on paper don’t always translate into success in the real world. Bassadors (a basset hound crossed with a Labrador retriever), the Ford Ranchero and McDonalds’ Land Sea Air burger are just a few unsuccessful mashups that come to mind. Fortunately, some get it right and create a product greater than the sum of its parts—this is the case with Pyranha’s new Nano.
We got our first glimpse of the Nano at Outdoor Retailer last summer, where Pyranha designer, Rich Taylor, confided to us that, “The hull is really the key.”
Flipping the boat over, he filled us in: “What we’ve done is combined three successful boats—the Shiva, the Jed and the Burn.” Line up all of these boats and you can clearly see the Nano truly does have a bow like the Shiva, Jed-like rails and a stern that takes lines from both the Shiva and Burn. The on-water result is a stable and playful ride. This kayak’s wide, semi-flat hull provides a rock-solid platform that…
This article originally appeared in Rapid, Summer/Fall 2013. To read the rest of the review, download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
