P&H Valkyrie

I took my time testing this new boat to give proper feedback; I have paddled not less than 350 kms (or 189 nautical miles) in a wide variety of conditions and I did the same training with it as I do in my Cetus with my team.

There are a few things that I find important in a sea kayak; how it behaves/performs, how well it is equipped, how the build quality is, and how it looks.

Performance/Behaviour

The hull is based on that of a true surf ski and is very straight with almost no rocker from the bow to the cockpit; from the back of the cockpit to the stern, however, the rocker is noticeable, and this gives the Valkyrie very specific behaviour characteristics.

I needed to adapt a bit at first to a boat that uses a rudder and had already gotten a lot of questions from fellow paddlers on how the boat behaves without the rudder; as I was curious myself, that was one of the first things I tested out. If there is no or little wind, and flat calm conditions, then it’s possible to paddle the Valkyrie without a rudder, but you will certainly need the right skills to do so, making use of the proper techniques (edging, sweep strokes occasionally).

But what if you paddle this boat with the rudder? Well, the SmartTrack rudder is good quality, as are the foot pegs, which are also easily adjustable whilst sat in the cockpit without changing the rudder setting. The rudder itself is easily removable for transport.

As a full-blooded sea kayaker, I’m naturally opposed to rudders and used to edging in order to make a turn, putting the most pressure on the pedal on the outside of the turn. With the Valkyrie, as with surf skis, I now need to push the pedal on the inside of the turn in order to operate the rudder, which I find awkward.

I tried to swap over the cables near the rudder, where they emerge from the kayak, in order to make things work more intuitively for myself. This works but causes more friction in the lines due to the way the deck cutaways are near the rudder itself. As for the pedals, they function very well, and you can make minor adjustments (to the rudder) on the fly due to the connection in the cockpit itself.

Unfortunately, I found the foot pegs were positioned a bit too low for me, and instead of just needing to use my toes, I had to push with the upper half of my foot, which caused some pain in the soles of my feet when using the rudder intensively.

Overall, I must admit that I have a love/hate relationship with rudders, and so during one of the downwinders, I decided to put the rudder up and paddle without it; as weird as it may sound, I was still able to control the Valkyrie very well, and had more fun because I could control my boat myself instead of letting the rudder do all the work. The boat rarely broached, even with bigger waves.

The Valkyrie is certainly not a boat for beginners, but for the more experienced paddler. I got a lot of pleasure out of this one during the rougher conditions.

Tracking

Now back to how the Valkyrie tracks. You need the rudder with crosswinds, otherwise you will not get very far. Without the rudder in the water the boat tends to weathercock very fast. I tried out all the same steering and control techniques as I use when paddling my P&H Cetus and I must say that I’m rather surprised; if you lean and edge enough it’s possible to turn rather fast on the spot.

I’ve already mentioned paddling downwind in the Valkyrie. When paddling upwind, the bow pierces through the waves like they don’t exist; the water smoothly flows over the front deck until it reaches the first hatch. The bow hatch cover is tilted so you can easily load longer items, but due to this positioning, the front edge peeks out a bit, and when the water flows over this it tends to spray outwards. It’s a rather wet ride, but I don’t mind getting wet… if you follow the NORTHSEAKAYAK YouTube channel, you’ll see I spend a lot of time in the water during rescue training! It’s the same when the boat goes into surf, the water flows over the deck and splashes up against the front hatch.

It is great to see the difference between the Valkyrie and a classic sea kayak; the bow goes slightly under like it was a submarine when on the steeper waves, nicely shedding the water in front of you, making place for the rest of the boat to follow smoothly.

Once again, as with all P&H Sea Kayaks, one of my favourite things is the CONNECT seat! It’s fully adjustable, making you feel like you’re sat at home on your sofa. I hear my fellow paddlers sometimes say that I’m wearing my boat instead of paddling it.

Since I’m not the tallest paddler, I do find the cockpit to be a little too high. It starts low at the back, perfect for a backwards roll, and then rises towards the front. The upside of this is that you can paddle with your legs in the thigh braces or with your knees together, surf ski style, and the Valkyrie is stable enough to do the latter even in rougher conditions.

Is it fast? Well, that is probably the question I was asked most. I cannot give average speeds; every sea kayaker knows that it is nearly impossible to give objective numbers for this. On the sea, tidal currents and wind make it hard to compare average speeds. I can however say that I paddle my familiar training trips faster in the Valkyrie than in my Cetus (which is also a fast, but classic style sea kayak). The Valkyrie is made for speed, and it sure delivers.

Equipment/Outfitting:

I already spoke of the Connect seat’s comfort, and although the Valkyrie is narrow, there is enough space in the cockpit itself too; you can still move your legs around during longer offshore trips, and there is room enough to make a swift re-entry during a rescue.

Talking about rescues… Yes, you know where this is going… I tested out how well a self-rescue goes with the Valkyrie in all kinds of conditions. Have you seen the Self Rescue Training Drill on our YouTube channel, with the balance exercises? This drill goes well in the Valkyrie, even in choppy conditions. The only thing that is a little in the way is the day-hatch; as both it and the bow mini hatch are optional for those who don’t mind the added weight, they are not moulded-in like with the Cetus, and so the cover is raised a little more. You feel this when seated just behind the cockpit during a self-rescue, which is different, but not a problem.

The deck lines are well attached, even at the bow, which is sometimes a problem with other fast sea kayaks that have less attachments for the deck lines. Just in front of the cockpit the deck lines are placed at the widest point, providing enough leverage for your fellow paddler to aid and stabilise your kayak during an assisted rescue.

I also tested out how the Valkyrie rolls, and both forward and backward ending rolls work well, no problem at all; its stability makes it feel almost like the boat wants to roll back up by itself.

The thing I like the most on all P&H Sea Kayaks is the attention to detail; there is a compass recess (even other expensive composite boats lack this), and a small flat area just in front of the compass recess to install a sail mast foot. The optional bow mini hatch just in front of the cockpit is fully waterproof (a real improvement), can take a lot of your gear, and doesn’t get in the way of your legs inside the cockpit.

The deck cutaways along the cockpit are just perfect; I haven’t seen this on any composite boat, allowing you to put your strokes even closer to the boat and be more effective.

Have I talked about the handles yet? They are Pyranha’s whitewater grade, full-sized, drop-forged aluminium grab handles, so no loose toggles when paddling downwind anymore! If you still feel that you need toggles for safety reasons, P&H has left holes to allow you to install them. The grab handles are perfect for carrying your boat, being much more ergonomic and reliable than regular toggles, and I even think they look better too!

All hatches feature KajakSport covers, which are extremely dry and durable; I had no problems with damp hatches at all during testing.

Build Quality:

P&H Sea Kayaks are consistently improving the construction of their polyethylene boats, most recently developing a product they call CoreLite X; if you still have doubts about this material, let me point out a few things out for you: its weight is extremely close to that of a standard composite boat, it’s tougher, and the stiffness is very nearly the same. A few words about that stiffness; the foam-like bulkheads are way thicker than on a composite boat, and this helps creating the stiffness on such a long boat. I can imagine that some people might find this a waste of space, but I don’t mind.

I’m also glad that P&H Sea Kayaks made a boat this unique and didn’t just produce a copy of an existing fast sea kayak.

The bow of the Valkyrie is lower than on most other fast sea kayaks, so it can take a bit less equipment, but the advantage, as described above, is that the bow pierces through the waves and the kayak therefore doesn’t pitch very much.

P&H Sea Kayaks have taken their attention to detail down to the finish of the plastic; have a look at the P&H logo on the front deck! It’s made by blending matte and smooth finishes. The overall finish of the boat is excellent, as we are used to from P&H Sea Kayaks; no sharp edges, everything has its purpose and looks stunning.

Conclusion:

I pretty much slept in this boat during testing, getting to know it well (both pros and cons) and paddling quite a distance. It’s a specialist boat, not a boat for a beginning kayaker. The Valkyrie has entered the fast sea kayak scene with a bang as the first full-blooded polyethylene FSK on the market. It has everything on board to make bigger offshore trips, downwinders and normal day trips at a higher pace. The Connect seat in the Valkyrie is like having a sofa in a jet fighter, and the cockpit gives both comfort and a good connection to the boat. It also has a distinctive look, not to be mistaken for any other boat, with the deck cutaways along the cockpit and the tilted front and rear hatch.

Want to see the boat in action? We have an unwrapping video and an action video on our NORTHSEAKAYAK YouTube channel! Even better, try this boat out yourself!

http://www.youtube.com/northseakayak