2013 All Star initial Review by Clay Wright

Clay Wright sounds off with the first review of the new 2013 Jackson All Star! Finally some good hard facts about how the new boat performs! I really like how Clay reviews the new Jackson boats. You can tell it is a REAL review and not just hype for the company's new product as he lists both pros and cons. Real cons, not like the BS you make up at an interview when they ask you to list some negatives about yourself. 

Clay says the new All Star feels quite a bit bigger. Wider and longer with less of a scoop, thus making it look like a UFO.  Benefit of that larger size is increased initial and secondary stability, more river-running ability, less likely to pearl in an eddy or catch the stern unintentionally, etc. 

Apparently a con of the larger size is that has made the All Star a bit more to deal with in regards to flatwater tricks so if that is your thing, you might want to stick with a Rockstar or something else. Clay says he initially had a harder time getting the bow down because of the wider edges but it's getting easier with some practice.  Bear in mind that he's only been using this new boat for a week and getting better every session.  Clay also wrote in his initial Rockstar review that he had trouble getting used to it. 

He now says loops go HUGE with the possibility of a foot or more air than before! That's insane! Also, the speed on a wave now is apparently just INCREDIBLE and has been allowing him to pull some sick wave moves now on smaller waves that the Rockstar couldn't quite do. Clay sounds really stoked at how fast it is and I can't wait to try it!

You can read the full article below to get the full story but let's sum it up real quick. 

PROS:

- Stability: Intial and secondary stability much improved. 

- Speed: Insane speed on a wave. Faster than a Rockstar for sure and wave moves take less muscle.

- Fit: For taller people like myself, sounds great with a larger foot area. Also, lower cockpit rim than Rockstar, knees feel a bit lower.

CONS:

- A bit longer (2" or so) so a bit more boat to deal with when swinging it around, etc. 

- Flat water tricks a little harder to get used to because of the larger bow. 

I can't wait to get one out and demo it and that should be happening in the next 1-2 weeks so look for a review from me real soon!

See the promo video for the new 2013 All Star here

Read the full review here http://jacksonkayak.com/blog/2012/08/13/2013-all-star-initial-review-by-clay-wright/