Pyranha Jed Review

While I was on my way to the Slave River this July (2014), I decided it was time for a new freestyle boat, so I picked up a medium Jed in Seattle and headed up to Skook to try it out. I instantly fell in love with the fast and loose design. While racing down the face of the wave, a quick switch of edges could throw me flying for a huge aerial trick.

The Jed does not only preform well on a wave but it's also one of my favorite hole boats. With a slicey bow and stern that are well balanced, the Jed lends itself to many of the old school hole moves like cartwheels and splitwheels. It’s not limited to those tricks though, as the large volume located around the hips allows a skilled paddler to do massive aerial moves as well.

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As my trip on the slave continued, I began to appreciate the fast release of the v-hull in the rear and the hull speed from the rocker profile. With this boat I was able to learn how to airscrew and pan-am for the first time ever while on the Outrageous and Rock ‘em Sock ‘em waves.

The Pyranha Jed is not just a boat for throwing the biggest best tricks, but it is also a boat for river running and having a good time doing it. One of my favorite rapids on the slave in the Jed was Molly’s Nipple, a huge flume of water, crashing into a massive wave hole, before continuing out through a bunch of boils. The right side of the drop gets pretty steep and the Jed could soar off of it for a massive big water boof.

I also got a chance to run the largest rapid on the river, Pelican, in the Jed, and can say that it can definitely make hard moves. The rapid starts with a huge ferry over a giant death boil before continuing down stream through some of the biggest waves I've ever seen. The Jed soared over the boils and through the waves easily, after completing the challenging ferry.

I would recommend this boat to any skill level paddler. Whether you're trying to learn how to loop and stern squirt, or if your throwing massive airscrews on huge waves, or even if you just like to have fun running your local class II run, this is the perfect boat for you. I love this boat and am going to continue to paddle it as my primary playboat!

For more info on the Jed, go to www.pyranha.com

PROS:

• Fast Hull
• Loose Release
• High Volume for Hole Tricks
• Strong Rocker Profile for Boofing
• Holds a Line While Ferrying
• Rocker Profile Glides Over Boils

CONS:

• Slightly Less Stable than a Wider Hull Design
• Less Comfortable than a River-Running Boat

SPECS:

Small
Length – 5’ 9”
Volume – 47 Gal.
Paddler Weight – 90-155 lbs.

Medium
Length – 5’ 11”
Volume – 55 Gal.
Paddler Weight – 130-200 lbs.

Large
Length 6’ 1”
Volume – 62 Gal.
Paddle Weight – 175-240 lbs.

Checkout this video of myself having a blast in the Pyranha Jed on the Slave River: