Prijon Calabria

Review Date
December 30, 2003

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: Laura Kletti(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $850.00 at Rutabaga Paddlers

Summary:
For quiet water and slow moving river paddling the Calabria fits the bill perfectly. It is very stable and fits a fairly wide variaty of paddlers. The plastic is very tough, and has survived being dropped on the shoreline rocks and scraping on the bottom of the sandy Wisconsin River very well. It has great glide and is very stable in waves. A fun surfer actually! With partially deflating the front bag I was able to do a 3 day kayak-camp trip very nicely. Fits my 5'6" 150 lb female frame very nicely.

Review Date
January 10, 2001

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 3 votes

Reviewed by: Chris(Unregistered User) ,  Paddler , from Wisconsin

Summary:
I recently purchased my Prijon Calabria and have been pretty pleased so far. The finish work on the boat is good, the seat is comfortable, and overall, it is reasonably light and very stiff for a plastic boat. A couple of minor gripes; the hardware on the adjustable thigh brace stripped out during the first adjustment (have requested new hardware from Prijon's US distributor). The boat seems to want for a rudder (optional), as it curls to the right slightly during pauses in paddling. I'm 6'2" and about 200lbs, and I found the boat to be most comfortable for me with the adjustable thigh braces removed completely. The medium volume bow in conjunction with Prijon's "gas-pedal" style footpegs are probably comfortable if you have less than a size 10 foot, however, the lack of a rudder causes the "pedal" portion of the footpeg to spring forward into a retracted position and leaves you with a round peg roughly the diameter of quarter to brace your foot against. Couple this with low bow volume and the result is that you have to cock your feet outward to clear the bow, and brace the peg diagonally across the ball of your foot. It's not the most comfortable foot peg I have tried, but it is functional. For its width (25") the Calabria feels fast, and accelerates quickly. It is a very stable and maneuverable boat that turns remarkable well for its length (14'5"). For a paddler my size, a spray skirt is highly recommended, as weighting the inside thigh brace for tighter turns will bring the lip of the cockpit very close, if not below the surface of the water. If you are in the market for a sport-touring kayak and are able to locate a Prijon dealer who stocks the Calabria, take one for a spin and see what you think.

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