| I grew up just a couple of miles from the Palos Verdes Peninsula along the coast of Los Angeles County and would often snorkel in those waters for abalone and lobsters with a group of my friends. One of the first “boats” I ever worked on, a leaky, 12′ paddleboard rescued from the heap out behind the main Lifeguard station in Redondo Beach, was used to explore the area with my buddies. Later, we cobbled together a catamaran of our own making by screwing together two of the paddleboards down on the beach and paddling both of them out to our favorite dive and play area.Guarding the northernmost entrance to Lunada Bay is Rocky Point. The waters around Rocky Point, which is the northern limit of the famous big wave riding area known as Lunada Bay, can be anything from totally benign and calm, to a full tilt, out of control melee of oceanic surges and thundering waves. When I started to design boats, I instinctively drew upon locations from my boyhood watery exploits and the name for this sea kayak, Rocky Point, came from this familiarity.
The Rocky Point is designed as a very fast, no-nonsense expedition touring boat with the capacity to carry the necessary gear and stores for an extended stay away from civilization. Obviously, with its narrow beam, this is not a beginner’s boat. Experienced paddlers, though, will settle-in quickly to its gently lessened stability and be able to make the most of the very small frontal area and very long waterline. The prismatic coefficient of the hull is set to .55 which will allow the paddler to reach and hold a very fast cruising speed. The boat should be equipped with an expedition class rudder to provide a gentle assist in turning as the hull has reduced rocker from my other sea kayak designs and turning was considered a skill for the advanced paddler for whom the boat was created.. Specifications
The prismatic coefficient of the hull is set to .55 which will allow the paddler to reach and hold a very fast cruising speed. The boat should be equipped with an expedition class rudder to provide a gentle assist in turning as the hull has reduced rocker from my other sea kayak designs and turning was considered a skill for the advanced paddler for whom the boat was created..
Just about all of my sea kayaks are designed with what I refer to as “a modified barrel back” stern. Not only do I wish to set my kayak designs apart from the everyday Greenland style craft, but I wanted to reduce the windage signature for the entire boat. My take on the Barrel Back form comes from the Art Deco inspired speedboats of the 20’s and 30’s, a very creative era in boating which continues to inspire me. The construction method is via stitch and glue technique from a 3mm marine plywood. The boat is glass/epoxy inside and out. The builder can choose to do a carbon or Kevlar layup inside with durable S-glass on the exterior for a rugged, easily repaired hull that is quite stiff and light. Standard layup in glass should yield a boat that is under 50 lbs. complete. Use of exotic laminate cloth will reduce the overall weight while making the boat a lot stiffer.
This is not an all-out racing machine. Instead, it is a very fast sea kayak in the racing boat style with its lowered aft deck, minimal foredeck height, maximized waterline for length and a hull shaped for performance. It is intended for experienced paddlers who want to really stretch it out and can maintain a fast clip on the water while carrying enough gear for a weekend trip. The kind of paddler for whom this boat is intended might want to explore the potential the Rocky Point has in a long distance paddling race and I expect that the boat will give an excellent showing against other, race specific designs…. and if the paddler were at a truly thuggish fitness level, this boat just might be able to steal away a victory. I’d love to see that. Chris Ostlind
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