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Flirt Large

 
4.8 (7)
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User reviews

7 reviews

 
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(1)
3 stars
 
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1 star
 
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Overall rating 
 
4.8
 
4.9  (7)
 
4.9  (7)
 
4.7  (7)
 
4.7  (7)
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7 results - showing 1 - 5  
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Ordering 
 
(Updated: October 28, 2009)
Overall rating 
 
4.5
Design 
 
5.0
Perfomance 
 
5.0
Quality 
 
4.0
Value / Money 
 
4.0

It's the boat for me

About the reviewer

I'm not big (length and weight are estimates, the figures I entered might be a bit smaller than the real thing), other kayakkers are just really small. That being said I'm not too much of a beginning freestyler too, other people are just really good. So perhaps everything you're about to read here isn't true, have this boats is nowhere near good, all others just suck. I mostly paddle WW2 on which I'm confident and in control, and paddled some class 3 rapids too, although I have less experience with them than I'dd like to have. I'm not in anyway related to Fluid, unless being a fan counts.

Test environment

I've had this boat for about half a year now, in that time I've taken it out on small, local rivers, alpine volume runs, a couple of playspots including Hawaii sur Rhone, the biggest river wave in Europe, out to sea for a bit of surfing and into a swimming pool.

Review

I made the right decision, this boat is what I wanted. I'm only learning to feestyle, but I could double pump this boat quite soon, by now I'm wheeling, kickflipping and landing on the water wrong way down when trying to loop. Other people in the club may joke about it being a battleship, but for me it's small enough. In fact I wouldn't want it to be smaller, because I didn't get this boat for pure park and play, I wanted to take it out on some runs too, and there too it hasn't disappointed me. The boat is quite slow, as are most playboats, but it's got a good volume distribution, the extra air just behind the seat keeps the stern from going under all the time as it does in some other boats, this really helps in staying upright. The boat is quite broad and stable. It's not nearly as forgiving as more creek-inspired boats, naturally, but it's not extremely edgy either, for a playboat it's quite relaxed. Surfing this thing is great, in fact it feels a bit faster on the waves than it does otherwise. Both in riverspots and out in the sea the boat combines a playboat hull with just enough of a forgiving nature. The boat is a bit on the heavy side, but that shouldn't be a problem for anyone big enough to be interested in it (it certainly isn't for me). The plastic is no miracle of solidity, but it's good enough, it survived me so far.

Now for the downsides, as I mentioned it's a bit slow, but the main thing that troubled me is that it doesn't roll too easy, and that might be an understatement. It took me a while to get used to it. Through using it a lot I've managed to make my right hand roll more bomb proof than ever by now, but I'm still a bit in the process reinventing my left hand roll and my roll without paddle, the latter one being hindered by the extra volume behind the seat which stops me from laying down flat on the hind deck. As Fluid was just getting started when they made this boat the outfitting has its imperfections, the grips on the front and the back of the boat are not as sturdy as one might wish for, that's why I managed to get them broken already. The backrest is also vulnerable, I broke the rope that holds the backrest in place, it had been cut through where it goes into the seat, I guess being aware of this and moving the rope a few centimeters from time to time should fix this.

Conclusion

All in all the pro's of this boat far outweigh the minor issues I've had with it. There aren't many playboats in this world that fit my physical proportions, let alone my wishlist of properties, but the Flirt large is definately one of them. Thanks Fluid, it's a great boat.

Review

Affiliated
No
About Me
Location: Rivers, flat water, sea.
Age: 22
Weight: 100 kgs
Was this review helpful to you? 
(Updated: February 19, 2008)
Overall rating 
 
4.0
Design 
 
4.0
Perfomance 
 
4.0
Quality 
 
4.0
Value / Money 
 
4.0

I fit into this play boat 6' 7" tall

I was looking for something to replace my Wave sport super big easy. After some stuffing around with the fit out( I replaced teh pathertic hip braces with foam blocks) I fit into the FLuid Flirt large very comfortably. It is a hard boat to roll, harder than my Wave sporty super big easy. But it is fun to paddle. Great for surfing and spinning. Difficult to get out thru the surf at beaches ( the best boat for that was my old wavesport Z). So far so good

Review

Affiliated
No
About Me
Location: Sydney, PWS
Age: 35
Weight: 100 kgs
Was this review helpful to you? 
(Updated: February 15, 2005)
Overall rating 
 
5.0
Design 
 
5.0
Perfomance 
 
5.0
Quality 
 
5.0
Value / Money 
 
5.0

It's a great boat try one today you'll like it!

About myself



i've been boating for 17 years, over the last three i've been getting into it all again after being single again, i paddle a dagger G-ride 6.5 and use it on everything from the flats of yalding to the monsters of norway.


About the test environment



I was up in wales for the weekend and popped in to Eddy lines just to see if there were any small boats i could squeeze myself into. I found the fluid flirt and spent the whole day messing around on the dee.


Review



when i first got in the boat it looked and felt enormous but, once on the water it came alive, i managed to sink the ends easily the back was slightly harder but that was just down to the set up(having no foot rests due to just demo'ing).As for surfing it was fanastic i felt in control all the time and it reacted to every move i made, in the right way and didn't matter which way round i was. the boat spins like a dream and is comfortable in holes(not that there were many testing ones there). i spent a good four hours in the boat and only had to get out and stretch my legs twice, all a can say it was like a sofa compair with other boats. my mate demod the medium flirt after seeing me having such a laugh and he agreed that the flirt has the right balance of excitment and control which allows you to pull of new moves and progress due to the confidence it gives.

.

Conclusion



it was sold to me that day, i've never found a boat that suits me quite as much as the flirt, all i can say is "try one and your buy one"; especially you tall guys out there. and if the guys from fluid are reading this thankyou for a great boat which is exciting and comfortable pretty rare, my feet send a special thankyou.


Review

Affiliated
No
About Me
Location: north wales, the dee
Age: 32
Weight: 110 kgs
Was this review helpful to you? 
(Updated: April 19, 2005)
Overall rating 
 
5.0
Design 
 
5.0
Perfomance 
 
5.0
Quality 
 
5.0
Value / Money 
 
5.0

great for big guys

It's about time someone has brought out a playboat that works for us big guys. The Flirt is the first "play boat" that does things that other boats can do and is still short and stubby (and not a small creeker). For years I have been in river runners as my playboat because there was nothing else. When the big Bliss-stick RAD came out I thought it was cool but when I paddled the Flirt it was beyond words. No more sitting all the way back in the boat, no more dead feet and numb legs, but room to move and do tricks that in my old bosts seemed so far away.

This boat has steeped up my ability to paddle and stop at playspots and not get flushed out because my boat is too long, but still having enough volume in it to paddle decent rivers and not spend most of my time looking up at the sky or rolling.

Thanks Fluid your boat kicks serious arse!!!!

LOFTY
New Zealand

Review

Affiliated
Yes
About Me
Location: New Zealand
Age: 26
Weight: 115 kgs
Was this review helpful to you? 
(Updated: October 24, 2005)
Overall rating 
 
5.0
Design 
 
5.0
Perfomance 
 
5.0
Quality 
 
5.0
Value / Money 
 
5.0

The most comfortable playboat around for very tall paddlers

I've been paddling for 2 years, only being able to fit in large creek boats. Most of my height is in my legs which has stopped me getting into anything smaller than a Liquid Logic "Huck". It was at a freestyle surf carnival that I first saw the Large Flirt, it looked huge and i fitted into it perfectly, i used it in the comp to see what it was like and was amazed. After using it for about 40mins i could pull off flatspins, blunts, cartwheels and even a loop! I bought it that afternoon.

The first time I used the Flirt was at the beach, it was very loose but still fast easy to carve with. I haven't used it on the river yet, but all that extra volume will help alot in running bigger grade rapids. The longest i've spent in it is about 3 hours and didn't feel cramped at all.

For any really tall paddlers out there who are looking for a comfortable playboat check out the Large Flirt. If you can demo it, you won't be dissapointed!

Review

Affiliated
No
About Me
Location: Tasmania (AUS)
Age: 17
Weight: 90 kgs
Was this review helpful to you? 
7 results - showing 1 - 5  
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