The Freestyle Boat Landscape in 2024

After my rather downer post last time around, let’s talk about freestyle boats for a bit. What’s available now, and what can you get if you’re on a budget or a larger paddler?

I’ve been spending some time in the pool, and despite my rather depressing post last time, I had a chat with a friend. It’s resulted in a new boat, a Rockstar V medium no less. It seems I’m a bit heavier than I once was, despite generally keeping fairly consistent weight I seem to have put on 5kg, which placed me at the very top end of the Exo Helixir’s useful weight range. I had wondered why I was wallowing when going down rapids in it, and why it seemed to feel much more grabby and twitchy than I remembered it.

Anyway, let’s talk about freestyle boats in general. I wrote an article a few years ago about which freestyle boats to look out for on a budget, but what’s good to buy if you want to get one in 2024? The landscape has changed a bit recently, not least because the price of new boats has rocketed, putting them out of reach for a lot of people. But, there are still options, and I’ll go through a few of them here, including the top range ones.

In general though, because freestyle is a niche within whitewater kayaking, despite its increasing popularity again the number of options out there is limited compared with river runners and creek boats. You could go for pre-owned versions of boats from the mid-2000s, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you have any interest in being able to do any of the modern tricks. If you’re a taller paddler who is only interested in tailies or the occasional cartwheel, then an older full slice design might suit the purpose very well. But for now I’m going to talk about full on freestyle designs that are capable of all the current freestyle moves in waves and holes.

‘Budget’ boats

If you want a great freestyle boat, but can’t justify the cost of the latest Jackson model, there are still some really good options around.

Pyranha Jed

The Jed (or Jed-Eye as it’s sometimes known) might be an older design, but it was way ahead of its time and still just about holds up now. It can be a bit marmite, with some loving it, and others totally hating it, and it’s definitely more suited to waves than holes, but it’s a good design. It has slicey ends, so flat water freestyle is also very doable, as well as very aggressive rails for carving on a wave. It’s also relatively ‘affordable’ with new examples coming in around the £970 mark. However, there are more modern designs available at a similar price, such as the…

Exo Helixir

For a smidgen more at around £1170 you can get the 2018 Gui-Gui Prod designed Exo Helixir, one of the best freestyle boats out there. Currently used by some of the greatest freestyle boaters in the world, it’s a great all round freestyle boat, good on a wave and good in holes. The back end is less twitchy and more stable than the narrow rear of the Jed due to it being much wider, and it’s still great for flat water moves as well thanks to its slicey ends. I only moved from mine to a Rock Star V because I needed a larger boat, and the large version of the Helixir was a bit too big for me. That said, I am never selling Em’s Helixir, so I still have one in my quiver if I feel like getting back into one.

Wave Sport Project X

For around £929 you can still pick up a Wave Sport Project X. Whereas not so long ago you could pick one up new for around £600, the price of these has now risen. The Project X, like the Jed, is a wave orientated boat. Some users absolutely love them, although being an older design I’d be inclined to demo the Helixir first and foremost before trying the Project or the Jed due to the much closer price now. But…

Rockstar 3.0

However, before you demo a Helixir, there’s one more budget option that if you shop around you might be able to get for just over £700. This option is only available in Europe, and it’s called the Rockstar 3.0. In reality, it’s the 2016 Rockstar being manufactured with a new carbon fibre rail and seat for extra lightness and hull stiffness. The 2016 Rockstar, more so than the Helixir, is regarded as the best freestyle boat ever designed. Now, that mantle may well end up being taken by the Rockstar V over time given how users have responded to it, but the 2016 Rockstar 3.0 is still an incredible design that more than holds its own amongst the latest models, particularly this version with the carbon outfitting. If you’re on a budget then this boat should absolutely be your first port of call. Although, as I say, it’s only an option for those based in Europe. In the UK the boat is being sold by Squarerock.

Mid-price

These mid-price freestyle boats are the latest and greatest high performance designs in plastic. There are but two options, and one of them you’re going to have to wait for in the new year.

Jackson Kayak Rockstar V

The Jackson Rockstar V is the latest design from the Jackson factory, and it takes cues from the 2016 Rockstar for its bow design, but ups the ante with a unique double rail system to help deflect water and keep the hull loose in a feature. It’s also shorter than the 2016, which should make loops a bit easier to bring around. Unlike the Rockstar 4.0, which received a mixed reception, the Rockstar V brings back the flat water capabilities of the 2016. This is the current latest and greatest plastic playboat on the market.

Pyranha unnamed freestyle boat

Some time in 2024 Pyranha will be releasing its first new design of freestyle boat since the Jed was released way back in 2012. Yep, the Jed is now 12 years old, which is an absolute eternity in terms of boat design. Nobody knows what the new boat will be called, but it has been designed by Gui-Gui Prod and looks to be an evolution of the Helixir. It looks like the design might have some iterations to go through first before it’s finalised, but it’s one to keep an eye on.

Creme de le creme

These are the top of the range boats that most of us only dream of owning. They are the boats that, like a racing car, most people won’t be able to take advantage of unless there’s money to burn and you want something truly custom designed in terms of colour. Made from composites such as carbon fibre, expect to pay northwards of £2500 for one of these.

Carbon boats are generally much more responsive than plastic ones due to the extreme hull stiffness, and they can be faster on a wave, too. Another advantage to them is that you can ask the builder to add or reduce volume. So, let’s say that you were at the top end of weight for the small size, but very low in the medium, you could ask for a size small with some additional volume, or a medium with reduced volume. Note that that width of the boat doesn’t change, so there are limits before performance could be adversely affected, but this does make composite kayaks a very flexible option, despite the cost.

Jackson Rockstar V carbon

The composite version of the Rockstar V is currently being made by three companies, depending on which country you reside in. In the UK the boats are being made by Hobson Kayaks in South Wales. Many of the world’s top competitors such as Dane Jackson and Nick Troutman are paddling one of Chris Hobson’s boats, which is a testament to how well built they are. I own one of Chris’ Apex surf kayaks, and the build quality is incredible, as is the lightness. In Canada the carbon Rockstar V can be purchased from Murky Waters, while in the US the boat is being built by Dreamboats in Columbus.

Apex Watercraft Rebound

The Rebound is a new freestyle kayak design by Eric Jackson out of his Apex Watercraft venture. There has been talk about a plastic version of the boat, but it’s yet to surface. Meanwhile, the composite version is available, and it looks like a great design with people who have used it seemingly really liking the way it performs, although I haven’t seen many on the water so far.

2018 Gui-Gui Prod Helixir

The Carbon Helixir remains one of the most popular boats you’ll see in competition around the world. The only boat that is seen more often is the Rockstar. While the current composite Helixir design will probably be due an update once the Pyranha boat is released, the 2018 version is the one that is currently available.

Vajda EVO

A brand new design on the market is the Vajda EVO. Vajda used to make carbon freestyle kayaks that were a common sight in competition at one time, prominently used by Peter and Nina Csonkova and Bartosz Czauderna among others, but they fell quiet for a number of years. Now the company has come back onto the freestyle scene with the EVO. It looks like a lot of work has gone into the design, but the proof of the pudding will be in the paddling. It looks like the designers have added a similar sidewall recess to the Rock Star V, which was added to create more structural stiffness on the sides. The double rail system also appears to be a part of the hull design, too. The bow and stern look super slicey, so it should cartwheel like a machine. But, high level freestyle paddlers are a finicky bunch, so it remains to be seen if the design can tempt competitors over.

For larger paddlers

Larger and/or taller paddlers are often out of luck when it comes to freestyle designs. Particularly if you’re tall but skinny as a rake. The best advice I have for tall but skinny paddlers is to make custom seat outfitting on a more recent boat so that you can sit closer to the floor with wide knees. The extra mid-length volume on modern boats will allow your legs to be pulled back further to give more foot room.

For paddlers who are just plain big, or big and tall, then there’s only one design suitable out there, and that’s the Jackson Monstar. The Monstar was taken out of production, but the company has re-introduced it due to demand. It’s based upon the 2010 All Star and will cope with weight ranges from 210-300lbs (95-136kg).

Another option is the Rock Star 4.0 large. Apparently this is even bigger, noticeably so, than the Monstar. For flat water tricks it’s going to be difficult to throw down unless you are truly big, but for large and tall paddlers who don’t even fit into the Monstar it could be an option to look at.

Pre-owned/out of production designs

As per always, there are boats available on the used market that still perform amazingly well. If you can’t stretch to a new boat, then keep an eye out for pre-owned versions of all of the above boats, plus the ones below.

Jackson Rockstar 4.0

The Rockstar 4.0 is another marmite boat. Some love it, others hate it. The 4.0 is quite large in terms of sizing, and it’s not a great boat if you want to do flat water play since it isn’t quite as slicey as previous designs, and the rounded bow made it quite hard to perform ends with. That said, my understanding is that it can suit larger paddlers quite well, and you might find that you like it. One to consider, but paddle it in the places you want to use it before committing. It’s quite telling that at the time of its availability you didn’t hear the team paddlers shouting from the rooftops about it anywhere near as much as other years, or the current V model, with some opting to stay with their 2016 models. But, as I say, you will still find people who really like it, so don’t write it off, and as I mentioned previously the large size could be an option for very big and tall paddlers.

Jackson Rockstar 2011, 2014

The 2011 Rockstar is a boat some people still really like, although apparently it’s a very hole focussed boat and rather slow on a wave. The 2014 design, just like the later 2016 model, is regarded as one of the best, and as a result they get snapped up pretty quickly when they get listed. So, these two boats are ones to keep your eyes out for.

Dagger Jitsu

The Dagger Jitsu is a good performing boat, although its narrow rear end does let it down a little bit. That said, if you’re starting out in freestyle, you’ll be able to make a lot of progress in this boat. One thing I would say, though, is that the small version is small, while the medium size is massive, making it difficult to throw down on flat water if you’re at the low end of its weight range.

Jackson Star & All Star 2010 and 2013

The 2010 All Star is a model that was very highly regarded at the time of its release. Don’t get it muddled with the 2007 Star and All Star, which were different boats. Emily had a 2007 model at one time, and let’s just say that in light of modern designs it isn’t very confidence inspiring now. The 2010-13 Star and All Star are closer in terms of evolution to the Rock Star that succeed it. One to look for if your budget is very tight. I understand it’s a good performer, if you can find one. My knowledge of the 2013 model is a bit sketchy, but as I recall it wasn’t a boat that was hugely well regarded. That said, it’s still a boat you’ll be able to learn to freestyle in, and they occasionally come on the market for a bargain price.