Ynys Môn, Not Quite a Three Mile Island
This is going to be a near verbatim copy of a post I made on C-Boats, just putting that out there.
A long long time ago, I promised to upload some pictures of my meltdown, after many many excuses to myself I’ve finally got round to it. [though I'm afraid you'll have to put up with my garden as a backdrop, it's kind of a state, but it serves my menagiere well enough]
The foam on the ends is for the benefit of the draconian rules at my local swimming pool (opposite my house, as is the menai straits, home to numerous seams accessable by strapping the squirtboat into a trad canoe)
The Meltdown in all its glittery glory
A view of the excruciatingly tight cockpit
And finally the uninspiring looking bottom
Click the pictures for full size.
I’ve learned something of it’s history after I met the creators when I went to borrow the Big Dog OC1, It was made about 17 years ago (so ’92/’93 time) by Valley Canoe Products (who now make sea and surf kayaks, along with owning Big Dog Kayaks and Elephant Gear), for a scottish fellow (whom I think was called Andy) around 3 years ago it was sold to a Devonian nicknamed Duckboy (AKA Adam) who had Dave of Downtime Kayaks (an ex P&H/Pyranha employee, who took on Valley’s squirtboat production) chop it down for better mystery performance, before eventually deciding he didn’t use it enough and selling it to a Bloke from hastings called Andy who’s big into his K1 squirting, and wanted to learn to roll a C1; having accomplished that he sold it to me.
I don’t know much about the period between the original owner getting it and when Duckboy bought it, but with Downtime Dave having refurbished it, it’s good as new.
It did have a five inch saddle with a 3 inch thick back block, but I’ve cut that down to 2 inches, with an inch thick back block, and added a lap strap to the existing thigh straps.
I’m currently waiting to hear from Dave if he’ll remove and enlarge the cockpit coaming to accomodate my thighs (currently the knee tunnels really bruise my legs)
A shiny penny to the person who can tell me what my title is all about.
