Pyranha

Burn III Kayak - 2014

What Pyranha did with the reworked Burn III Kayak is best described with a car analogy: it's like they started with a German sports coupe, but then put in a bigger engine, reworked the body for less drag and sharper handling, and gave you a road riddled with sultry curves and an utter absence of cops and speed limits. It's not asphalt but rather foamy, white-capped rapids and roiling eddies that you'll dominate while carving surgically precise lines to the next challenge on the watery playground of a fast-running river.

The combination of a planing hull with distinctly sharper edges lets you spin the boat with ease while corning swiftly. A longer water line puts more power to your paddle when you're picking up speed. Also updated from previous versions, the bow gets a bigger rocker while the stern stays fairly low-key. More space up front means more volume so you ride high over obstacles and boof with the best of 'em down steep drops. Slightly smoother in back but still with clear margins, the stern is less grabby yet still sharp when precision is paramount.

The decks went up a notch to accommodate more volume and shed water so you stay high above the fray. The cockpit underwent a major overhaul, stripping away unnecessary extras and narrowing the knee area. Connect outfitting still gives you an adjustable foam seat for bum comfort when paddling all day. With a less spacious cockpit, you have a greater ability to use your knees for control. With an updated profile and a more control-oriented cockpit, the Burn III yearns to be threaded between semi-submerged boulders or dropped down a class IV rapid, knowing you can't help but audibly shriek with glee.