While I wait for strong winds to test the new sail set up, I’m starting on the long overdue project of expanding the sizing for my LPB kayak to the same level of detail as my F1 which comes in seven sizes for paddlers from 100-250lbs.
The story of the LPB is one of those rare moments where I got lucky and accidentally created a decent kayak without the usual zillion iterations.
Many years ago after an especially grueling winter of design work on the F1, I needed a break and just wanted to play with some new ideas. At the time I was getting a lot of pressure to design something longer than the F1, which I wasn’t super interested in because there’s already plenty of good 16 to 17 foot sea kayaks out there.
I was really interested in surf skis and racing kayaks, however, so just for the heck of it I slightly elongated the stern of the F1 and and basically stuck the bow of a racing kayak onto the front of it, and out popped a surprisingly good boat that was different enough from everything else in the world to justify its existence.
Five or six more prototypes to get the balance right and that became the LPB. A dramatically Swede form design 16’4” long, 8” deep at the backrest, 22” wide at the hips and 21” at the catch.
Since then I’ve never really given this design the attention or credit it deserves. As a diehard short boater, i’m heavily biased toward the F1, so every time I actually paddle the LPB I’m surprised by how much I don’t hate it! It’s reasonably stable, doesn’t weathercock, it’s quick, maneuverable, handles rough water well, and has better paddling ergonomics than most normal sea kayaks.
It really is a darn good boat and it deserves more from me. Right now I have a 22, 23, and 24 inch wide version, we just finished a 23.5 that’s not in the plans yet, this will be a 22.5, which just leaves a 21.5 and a 21 after this. I’m especially excited to see the 21.5 on the water.
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