Concept2 Forum

I realize this might not be the best place to ask this question...but can anyone fill me in on their take of different racing shells?

I have only rowed in Dirigo's and Wintechs since my HS club was to poor to afford better and my college club rows them as well.

Dirigo -
Wintech -
Vespoli -
Empacher -
Kaschper -
Hudson -
Sykes -
Pocock -
Filipe -

I realize this might not be the best place to ask this question...

Only because it's in the wrong part of the forum. http://c2forum.com/viewforum.php?f=23

You will find lots of specific information here:
http://www.rowersworld.com/Community/
There are as many different opinions as boatbuilders.

My favourite are the Empacher, but they also ue to be the most expensive.

I understand the feeling of having an "exotic" boat, but I think it's logic to use "local" shells (that is American built boats in the US and European in Euope), in order to have customer service handy.

... and don't forget Fluidesign w/its backward wing rigger
... and...................Swift Racing
... and...................Van Dusen (more buck for your bang).

the key is to demo the (same year) boat you will be buying.
from what I see at the races the list can be redced to (in no order of preference):

Fluidesign
Empacher
Hudson
for singles.

I scull in a 2004 Elite Hudson now and am very happy: I feel that Kaschper, Empacher, Fluidesign, Van Dusen are also great. I've also been impressed with the Sykes and Fillipi.

You and I are of identical builds (but not ages)...being young go for a stiif boat and don't skimp on blades...

If buying used: GET THE CORRECT WEIGHT BOAT

My favourite ones are Filippi (Italia S line, of course) and Empacher. However, I must say that I haven't used any Hudson, for example.

There is also Pinert, which Craftsbury uses for their sculling camps. They are cheap and I liked them quite a bit. Great bang for the buck.

One thing about rowing is that if the equipment is decent and fits then it makes little difference compared to fitness and technique. Get what makes you happy (make sure it fits and is the right weight), but don't think one brand will make you faster then another. Of course the more you like the boat the more you will row.

I probably should have pointed out that I'm interested in 4s and 8s only. I apologize for not clarifying.

Have to agree with Nosmo, if the boat fits you well and you believe it is good, then it doesn't matter what you are in. Seen enough people win in brand new boats and enough win in 8-10 year old boats to know it really is the horses that matter. So that really just leaves you with the question of durability (empacher, fillipi, hudson, vespoli) and customer service (in my experience vespoli and hudson have been good). Short answer is, buy local. The companies are there and can supply needed parts or repairs faster.

As for general impressions of boats:

Dirigo - I've only rowed/worked with old ones. Never liked them, they were always heavier and less stiff than boats of a similar age. This may have been due to care and use, but I get them impression from talking to people that its just Dirigos in general.

Wintech - Don't trust them. I've known too many people who had problems with these boats (footstretchers breaking, riggers breaking, hulls breaking, hulls not being made of advertised materials, etc...). Granted, these issues may be fixed or I just may know some unlucky people, but I don't trust them. Shame too, I liked the Quantum's when they were around (once they fixed the carbon footstretcher issues, it was ridiculous to watch a lightweight snap one), wish the design had gone to a company I trusted.

Vespoli - Solid boat, but be very careful about the accessories. Quality control has been lacking over the last 2 years in terms of riggers, screws, bolts, footplates, stretchers, paint, etc... Inspect everything you get upon receipt and if it looks weak or wrong, get on the phone. Otherwise the boat itself is easy to set, new design moves well in the water, lower priced models are a solid investment for a money strapped team.

Empacher - Overrated. Don't get me wrong it's a very good boat, but for the price? You had better be damned good or have a lot of money to justify it.

Kaschper - Never rowed one. People have told me they are very difficult to setup but fly if you can. I suspect the market share ought to tell you something about these boats (ie: good luck finding one other than Villanova who sells them).

Hudson - Love them. Can't say enough good things about them. I have rowed in fours and eights and own a single. IMHO they hold up well and move like lightning in the water. Downside, the older models could be more difficult to set than the Vespoli, but I felt the courses stayed straighter and moved well. Also customer service is not as easily obtainable as other local companies.

Sykes - Every program I know of that bought one has loved it. No personal experience with them.

Pocock - I really know nothing about them. The statement has been made to me that they have succeeded in making a boat that is too stiff, but I cannot elaborate on this concept. I am unaware of customer service availability on the east coast though, so it may be a non-issue for a team.

Filipe - Reputation is that they are the boat to beat these days. Very solid boat, runs well, sets well, holds up well. However you will have to consider shipping costs, so like the empacher, is it justifiable.

Is Empacher more expensive than Vespoli and Hudson? about the durability, in my club I have used a lot of times a 2x Filippi which is about twelve years old and I it as good as the first day, only a bit old-fashioned. In the other hand, we also have an 8 years old 4x Empcher which hasn't been used as much as the Filippi and it is clearly damaged for the age.
I hope you guess what I mean and sorry for my mistakes

Reason I'm asking is that i row in a lt 4 for my college and on monday this week we were out for a morning practice when our idiot coxswain failed to see a tree floating in the middle of the river. T-boned it in our Wintech medalist and pretty much scarred it for life since we crushed some of the honeycombing. Did between 2-5k in damage to it

There's been talk on the team about getting a new 4 or possibly an 8 for the mens team (i'd prefer a 4) and I was just wondering aobut the differences. Seen a lot of vespolis in HS and from what I've heard Hudsons are incredible. Dunno much about the rest.

corpsrower wrote:Reason I'm asking is that i row in a lt 4 for my college and on monday this week we were out for a morning practice when our idiot coxswain failed to see a tree floating in the middle of the river. T-boned it in our Wintech medalist and pretty much scarred it for life since we crushed some of the honeycombing. Did between 2-5k in damage to it

There's been talk on the team about getting a new 4 or possibly an 8 for the mens team (i'd prefer a 4) and I was just wondering aobut the differences. Seen a lot of vespolis in HS and from what I've heard Hudsons are incredible. Dunno much about the rest.

I realize that this will never happen, mainly because we're all set in our ways, but bowseat should wear a mirror and get used to looking at the water in front of the bow and get a view in general, like a sculler should, and be like a co-pilot, ready to shout out a command or yell to the coxswain in case of an emergency. With a good mirror or spyglasses you can get a good view with a very slight turn of the head, so slight that nobody will notice. In fact, the more rowers using mirrors or spyglasses, the better. The cox doesn't always have a good view. OK, down from the soapbox.

Our club's four\quad Vespoli is holding up well.

added later: We also have Kaschper and Pocock doubles. Vespoli, Kaschper, and Pocock make good boats and are good companies

Byron Drachman wrote:

corpsrower wrote:Reason I'm asking is that i row in a lt 4 for my college and on monday this week we were out for a morning practice when our idiot coxswain failed to see a tree floating in the middle of the river. T-boned it in our Wintech medalist and pretty much scarred it for life since we crushed some of the honeycombing. Did between 2-5k in damage to it

There's been talk on the team about getting a new 4 or possibly an 8 for the mens team (i'd prefer a 4) and I was just wondering aobut the differences. Seen a lot of vespolis in HS and from what I've heard Hudsons are incredible. Dunno much about the rest.

I realize that this will never happen, mainly because we're all set in our ways, but bowseat should wear a mirror and get used to looking at the water in front of the bow and get a view in general, like a sculler should, and be like a co-pilot, ready to shout out a command or yell to the coxswain in case of an emergency. With a good mirror or spyglasses you can get a good view with a very slight turn of the head, so slight that nobody will notice. In fact, the more rowers using mirrors or spyglasses, the better. The cox doesn't always have a good view. OK, down from the soapbox.

Our club's four\quad Vespoli is holding up well.

added later: We also have Kaschper and Pocock doubles. Vespoli, Kaschper, and Pocock make good boats and are good companies

I am bow in that boat, and for the most part, even though I don't wear a mirror, I still talk to the coxswain about boat positions and race strategy. When we hit the log however we were right in the middle of a power piece and transitioning up to a higher stroke rate so I was focused on staying with stroke.

Another brand of boat that hasn't quite been mentioned is Resolute. Almost a year ago, our boathouse in Deland, FL was destroyed by an F3 tornado, which coincidentally went STRAIGHT through the boathouse...didn't clip it...God must've not agreed with our rigging. Anyways our entire fleet was Vespoli and me being a LTWT rower I rather enjoyed them. Quickly after the tornado wreck, other schools including FIT, UCF, etc began lending us boats of various types. From the Resolute factory/dealer we received brand new 4s and what a difference. Resolutes either sit lower in the water or they made it feel that way...and overall I felt connected to the boat much better and as a result I cannot row Vespolis anymore lol...because it feels like I am sitting two feet above the water in the Vespoli. And yes Resolutes are fast...we went from averaging a 7:05 2k in the Vespolis down to sub 7:00 by Dad Vails in the Resolutes with little change in overall personnel "speed"...

Hopefully you all get some good strong shells and bring it at Dad Vail in the LTWT 4 or 8...I know we will be there with our forest green Resolute fleet. Best of luck and hope to see you at SIRA and Dad Vail!

Having been a ssociated with several teams, I have found that logistics can be a nightmare when there are multiple brands of boats being used. Without claiming a preference, once we went with a single boat provider maintenance became much easier. In many cases, parts were interchangeable so a badly damaged boat could be salvaged for parts. We were even able to take parts of boats that raced in the morning and use them in boats racing later (not a plan, but a good emergency back-up).

Hi,

does someone have expirience with Fluiddesign boats?

Greets from Austria.