2007 cataraft shootout
by mania
Welcome to the Whitewater Addiction 2007 kayak cat boat shootout! Our contenders include AIRE, Hyside, Jack's Plastic, Maravia, NRS and SOTAR. We give you the skinny (and the fat) on these fine boats to help you make the right choice before you spend your kids college fund.
If you aren't already a cat boater you probably wonder what all the fuss is about. Catarafts were popularized by the Russians who used them as paddle boats to do all sorts of crazy stuff. One of the big advantages is there is no floor to get sucked on by holes or pushed over by big waves. This doesn't mean they won't flip but you have to try harder.
Considerations
There are several considerations when building a cataraft. I say building because most people don't try riding the tubes Slim Pickens style. You're gonna have to think about a frame unless you are getting a Culebra or Shredder. The first thing you should think about is use, in other words, what type of water will you mainly be boating? Besides this you will have to think about length, tube diameter, rocker, capacity, weight, material and price. Let's take a closer look!
Frames and Oars
Frames are almost always steel or aluminum. Aluminum doesn't rust and is generally lighter, but usually costs more. Steel can be bent and twisted almost any which way for a nice custom frame. Consider a breakdown frame if you ever want to fly or pack in somewhere.
Most cats have to be rowed so you will need to decide on the type of oar system (open or pins) plus you will endlessly fiddle with the correct spacing and height of your oars to your seat. This is quite a religious debate but I know plenty of excellent oarsmen on both sides, so don't stress about it too much. Personally I like to be able to twist the blade as I am making a stroke, so I use open.
Use
Will you be the lone gear/beer boat for a Grand Canyon voyage with 12 kayakers or will you be 'gettin busy' on the North Fork of the Payette? This makes a pretty big difference in the type of cat you will want. Smaller cats are going to be better for creeks and technical whitewater while the bigger ones will make nice big water boats. It only makes sense, however, let me make one thing absolutely clear (repeat after me): CATS ARE NO GOOD FOR CARRYING MORE THAN A FEW PEOPLE! Think of a motorcycle, no matter how big it is its best with only one person - that's the way a cat is. If you want to carry people get a raft, that's what they are for.
Length, Diameter and Rocker
The length and diameter of your cat tubes are important for several reasons including carrying capacity, hole punching ability and maneuverability. The longer your tubes are the more you should be able to punch big holes, but you will sacrifice maneuverability. Let me be honest and say I can't imagine ever wanting an 18' cat for anything except the Futaleufu.
Tube diameter is a closely related parameter. Increasing the diameter increases the carrying capacity or float. You will also need longer oars since you will be higher up.
Rocker is the amount of curve in the bottom of your tube which can help with turning but may not track as well. More rocker can also help you out if you like to surf.
Capacity
This is going to be determined by the length and diameter of your tubes as well as what kind of frame you have. Some people build floors for their cat frames to carry more. To me this kind of defeats the purpose of a cat but to each his own.
Lets talk about passengers. Remember cats don't make good passenger boats because there is generally no where for them to sit unless you add a seat for them. Seats are heavy and asses are even heavier. Some oarsmen put the passengers in front so they can help paddle. Some put them in the back so they don't get in the way. The bottom line is you want the center of mass to be near the center of the boat, somewhere between the rower and the oars. This helps with stability and makes turning easier. Remember each passenger is equivalent in weight to ten cases of beer, and they bitch a lot more, so if I take them at all I like to put them up front and put them to work. Another trick is to put your water jugs right under the oar towers, you will be amazed at how much easier it is to turn your boat.
Weight
Many people believe bigger is better and hardly give tube weight a second thought, after all they are carrying two passengers AND ten cases of beer. As a class V boater I absolutely consider every piece of gear and how much it weighs. When it comes time to portage or pull off that must make ferry, you will thank yourself for shaving pounds. If you are really clever you might find a way to fly a small cat as carry-on luggage. Each piece must be less than 50 lbs and within certain dimensions so good luck.
Material
The two main types of cataraft materials are hypalon and some type of poly-vynal-nylon with or without a protective coating such as urethane (the stuff they make condoms out of). Hypalon is generally considered the longest lasting but will weigh more and not pump up as stiff as the plastic boats. The plastic boats are lighter and stiffer but might not wear as well. A urethane coating can add to the durability but also weight and cost.
Price
If the sky is the limit for you, you can get almost anything you want such as a multi-colored boat from Maravia. You can save a lot by being less picky and getting a tan boat from SOTAR, for example. If you really want to save some bucks look for a used rig, you might even get a frame and oars with it.
The Contenders
AIRE
First up is AIRE because they begin with an A. AIRE boats are a PVC shell with zipper over an air-tight Urethane bladder. This makes them fairly indestructible and they say, easy to repair. I have never had to repair one in two years of commercial use so I guess that's a good thing. The bladder system does add to the weight, so as long as you have a nice boat ramp its no problem.
AIRE lengths and diameters are fairly standard and they have a bigger diameter option with the Lion model. This seems to be the trend as people do not listen to me and keep trying to carry more beer and people on cats. The Ocelot and Jaguarundi deisngs have been slightly tweeked for 07, with a half inch more diameter and more volume in the tube ends (to supposedly ride up and over waved better). Word on the street is AIRE has some new prototype cats being tested by some lucky Idahoans.
Airtight Inflatables
Airtight is the maker of the famous Shredder all inflatable cataraft. Very popular back east for R2ing rivers like the Gauley. These cats are made of Hypalon and can be a bit 'floppy' but seem to perform well. I did see an R4 model on the Gauley but could not find specs on it. Sorry.
If you thought the Sotar website was bad wait til you see this one.
Hyside
Next up is Hyside with several hypalon models and a terrible naming system. I am also not sure why their tube diameters jump around as you increase in length. One would think they would steadily increase? Anyway I have fond memories of rowing a Hyside cat down the Royal Gorge and not being able to flip it when I was learning that run.
Hyside recently added a urethane coating to the bottom of all their cats, to make it 'slicker'. If you are a hypalon elitist then this might be the brand for you!
Jack's Plastic
Jack's boats are very popular around here in the Southwest and I have personally owned two models and tried out the Culebra frameless cat on more than one occasion (thanks Jack). These boats perform very well and have been tested on such difficult runs as the Upper Animas. Jack uses an extra layer of PVC to protect the bottom of the boat rather than any kind of coating. This did not always help as I had sometimes developed pinhole leaks and rips even through the extra layer.
The frameless Culebra and Culebra Grande remove the hassles of the frame and oars while retaining the advantages of catarafts. Jeff Hammond and I took one down the class V Upper Taos Box and we can say with confidence that its a great idea. They are starting to catch on out East as a stiffer replacement for Shredders.
Maravia
Ahhh the Cadillac of the inflatable world. These babies are costly and very close to being indestructible, due to an outer coating of urethane over what they call thier class VI fabric. My 14x22 never had one leak, but took extra effort to roll up tight.
Maravia has a boring but easy naming system and tubes come in the expected sizes. If money is no object get these, you won't be disappointed.
NRS
NRS believes that bigger is better if their boat specs say anything about them. The Kodiak model is absolutely huge and should be able to carry a hot tub along with 6 passengers and 14 cases of beer. They used to have a smaller model called the surf cat which was my very first cataraft, but these have been discontinued. The tubes are Hypalon and have a plastic cone on the end for extra protection should you poke something with it, such as a kayaker begging for one of you beers. If you like hypalon and carrying fire pans, dutch ovens and groovers, these boats are an excellent choice.
NRS tells me they are working on a cat made out of the Nylon used in their lightweight Bandit kayaks - shaweet! I don't know yet what sizes but hopefully this will fill in some of the lighter/smaller gaps in their lineup.
SOTAR
SOTAR materials use a fabric they call Lexatron which is a polyurethane nylon. From what I know the boats are very durable and light weight with good prices. SOTAR offers four versions of their cats, SF fish cats, ST (standard), SP (tan), and SL (asymmetrical). The tan is cheaper because I think they get a deal on it. Beggers can't be choosers.
One very cool thing about SOTAR is they will design a boat to your specs. Also they now have the lightest cats for the size ever since Wing Inflatables moved on to more lucrative things. If you like your boats stiff and light you should try one. I would love to own one but I don't get my special discount on them.
Tributary
Yes Virginia there is a whitewater santa. AIRE is now adding 14 and 16 foot catarats to the Tributary series (read cheap). I have not tried the tributary rafts but I have my suspicions about durability and performance on harder whitewater. If you are looking for a bargain cat you should definitely condider these babys.
The Specs
| MFR | BOAT | LENGTH | DIAM | WEIGHT | MATERIAL | CAPACITY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AIRE | Wildcat | 13' | 20" | 59 lbs | PVC/U | 750 lbs | $1545 |
| Ocelot | 14' | 22.5" | 71 lbs | PVC/U | 980 lbs | $1745 | |
| Jaguarundi | 16' | 24.5" | 84 lbs | PVC/U | 1534 lbs | $1999 | |
| Leopard | 18' | 26" | 105 lbs | PVC/U | 2073 lbs | $2199 | |
| Lion 14 | 14' | 25" | 89 lbs | PVC/U | 1200 lbs | $1999 | |
| Lion 16 | 16' | 27" | 96 lbs | PVC/U | 1800 lbs | $2199 | |
| Airtight Inflatables | Shredder | 12'2" | 20" | 35 lbs | Hyp | 2 peeps | $1600 |
| Hyside | 144 CATU | 12'6" | 19" | 55 lbs | Hyp | NA | $1766 |
| 156 CATU | 13' | 24" | 64 lbs | Hyp | NA | $1983 | |
| 166 CATU | 14' | 21" | 57 lbs | Hyp | NA | $2025 | |
| 196 CATU | 16' | 24" | 73 lbs | Hyp | NA | $2329 | |
| 216 CATU | 18' | 24" | 109 lbs | Hyp | NA | $2885 | |
| Jacks Plastic | Culebra (Frameless) | 11' | 19" | 45 lbs | PVC | 2 peeps | $1481 |
| Culebra Grande (Frameless) | 14.5' | 22" | 80 lbs | PVC | 5 peeps | $2582 | |
| Flyer Cat | 14' | 19" | 41 lbs | PVC | 3 peeps | $1436 | |
| Big Brother | 14'6" | 25" | 61 lbs | PVC | 4 peeps | $2201 | |
| Daddy | 16'6" | 25" | 68 lbs | PVC | 5 peeps | $2315 | |
| Daddy 28 | 17' | 28" | 75 lbs | PVC | 6 peeps | $2442 | |
| Grand Daddy | 19' | 25" | 85 lbs | PVC | 6 peeps | $2427 | |
| El Tigre | 17' | 28" | 90 lbs | PVC | 7 peeps | $2594 | |
| Maravia | 12x20 | 12' | 20" | 50 lbs | Poly/U | 2 peeps | $1932 |
| 14x22 | 14' | 22" | 60 lbs | Poly/U | 3 peeps | $2127 | |
| 14x24 | 14' | 24" | 70 lbs | Poly/U | 3 peeps | $2192 | |
| 16x24 | 16' | 24" | 84 lbs | Poly/U | 4 peeps | $2431 | |
| 18x24 | 18' | 24" | 98 lbs | Poly/U | 4 peeps | $2861 | |
| NRS | River Cat 14 | 14' | 25" | 79 lbs | Hyp | 3-4 peeps | $1875 |
| River Cat 16 | 16' | 25" | 89 lbs | Hyp | 3-4 peeps | $2150 | |
| Kodiak Cat 16 | 16' | 27" | 105 lbs | Hyp | 3-4 peeps | $2535 | |
| Kodiak Cat 18 | 18' | 27" | 130 lbs | Hyp | 4-5 peeps | $2860 | |
| SOTAR | SFC 11 | 11' | 20" | 40 lbs | Nylon/U | 1 peep | $900 |
| SFC 13 | 13' | 20" | 45 lbs | Nylon/U | 2 peeps | $1100 | |
| SPC 13 | 13' | 21" | 52 lbs | Nylon/U | 3 peeps | $1575 | |
| SPC 14 | 14' | 23" | 64 lbs | Nylon/U | 4 peeps | $1759 | |
| SPC 16 | 16' | 24" | 79 lbs | Nylon/U | 4 peeps | $1919 | |
| SPC 18 | 18' | 25" | 105 lbs | Nylon/U | 5 peeps | $2239 | |
| STC 13 | 13' | 21" | 52 lbs | Poly/U | 3 peeps | $2048 | |
| STC 14 | 14' | 23" | 64 lbs | Poly/U | 4 peeps | $2286 | |
| STC 16 | 16' | 24" | 79 lbs | Poly/U | 4 peeps | $2494 | |
| STC 18 | 18' | 25" | 105 lbs | Poly/U | 5 peeps | $2911 | |
| SLC 13 | 13' | 22" | 47 lbs | Poly/U | 1 peeps | $2246 | |
| SLC 14 | 14' | 24" | 58 lbs | Poly/U | 2 peeps | $2494 | |
| SLC 16 | 16' | 25" | 70 lbs | Poly/U | 3 peeps | $2703 | |
| SLC 18 | 18' | 26" | 86 lbs | Poly/U | 3 peeps | $3152 | |
| Tributary | 1422 | 14' | 22" | 70 lbs | PVC | 980 lbs | $1299 |
| 1624 | 16' | 24" | 76 lbs | PVC | 1534 lbs | $1599 |
Conclusion
Okay you are now a catarafter so go get you some whitewater! I hope this article has been useful so remember to buy some books and videos. Later!