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< Sept/Oct 2000
	Gear
Dagger's Aftershock An OC-1 with Attitude John Grachella

One of the best parts about being a writer is helping change the way people think. I hope I can help manufacturers think differently about those who kneel and use a single blade. In particular, I hope Dagger will someday consider offering a decked version of their new open rodeo canoe, the Aftershock. It's such a good boat that it deserves to be paddled by as many people as possible, including hardcore decked boaters.

When rotomolded boats come out of the oven, their cockpits are solid plastic all the way across. That's a fact that applies to all rotomolded kayaks, C-1s and OC-1s. When these boats leave the factory, a cockpit "plate" must be cut out so customers can fit inside. Thus, OC-1s, like the Aftershock, are being made every day with an intact deck to which a standard cockpit rim could easily (and inexpensively) be molded. Decks could be left as they are or cut out so that the same boat (canoe) could be sold to a closed boat customer or to an open boat customer.

However, the Aftershock needed to be tested the way it arrived--fully outfitted and without a deck. First of all, this is a rodeo-specific open boat and not necessarily a river-runner. Therefore, I prepared myself for the need to hold back a bit at my favorite testing site, a local Class IV river during spring run off. Joe Langman, the boat's designer, told me the Aftershock was made "... to throw ends like crazy." He went on to say that "...if this boat ends up being capable of running rivers, that would only be a bonus." My confidence level wasn't particularly high as my first three strokes fed me over a four-foot drop, leading into a nasty pourover, and a must-make eddy. Surprisingly, the Aftershock nailed it, dry as a bone and upright. From my point of view, Langman and Dagger get their bonus right out of the gate! The rest of my run went just as smoothly but I kept forgetting to quarter waves to avoid taking on water and I had to bail a lot.

Paddling the Aftershock gave me a weird feeling. The hull said I was in a really hot C-boat, but the big cockpit opening didn't match up. Langman feels similarly. He compensates by gluing vertical foam panels between his legs and the sides of his boat to help displace water. That's a good idea for rodeo and also for river running in this kind of boat. NOWR rules allow for three inches of tumblehome that can be foam- filled inside your boat. I would suggest doing this to any open boat used for serious rodeo competition. The more water you can legally displace, the better your score will be when you're riding in a hole.

The saddle in the Aftershock is Dagger's standard that comes in their Atom C-1. It's made of injection-molded plastic with a foam seat, foam knee and footpads and Velcro thigh straps that hold you inside. The whole affair is easy to adjust fore and aft (on or off the river) via thumb screws that penetrate multiple holes drilled through wing-mounts on each side of the saddle. Most paddlers will need tighter outfitting, which is easily achievable by a bit of customization.

At 8'4" long and 26.5" wide, the Aftershock is the shortest and most rockered, almost-closed boat you can buy. It rolls very easily even when full of water. The hull is wide and stable, with a shape similar to rodeo kayaks. The ends taper up abruptly from a very flat bottom. Thus, the boat spins great in holes, and it performs well-balanced enders and pirouettes.

Is it fast? No, not really, but it's faster than last year's Quake (predecessor to the Aftershock). If you put the Aftershock on either of its edges between its flat bottom and one of its flat walls, you can make it accelerate faster than when you paddle it flat. It's edgy enough so offside tilts come easily, but it's not catchy due to a distinct flare at the chine. It's snappy, like a Porsche, not like a Cadillac. The more I paddled the Aftershock, the more I decided that, with water-displacing foam walls (or better yet, a deck), and with tighter, custom outfitting, I'd paddle it down almost anything.

Lets face it, the Aftershock is short and wide which means its stable and slowish, but it's fun to hole-surf and wave-surf and it's great for throwing ends. Would I change anything? You bet: give me the option of a deck, and I'd really be hooked. MSRP: $985. Info: (423) 882-0404, www.dagger.com.