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< Nov/Dec 2002
	Gear
One for the Big Guy Wave Sport’s Super EZ

Unlike yachters, kayakers are more prone to fabricating names for favorite rapids than they are to giving their boats any particular moniker. But after only one ride on the burly, towering wave of the Grand Canyon’s Mile 24 Rapid last spring I had to admit that the Wave Sport Super EZ’s new nickname went down like so many super-sized Burger King meal deals. From that moment onward, I came to know the playful brute simply as "Shaquille."

The Super EZ—we’ll call her Shaq—is a beast unlike any boat you’ll ever slip your skirt over, an oversized 60-gallon spud that checks in at the same length as its slicey 7-foot sisters the Siren (40 gallons) and the Evo (37 gallons) with the creek-running volume of a Mutant (7.6 feet). That’s because Shaq’s girth is concentrated in the hips, boasting an extra-wide 27-inch flat hull that lets it plane like a dream and power to the hole with a devastating spin move. Designed for extra-large paddlers (like me at 6’5", 225 lbs.), the boat’s best assets are its comfort and versatility. Wave Sport’s F.A.T. 2.0 outfitting allows even lean paddlers like Ken Whiting and Eric Southwick to snug this hulk up around them for aerial blunts on the big waves, while sharp lines and exceptional secondary stability beget flatwater cartwheeling with relative ease. Bulkier boaters will find themselves riding higher in holes, and the generous rocker (aka, "auto-boof") makes the hull both loose and forgiving, if not exactly fast.

The spacious boat not only accommodated my 36-inch inseam, but the wide cockpit gave me more power to throw down with knees and quads driving through the hull. One knock, however, is that you’ll need a separate skirt specifically for the oversized keyhole (Mountain Surf makes a good one). Whether it’s a day run down Gore Canyon or 21 days in the Grand Canyon, the Super EZ is the ultimate boat for big men and big water.

—Scott Willoughby

Boat Beta:

Length: 7’0

Width: 27"

Volume: 60 gal.

Weight: 40 lbs.

MSRP: $849

Info: (800) 311-7245, www.wavesport.com.