Villain Bulkhead Test=Success- Letter from Jean Cyr by JK Team | Mar 28, 2011 | Creeking, Whitewater | 6 comments Dear Eric, Here is the story of how Jackson Kayak saved my legs/life. I would just like to take a few minutes to thank you for making such solid and awesome boats. The combination of the crosslink plastic, footbrace and bulkhead system on the Villain saved my life. Literally! I bought the Villain about a month ago… ran the Great Chazy in NY once and absolutely loved it! Took it out for the second time at Blakeney Rapids in Almonte with Mike McKay and pinned it in an undercut wall below an overhanging cliff.. There was no access to the boat without rapelling gear and we were only 2 at the the time. I was pinned up to my waist and managed to squeeze myself out the boat by just a few inches or less and into a nasty rocky swim… Had the boat not been crosslink / Bulkhead system or a Jackson, I am 100% positive it wouldve bent right away and broken both my ankles and legs. The plastic witheld pressure of the water for 10 hours before it started bending and even then, the bulkhead is still somwhat intact. I left it there overnight and me, Mike and Adam Chappell and a few other guys went to get the boat yesterday..It needed intense rope work, 16 guys and 5 hours to get it out.. Your grab loop handles are BOMB PROOF!! They held over 7000 pounds of pressure and didnt move or bent at all and mad eit possible for us to get the boat out. My brand new Villain L is scrapped but i am glad to be able to write this to you today and thank you for making such awesome kayaks! Ill be paddling my new superstar for this season until I get enough coin to buy a new Creeker..Witch will DEFINATELY be a Jackson Kayak! Villain L or Superhero!? Not sure yet! I hope you get to read this message and Thak you again! God bless you and all the Jackson Kayak crew!! Here is a picture of my Villain when we got it out! John Cyr 6 Comments Adam Chappell on March 28, 2011 at 4:47 am look at it this way 16 guys with there force multiplied 5 times with the pully system did not even bend those loops are BOMB PROOF! Reply Wesley Bradley on March 28, 2011 at 2:08 pm WOW! Glad you are OK 😉 Reply Jean-Nicolas Cyr on March 28, 2011 at 3:13 pm Thank you, Adam is right.. Those grab loops are awesome and heavy duty for sure!! So is the bulkhead system! The right side where theres a little rip/hole from the pull has popped out in the sun… the left one is still bent… I will try and pop it back out then outfit it as a fishing kayak for my Dad to use! I wouldnt really creek or run with it again as chances are if I ever piton, it would bend at the same place and break both my ankles.. Ive only paddled the Villain 3 times since I bought it and loved every aspect of it..ran some shallow slides, Class IV Holes and a 15 footer on the Chazy and got me through everything so easily! Im definately saving up to by another Villain L as I dont want to paddle anything else after seeing/living this event. Heres a link to my blog for more pics and full story! http://whitewaterpdlr.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-jackson-kayak-saved-my-legs-and.html Reply David Reid on March 28, 2011 at 3:49 pm Sure glad you got out ok. Jackson creek designs are awesome and this just proves the point. Not saying this will happen, but as it gets warmer and even hot, stick that kayak on the drive way pavement and let it heat up in direct sun light. I had the same kind of issue years ago with another kayak. Stayed bent in for a month or so in storage. Then in middle of July put the kayak out on the driveway for a few hours and lo and behold it popped out. a bit of a crease but I am still paddling the kayak. Reply Clay Wright on March 28, 2011 at 9:24 pm Unfortunately, due to the serious damage to the cockpit area I think this boat may need to be retired or at least sent off to Roll-clinc / pond duty with ‘not for whitewater use’ in permanent marker just in case someone forgets what it looked like after this crash years down the road… Yes – it will pop back out and with some duct tape look totally ready for the river. BUT NO! It’s not ready for the river! The structural integrity of the plastic is compromised and it will always be much more likely to fold again than a whitewater kayak should be. Good luck finding a suitable home for your boat and so glad you got out safe with just this amazing story to tell. Clay Reply Local seo on August 9, 2011 at 10:45 am awesome things here. I’m very glad to see your post. Thanks a lot and i am looking forward to contact you. Will you please drop me a e-mail? Reply Submit a Comment Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ
Adam Chappell on March 28, 2011 at 4:47 am look at it this way 16 guys with there force multiplied 5 times with the pully system did not even bend those loops are BOMB PROOF! Reply
Jean-Nicolas Cyr on March 28, 2011 at 3:13 pm Thank you, Adam is right.. Those grab loops are awesome and heavy duty for sure!! So is the bulkhead system! The right side where theres a little rip/hole from the pull has popped out in the sun… the left one is still bent… I will try and pop it back out then outfit it as a fishing kayak for my Dad to use! I wouldnt really creek or run with it again as chances are if I ever piton, it would bend at the same place and break both my ankles.. Ive only paddled the Villain 3 times since I bought it and loved every aspect of it..ran some shallow slides, Class IV Holes and a 15 footer on the Chazy and got me through everything so easily! Im definately saving up to by another Villain L as I dont want to paddle anything else after seeing/living this event. Heres a link to my blog for more pics and full story! http://whitewaterpdlr.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-jackson-kayak-saved-my-legs-and.html Reply
David Reid on March 28, 2011 at 3:49 pm Sure glad you got out ok. Jackson creek designs are awesome and this just proves the point. Not saying this will happen, but as it gets warmer and even hot, stick that kayak on the drive way pavement and let it heat up in direct sun light. I had the same kind of issue years ago with another kayak. Stayed bent in for a month or so in storage. Then in middle of July put the kayak out on the driveway for a few hours and lo and behold it popped out. a bit of a crease but I am still paddling the kayak. Reply
Clay Wright on March 28, 2011 at 9:24 pm Unfortunately, due to the serious damage to the cockpit area I think this boat may need to be retired or at least sent off to Roll-clinc / pond duty with ‘not for whitewater use’ in permanent marker just in case someone forgets what it looked like after this crash years down the road… Yes – it will pop back out and with some duct tape look totally ready for the river. BUT NO! It’s not ready for the river! The structural integrity of the plastic is compromised and it will always be much more likely to fold again than a whitewater kayak should be. Good luck finding a suitable home for your boat and so glad you got out safe with just this amazing story to tell. Clay Reply
Local seo on August 9, 2011 at 10:45 am awesome things here. I’m very glad to see your post. Thanks a lot and i am looking forward to contact you. Will you please drop me a e-mail? Reply
