Stellar S2E – A new double surfski

by admin
in Highlights · News · Surfski
— 10 Aug, 2013

Stellar Kayaks have launched a brand new double surfski, their Stellar Elite Double ( S2E ) model, available world wide immediately.

This new double adds another exciting surfski to Stellars already broad range of surfskis, and extends their product range of double surfski models available to paddlers of all levels.

“This is an exciting new addition to our the Stellar Kayaks surfski range, specifically designed for the growing demand of double surfski’s suited to paddlers wanting that open ocean experience. This ski has been designed from ground up for true ocean conditions” said Gordon Clubb of Stellar Kayaks.

“Our original double, the Stellar Elite Low profile (S2EL) was designed with paddlers with a smaller build in mind, and is generally suited to smaller seas or protected waters. The introduction of our S2E allows Stellar to now expand our reach to paddlers of a heavier build, and paddlers looking to enjoy getting out on rougher open ocean conditions“, said Gordon Clubb.

A number of key refinements have been made to the trademark Stellar Kayaks design with this craft. We have been told by Stellar that their new S2E has been designed with higher gunwales to keep water out, and a higher ( 4cm ) bow deck than the S2EL.

Here’s a closeup of the front end:

Some quick differences in the S2E has to the original S2EL:

Higher bow deck – about 4cm higher along the whole bow
Transition has been moved back from the bow deck to the cockpit reducing the volume of the cockpit
Gunwales have been increased by 2cm which helps keep the water out
Footwell remains low so as to maintain stability and has been narrowed
Seat back is rounded so laying back is more comfortable in big seas

The new cockpit design close up:

When we spoke with Gordon Clubb about the design of this new surfski, and he said “This double will be one of the fastest, yet most stable skis on the market. The S2E’s bow deck is about 4cm higher, we moved the transition back from the bow deck to the cockpit to reduce the volume of the cockpit, and we increased the Gunwales by 2cm to help keep water out“.

Here’s a close up of the tail section, the signature Stellar design:

Gordon went on to say “When we were researching what paddlers wanted in a double ski for the open ocean, we got a lot of feedback from double surfski paddlers of all levels, and they all wanted were a lower narrower footwell to provide better stability, and a seat back which was rounded so laying back is more comfortable in big seas, so we had our design team do just that and we’re really pleased with the result and we know paddlers will be too“.

The Stellar design team told us that in creating the design of the S2E, a key component of the new design was to ensure they were able to incorporate a level of stability to give paddlers greater confidence in the more open water, while still allowing them to push that bit harder in this boat, and not compromise on speed.

The key design features targeted with the the S2E offers are:

Stability
Speed
Manoeuvrability

Gordon also told us “Stellar see this new ski as a very exciting milestone, as it both extends Stellar’s commitment to the fast growing sport of ocean racing surfskis, and now places Stellar ahead of it’s competitors with the largest ski range of any manufacturer in the global market.”

We haven’t seen the S2E first hand yet, but reviewing the high resolution photos we were provided, at first glance it looks like the Stellar Kayaks designers have also incorporated many of the new design elements now standard across the whole Stellar Kayaks range including the seat shape, bow profile, tail shape and rocker.

We can’t wait to get our hands on one to get a closer look at these details.

“The Stellar Elite Double (S2E) Surf Ski will have you smiling” Gordon told us. He went on to say “The raw power of two paddlers is a rush, and this is a double surfski with the same signature design and performance characteristics of our SE single. To put it simply, this is a fun ski to paddle, and we’ve had a great response from everyone who has had the chance to paddle it.”

The all new S2E will enjoy a global launch throughout the world wide network of Stellar distributors and resellers.

We’ve learned that as with all Stellar Kayaks surfskis the S2E will come in multiple grades of construction.

Gordon Clubb told us “In Australia the Stellar Kayaks S2E will is going to be offered in all four standard grades of construction offered across all of the Stellar Kayaks range, which are ( from lightest to heaviest ) Ultra, Excel, Advantage and Sport“.

Supported by Stellar’s two year construction guarantee, the S2E double surfski is available in all of the standard Stellar kayaks construction layups – here’s an outline of what each of those four grades of construction:

Ultra ( 19 kg )

Clear finished Carbon fiber sandwich construction with Nomex honeycomb core. Epoxy resin laminate heat cured in the mold.

Excel ( 21.5 kg )

Gelcoat finished Kevlar and Carbon fiber sandwich construction with Nomex honeycomb core. Epoxy resin laminate heat cured in the mold.

Advantage ( 25.5 kg )

Gelcoat finished Fiberglass infused sandwich construction with Soric core- mat. Epoxy resin laminate heat cured in the mold.

Sport ( 27 kg )

Gelcoat finished Fiberglass single skin construction with reinforced stress points. Polyester resin laminate heat cured in the mold.

The key “dimensions” of the Stellar Kayaks S2E are:

Length: 7.6 m
Beam: 48 cm
Depth: 36.8 cm

As with all of the Stellar Kayaks surfski range, the S2E is available in a range of colours including:

White
Red
Orange
Yellow
Blue
Carbon ( only available in the Ultra, yellow trim )

According to Stellar Kayaks, the S2E easily accommodates paddlers between 1.65m to 2m tall, with a combined weight of around the 220kg mark.

It’s interesting to note that Stellar’s two year construction guarantee is a first of it’s kind in the fast growing surfski industry. To date we don’t believe any other manufacturer offers such a long commitment to their products. This is certainly going to be a key factor in any buying decision.

To give you an idea of the relevant differences between the S2EL and the S2E we put them side by desk in a photo, the S2E is the yellow one, the white one is the S2EL. You can see immediately the differences through the entire length of the two craft.

Here’s a close up of the front end of the S2E and S2EL to compare:

Here’s a close up of the tail end of the S2E and S2EL to compare:

We asked if all models would be available in stock, and Gordon Clubb said “We’re shipping stock world wide already, and the top end Carbon models, Ultra Grade, need to be pre-ordered as is the case with most leading manufacturers, as the top end Ultra construction in the S2E range are built to order and shipped on demand“.

We shall look forward to seeing this new model and to the opportunity to paddling it and offering our initial thoughts and a combination of a follow up articles including:

Paddlers Impressions
Technical Review
Race Review

We can’t wait to get out and paddle the S2E to get a feel for it, shoot some photos to post in a gallery for you, we’ll be sending a couple of our local Blast Paddlers crew out on the new Stellar Kayaks S2E to give it a solid run in race conditions under the clock, and posting an official computer timed result over 10km for all to see.

For more information or to book a demo paddle, or pre-order, you can contact the team at Stellar Kayaks or your nearest distributor or reseller / agent – contact details below:

Stellar Kayaks Australia: