Santee 116 Sport

OK, so I had previously only used 9-5 to 10 footers from Pelican and Perception (Swifty 9.5) and especially liked the tracking and maneuverability for both (360's like a maniac, especially for the Swifty), but I couldn't keep up with my relatively professional neighbor and his 16ft thin kayak. Also, the seats were not good and good replacement seats cost almost as much as the kayak. So, when I saw this Santee Sport 116 with a crack in the side hull I bought it and tried my first boat repair effort. It was easy to fix using Youtube videos despite the rumors about difficulty repairing thermoformed ABS kayaks. Well, I had it on the water the last couple of days. WOW! This thing flies in the water. My other neighbor with a 10 foot Perception was having to paddle multiple strokes to move about 2.5 mph, while I was doing 1 for every 2 or 3 he did and I could do 3mph without much effort. This thing tracks very well and continues to glide through the water briskly for several seconds after each stroke. Re: the seat, another Wow! Adjustable and super comfortable. By lowering my body a bit when it was windy, I didn't get blown off track at all. It handled mild choppiness fairly well. Finally, the weight is light and welcome. It is 2 feet longer and about the same weight as the 9.5 Swifty and if you take out the seat, it gets really light and easy to carry one handed. Oh, and it is a pretty boat - I got lots of compliments. In sum, I love this kayak. I found no downsides and although it won't do fast & easy 360's like the Swifty and isn't a small trick boat, it still maneuvers pretty well. I think I read it was Hurricanes best seller and I can see why.

I was able to purchase this kayak for $899 on a Memorial Day sale back in 2018, so I did not purchase this for the full retail price. However, even at $100 off, this kayak was not worth the price paid.

Pros... it's fast. Really fast. Fast enough to turn heads at the shoreline. Also very lightweight and easy to carry. Hurricane's engineering team killed it on this front.

Cons... Hurricane's quality control could use a lot of work.

Not long after purchasing the kayak, the back hatch completely broke off the frame. It was completely unrepairable. Hurricane's customer service was easy to work with. They shipped a new one to my local dealer at no cost and I swapped out the kayak. Thankfully, there was a Hurricane dealer nearby at the time. That dealer has since closed and the closest one is an hour away.

While using the kayak, I was continually having issues with the latch to lock the back hatch. I understand having to tighten a screw once in a while, but not every single time I took the kayak out. Fast forward to a couple years later and the latch would not lock at all. The plastic locking mechanism was stripped and the screw would not hold. Again, Hurricane's customer service was great and sent me three new mechanisms. However, I would not expect this to even happen for a kayak at this price point.

Speaking of the back hatch, it was absolutely impossible for me to access this while in the boat. It's very spacious, but do not store anything in here you expect to grab while out on the water.

The seat. Oh man, the seat. The adjustments are clunky. The seat is insanely uncomfortable. Hurricane's customer support provided me no resolution other than a link to a seat cover to buy on Amazon. Really?! I just spent how much on this kayak?

Even in 2021, this kayak is worth *maybe* $600. Certainly not nearly $1000 in pre-pandemic times.

Why the bad review?

Well, while it's a nice little kayak for short runs, and even has a decent speed for a recreational, but THE PRICE. At half price I'd say, ok; but for a rolls-Royce priced recreational I expect perfection.

Here are my issues with it. Basically there are design & manufacturing faults.

I've bought it a year ago, and realised after a while that the rear hatch was falling apart. On the water. Great. The only problem with it was a slightly-too-short bolt - which was obvious even just looking at it in pieces. I do not know why they'd use that at all! I got a replacement from their support, but it's baffling how it got past basic QC & testing.

After a while I've realised the seat isn't what you'd call comfortable; my arse goes asleep after about an hour and a half. Very bad.

Another issue with the seat (again, a design fault that wasn't tested out properly) is that if you're paddling, rotating your body, the wrinkles in the material near the rear edge of the seat rub your bottom. And I mean rub you raw. I had bleeding wounds as a result after a 3-hour run. I'm not oversized, 170cm/70kg.

I've contacted the support about this, too, but their offer was only to send a pad for a price ($100 landed in Aus ffs!) and I'd have to screw it on top somehow. That "solve it yourself" offer for a faulty design is not acceptable for me.

These, coupled with the extremely high price and you're better off buying something else.

This Kayak paddles nice and straight. Glides fairly fast through the water compared to my friends kayaks. I've mainly used it on slower running rivers around Michigan. The only draw back is that I have long legs which makes it alittle more cramped when I want to relax and float with my legs on the top of the kayak.

After owning a 16 ft wilderness systems tarpon sit on top that was great, I decided to purchase a lite weight sit in. The old boat weighed about 60-65 lbs. After a lot of research I decided on the hurricane santee sport 116.

It is lite,..35 lbs, it tracks well, the seat has numerous adjustments, the sport has an extended cockpit opening, it is well constructed, there is a surface mounted cubby as well as a cockpit cubby. and the mango color is very attractive. The lite weight also makes it easy to get on top of my jeep.

As 69 year old in great physical condition, my lower back , a life long issue, gives me a problem getting out. Simple solution...I purchased a strap that I attach to the front carry handle, usually back the kayak onto the shore or ramp and pull myself up. The large cockpit allows for easy exit. I can also sit one of my grandchildren between my legs for short and safe excursions.

The company staff has been VERY responsive with answers to any questions I h ave had regarding accessories. Suggesting other vendors if they didn't offer the item I was looking for.

I just don't get to use it as much as I'd like....but I'm trying to change that.

This morning I launch from our home in east NC to go out and collect trash on our annual river cleanup. At one point I had over 50 lbs in bags on back deck and cockpit. A real work horse. Best times are when my dog Nelson is sitting on a pad ahead of my feet sniffing out adventure.

My boat, being one of the first editions, lacked somewhat in fit and finish plus a few necessities such as a security loop to attach lock. I made small changes and had to reinforce area under seat but she's done me good. I pull a 4 boat trailer with and Eddyline Samba, CD Willow in fiberglass and a Hurricane 128 Expedition for my wife. The boat that sees most water time is still the Santee. Nelson says if I sell he's leaving home.

New or used this is a great rec boat for all paddlers

I rigged up a fishing console for her that hooks over the front of the coaming, so that I didn't have to put any holes in her hull to install rod holders and a dry box.

She's very light and comfortable, and she tracks and maneuvers well. She's also durable. I'm ashamed to admit that she's been dropped onto my garage floor, rammed into my garage door while on the roof of my car and dropped onto the ground from the roof of my car, but with no ill effects whatsoever. And did I mention that she's pretty?

The only disappointments I have are that her hull material is fairly soft (e.g., I gouged it the first time that I grounded her on some gravel) and she's not as fast as I had hoped, although my expectations were probably unrealistic for such a light and small kayak. Regarding her weight, since she weighs only 36 pounds, she's the easiest kayak I own to get onto the water and back, so I take her out a lot.

I feel the Santee is super manuverable, edges well for a rec. boat and has great primary and secondary stability (almost to the point of being a bit boring.) Compared with other recreational kayaks of the same size the Santee seems to track a bit better than most and has very good glide. Speed is also decent although I guess I was hoping for more. I would give the Santee a rating of 9 but Hurricane has provided my with such outstanding customer service I feel compelled to give it a 10. My boat started to develop slight bulges in the hull under the bulkheads and with a simple call to Hurricane they are rectifying the situation to my complete satisfaction. I even spoke with Hurricane's VP Brad Taylor and he was both very kind and helpful. Once again Hurricane appears to have wonderful customer service which is worth a great deal these days.

In summation, I would say the Santee Sport 116 is a fun, super stable good looking boat that is quite durable and is probably one of the top performing recreational kayaks available in the 12' range. My next kayak will be a Hurricane Category 5 as I am looking for a little more speed and excitement. Plus edging the swede form hull in turning is just plain fun!

The Santee Sport has met and exceeded all my expectations. It is light, easy to carry and quick in the water. It tracks well, turns easily and is a joy to use. Highly recommended.