Santee 116 Sport

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.