Breeze

I've paddled many different kayaks, but this time I was looking for something that could work in grade 2 and even grade 3 rivers but be faster than modern whitewater boats and still able to take out on the lake or bay for the day. Everything is a compromise, but I wanted a cockpit large enough for my 6'3" frame and stable enough for my high centre of gravity. Had to be plastic to bounce off rocks and have a rear bulkhead. I also wanted it to track reasonably well without the use of a rudder of skeg, both of which are a nuisance in whitewater. I tried a Necky chatham 16 and Looksha 14, Northwest sportee ( it's a copy of the famous Mariner Coaster but a bit shorter and in plastic) ,Prijon Yukon, Delsyk Nifty 430 and Nifty 385 as well as a couple older whitewater plastic boats ( one perception Dancer and one unknown brand. Here are the comparisons: The older 12 foot whitewater boats were plenty manoeuvrable and stable, and quite fast (relative to modern whitewater boats), but the cockpits were way to small for comfort, the decks too low for size 12 feet and a pain to empty out due to the lack of a rear bulkhead. Also lousy trackers, as you might expect. The Chatham also was too snug, had reasonable initial stability and good secondary stability and was faster than the old whitewater boats, but probably best for someone under 180 lbs. Tracking was not great but doable without the use of a skeg. It gets knocked around a bit with a following sea. It turns reasonable well for a 16 foot kayak, especially on edge, but it can’t really compete with the shorter boats. It doesn’t help that the soft hull doesn’t hold its rockered shape all that well. You can paddle grade 2, but you can’t hit all the play spots. The Yukon had a very nice fit in the cockpit and plenty of room under the deck, but the hull design required a bit of getting used to. There is no bow rocker to speak of, so the bow really digs into a current line and you have a hard time pulling across a current. The stern however is quite loose, and if you paddle to take advantage of that you can paddle grade 2 just fine, but grade 3 is a challenge. The Yukon is also a lousy tracker, as the bow tends to yaw, and any distance without a rudder would be frustrating. Initial and secondary stability are both good. Speed is acceptable for day trips on the lake. The Sportee is was manoeuvrable enough, better than the Chatham or Yukon, and quite stable, but the cockpit was too snug, and the low deck was cramped. Bow rocker was better than the Yukon, but not as good as the others. It has a loose stern which helps to turn, and it tracks reasonably well in most conditions, but needs some attention in a following sea. This boat is also best for a medium to small person. The Looksha and the Niftys are all fairly similar in design, as you might expect as they are all designed by the same person. Bow rocker is decent, the stern rocker is minimal and designed to assist tracking. They all track well without a rudder, they are all moderate on initial stability but high on secondary stability. The Looksha and the 430 are a bit faster than the 385. They will all handle grade 2 whitewater but the 385 is the most manoeuvrable and my favourite of the 3. Cockpits are all large enough. My biggest complaint is that the bows are all on the narrow side, and designed for speed more than maximum buoyancy. You can bury them in big water. That brings us to the Breeze. This one was a bit of a surprise as it is mostly marketed as a stable boat for fishing, photography and such, and it certainly was the most stable of the bunch, with the Yukon a close second. The cockpit was the largest of the bunch. Only the older whitewater boats had more bow rocker and the stern rocker was more than the Looksha and Nifty pair, so predictably it was one of the most manoeuvrable, comparable to the Nifty 385. Where it differed was in the fish form design and the very buoyant bow. This boat can handle some very big rough water without burying the bow. You get a bit of a slap when paddling into wind waves on the lake, but that bow feels nice when riding a large wave train or crossing currents in the rapids. The other surprise was how well it tracked without a rudder. I had it in 3 foot rollers pushing me along and had no trouble keeping it on track, whereas the Sportee and the Yukon where almost uncontrollable in the same conditions. So, final conclusion, considering stability, cockpit fit, manoeuvrability, reasonable speed, and tracking in all conditions, the Breeze was a clear winner for me, with the Nifty 385 second. A smaller paddler might like the Sportee as well.

Well, a few years ago I got interested in trying out Kayaking. So I looked around and I decided on the Breeze by Current Designs. The boat is under 16 feet, so it is a nice size and the weight comes in around 50 lbs., depending on how much you have strapped on the deck. I also like the air bag located in the bow. It is a sweet little boat that literally, depending on which stroke you use, you can turn on a dime. It glides nice, is light, and is really within almost anyone's budget.

I currently own a Breeze by Current Designs. I bought it three years ago and I find it to be a very maneuverable boat. It is just over 50 pounds. I can easily do a 180 with no problem. It does have a rudder, but I rarely engage it. I will admit it does only have one compartment for storage but you can still store a good amount of stuff in it.

For anyone looking for a nice little boat that will, with proper care, serve them for a long time, try checking out the Breeze. From my experience you probably will not be disappointed.

A couple of years ago I purchased my first kayak (Breeze by Current Designs). I have used it several times and I was first amazed at how little amount of water you need to travel in. Of course I am only about 140 lbs. and my boat is 13'6". So considering what the weight capacity of the boat is in relation to my weight is, I suppose that it isn't that much strain on the boat. However, I am really happy with my "TOY" as my wife says. What is really cool though is when you are out and there are geese either swimming or flying right beside you.

It is really a neat little boat and before I bought it I never realized how relaxing kayaking could be. So this is my little input for the sport of kayaking.
~ Edwin Parrott - Regina, Saskatchewan

Breeze is a good beginner boat with good speed (for its size), a comfortable seat and quality Rotomolded Polyethylene material; however this boat is very poor at tracking straight. Tracking is bad on rivers and horrendous in windy conditions on open water. The boat badly needs a skeg or rudder.

The problem is caused by the upward bow combined with small size of the boat. This creates a really small footprint on the water. The bow acts as a sail getting pushed by winds that causes the stern to waver. The sway of the stern in windy conditions forces the paddler to constantly make corrections, which is frustrating as it is tiring.

I also would not recommend this boat for a tall person. I am 5'11 with size 11 feet. My knees were never really comfortable on the kneepads and the boat is too narrow around the foot pegs for a person with big feet.

I kept the Breeze for less than a year before trading it in for a much better touring kayak. If after reading this review you are still considering Breeze, I STRONGLY recommended getting a rudder.

I have been canoeing for several years, and somehow looking down on all them kayaks because they're so awkward to get into and out of and had too little load capacity... Then last year I decided on impulse to rent a kayak for a trip. Since I admitted being new to kayaking, the outfitter recommended to take Breeze, and absolutely refused to give me a sprayskirt ("Take a class in wet exit first", - he said).

I fell in love with the kayak immediately, and this season after some market research bought me a brand new Breeze. Took it out on Georgian Bay (Wasaga Beach) close to shore at first, tried it out in breaking waves and wind, practiced wet exit and so on - to get the feel for the boat and to see how far it could be pushed. It proved fairly easy to control - in fact, way easier than any canoe. It dealt with the numerous powerboats' wake easily (those guys never slow down for you, do they?), was nimble and maneuverable, and tracking was never an issue because of the smooth-working rudder.

Last week I took it out on a trip around Franklin Island with two more canoes in the group. It behaved very well, no complaints. The maximum load capacity (150 kg) is quite high for a kayak of this length. However, since there is no bow hatch, one is tempted for simplicity's sake to stuff all the gear into the rear compartment. Don't do this! The boat would be out of trim and it 'd be immediately noticeable, especially in following seas.

I also found out that I had to paddle harder than I expected to keep up with both canoes. Somehow I presumed a kayak would be faster than the canoes. But I cannot pass any judgment on Breeze's speed or efficiency since I am new to kayaking, and it is probably my paddling style that needs improving

On our way back to Snug Harbor we had to deal with 15...20-knot wind from the bay with it's accompanying 3-foot waves, whitecaps and all. Circling the island we had to first paddle into the wind, than take it broadside for a while, and finally paddle with the wind and waves following at 45-degree angle. The Breeze handled rough conditions easily and confidently, it never felt close to capsize and with the help of it's rudder was always manageable. I am thinking of replacing the rudder blade with a foil-shaped one of a larger size though, because I plan to add a sail rig to the kayak. The rear hitch did not leak, and the hull did not flex in waves.
Those were the Pros.

Now the Cons:
The thigh pads are but two pieces of crappy self-adhesive microcell foam, they started coming off in pieces on day two, and will have to be replaced with something more substantial. The cockpit trim is a joke: it is a U-cross-sectioned plastic strip which is simply and loosely pushed (no adhesive!) onto the cockpit edge; of course it won't stay on - one has to push it back on several times a day. The rudder is not a foil, just a cheap aluminum stamping.

But one cannot expect too much for the price of the boat. All the kayaks in this price range (Elie, Riot etc.) have their strengths and weaknesses, but it is always obvious where the manufacturer chose to cut cost. In case of Breeze the shortcuts are fairly innocent, I would certainly recommend this kayak.

The Breeze is a great little boat! 4 years ago, I traded a Dagger Edisto in for a Breeze on the way home from a week-long trip. (As a novice, I foolishly thought that my starter boat was a kayak, not the flat-bottomed scow that it was- I had to borrow the Breeze's 'big sister', the Storm, to finish the River Rumble.) I paddled the Breeze 100+ miles during last year's Rumble (Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers) and stayed in the middle of the pack with no problems. This boat readily handles everything from shallow marshes to Class 1-2 whitewater. The Breeze tracks well enough without the rudder, but CD's rudder system is a huge help when the water gets rough. This boat might not be the fastest or most graceful, but it does many things well, and would be a great choice for anyone looking for a rec boat. One complaint: neoprene hatch covers are a pain in the butt (just about got it... DRAT! the other side popped off!)

My 13.5' Current Design Breeze is a wonderful product that tracks and glides easily. I bought it new in Alexandria VA for $599 after seeing it in many places for $749. I wish I'd bought two. My only complaint is I do not have anything to complain about!

My wife and I bought two CD Breezes in August and have used them in small creeks, large rivers, and lakes. They are one of the nicest paddling boats we own, and we have 6 boats. The Breeze is stable enough to take pictures and/or fish from, and fast enough to go exploring. For day trips, the storage is ample. Nothing bad to report. Excellent small boat.

As new kayakers in our early 50s, looking for our first boats, we did a good bit of research through this website, and others. We got a lot of great advice on different types of kayaks; however, the best advice we got was: 1)demo a number of kayaks, and 2)purchase the kayak in which you feel most comfortable. Having done all that, we purchased two Current Designs Breeze kayaks. They fit every need that we had -- lightweight, good tracking, easy to handle, stable, relatively fast, easy to turn, sufficient storage space, and the cockpit size was perfect for us. We are using these on tidal creeks and in the river. The Breeze is perfectly named -- paddling these kayaks is a breeze. We highly recommend these kayaks.

Great all-around kayak! Stable with great tracking and extremely well made. Am going to buy another one for another member of my family.

I'm just adding that I meant to assign a rating of 7 out of 10, not 10 out of 10, because of the seating and the storage in this boat. Enjoyable, but not perfect.

I own a Dagar Savannah and switched boats for the day. The Breeze (without rudder) being one foot shorter than my Savannah I thought the boats would handle similarly. Wrong! In my opinion the Breeze does not track very well. I found myself having to overly compensate to correct the movements of the Breeze. My friend felt the same the previous day. At the end of an 8 mile paddle I was completely exhausted. As with my Savannah I would have been ready to continue paddling. I recommend the potential buyer to look elsewhere for a different boats. Test paddle as many boats as possible.

I test paddled the Current Designs Breeze at the urging of my local dealer. I am thinking of upgrading from a Perception Swifty, which is a very good boat, although it is less than elegant. I was very disappointed with the Current Designs boat and recommend the prospective buyer pass this up or buy a Swifty and save BIG dollars. My criteria were to find a boat that performed better than the Swifty but with better tracking and at the risk of losing maneuverability. The expectation was that the new boat would be longer for the tracking improvements and the extra length would smooth out the ride on choppy water. The Breeze is well fitted with a rear bulkhead space, hatch, deck lines, and rudder mount. It looks a bit archaic to me, as if I would expect Vikings to be the crew. The problems start when you hit the water. I didn’t have a model with a rudder but I expected reasonable incremental improvements over my rudderless Swifty. My first impression was a pleasant amount of “tippyness” but no stability problems. Then I paddled out into an approximately 5 MPH wind and the boat immediately began to weathercock. In fact, it weathercocked like a huge weathervane. I sprinted of to get to more sheltered water and noted that the nose twitched irritatingly with every stroke of the paddle. I brought the boat up to a comfortable cruising speed and held it there for a quarter mile or so, and noted a 4 MPH reading on my GPS. My Swifty does a comfortable 3.5 mph cruise, where’s the BIG speed increase the dealer kept promising? Still weathercocking, I sped up in an all out splash fest to push the boat to its maximum speed, only to see a dismal 5.2 mph on the GPS. (I can get 4.5+ in my 29” wide, 9.5 ft Swifty!!) Now that I had entered a narrow slough I let the boat glide. The tracking was even worse in a glide! I had to repeatedly correct for bow yaw; the whole boat rotated but kept moving in the same general direction. I’m sure I would have eventually been cruising sideways if I hadn’t struggled to keep straightening things out. I took several more 1/4 mile passes over the next half-hour with no improvement before I hauled the boat out. And haul it was, the boat weighs 50+ pounds compared to my 36 LB Swifty. I don’t know what kind of idiot my dealer thinks I am, but the Breeze is simply Current Designs entry level boat and probably not much more. I concluded that the sharp bow and stern of the Swifty coupled with the dual tracking channels results in a much better grip on the water than the relatively featureless hull of the Breeze. My suggestion is to skip over this boat, but more importantly test paddle before buying even an entry-level boat.

My buddy and I have been the owners of a Breeze for 6 months. We both love these roto-mould kayaks, use them on lake & river expeditions a great deal. Both boats came with rudders and this simple addition allows incredible manoeuvrability. The seats, while basic in appearance, are very comfortable. I suspect that one would wish for a longer kayak with more storage for ocean use, perhaps the next one up on the line, the Storm.

I own a "Breeze" and have used it in the Adirondaks and Chincoteague for two years. The hull slightly collapses under my left foot making the kayak pull left. I tried to have a rudder put on,but Jersey Paddler could not do it.Kayak is very good,but I would not recommend it for seniors (I'm 63).

This is absolutely the BEST kayak I've ever tried. I fell in love with it the moment I tried it 3 years ago (so did my brother). I just actually bought one for this summer. They're around $800 plus. I plan on buying a second one next summer. (one kayak a year!) I would absolutely reccommend this kayak to anybody & someday myself, my husband & 3 kids will each have one I'm sure unless they come out with a better one.... and good luck at that!

I just purchased a yellow Breeze after test paddling it and a Perception Cape Horn. I was impressed with it's ease of paddling, stability, comfort and quality. On my first day, I paddled for 2 1/2 hours, exploring LI Sounds islands, coves, harbors and tributory rivers. What a delightful boat! She is lovely to look at and performs extremely well for a 13 1/2 foot boat. I recommend her to anyone seeking a terrific day touring kayak.

I had originally wanted to buy an Acadia and then someone mentioned the Carolina...so I was very excited until I tried it. SO in an effort to get my spirits up I tried the Breeze....it was great. I loved the roominess and it seemed to outperform the Carolina. It is quick and easy to maneuver.

My husband and I rented a couple of these. They seemed to handle well (though we are both complete novices). I was not impressed with the quality. The plastic seemed flimsy and the boat I had had a big "dent" (a deformity in the plastic) in the bottom. Though as rental kayaks they probably get more than their share of abuse and they were still floating with no leaks.

Had a chance to test paddle the Current Designs "Breeze" today and was really impressed. I had just tried the new Carolina by Perception and felt the Breeze beat it hands down. Granted, the Breeze doesn't have the storage capacity of the Carolina. However, I was amazed how much easier the breeze was to paddle!! The salesman told me it was just a more efficiently designed hull that made the difference. I thought longer boats were supposed to be easier to paddle? The Carolina is over a foot longer than the breeze. Sorry Perception, C.D. designed a better mousetrap here.