REVIEW OF STORY DIVISION 1 KAYAK

CONTENTS

1. Introduction
2. Price
3. Dimensions
4. Contents of package
5. On the Water Tests
6. Pros of the Story kayak
7. Cons of the Story kayak
8. Summary of the Story Division 1 kayak

1. INTRODUCTION

The Story Division 1 kayak is a full drop stitch inflatable kayak sold by a company called Euroskateshop.

It is a 3 panel canoe shaped drop stitch kayak.

Drop stitch inflatable kayaks have become increasingly popular over the last several years since inflate to a very high air pressure which make their hulls and decks almost a firm as hard shell kayaks.

2. PRICE

The Story Division 1 kayak usually sells for about £675 on Euroskateshop.

However, Euroskateshop offer big discounts on their kayaks from time to time.

3. DIMENSIONS

The Story Division 1 kayak is 325cm long and 84cm wide.

The kayak alone weighs about 12kg

The weight of the kayak together with the included wheeled carry bag, seat, seat pad, pump and paddle is about 18kg.

The maximum load is 100kg or 220 lbs which converts to 15 stones and 10 lbs).

4. CONTENTS OF PACKAGE

The Story Division 1 kayak package includes the following:

• a seat 
• a padded seat cushion 
• a double action pump which can also be used to deflate the kayak
• a plastic splash guard 
• 1 skeg (fin) which attaches to a slot on the rear of the hull to help with tracking
• a large carry bag 
• a 4 piece paddle 
• a repair kit 
• a footrest strap
•  a valve removal tool is included if you ever need to remove any of the air valves
• an instruction manual

 

5. ON THE WATER TESTS

The Story Division 1 can only be used as a solo kayak by one person due to its size. There are 2 and even 3 person models of similar Story kayaks also available.

3 panel drop stitch kayaks such as the Story all appear to have the same basic design and hull shape and we’d therefore expect that they all handle similarly on the water.

The story division one is pretty fast on the water due to the full drop stitch construction, which results in the hull of the kayak being very firm and also due to the moulded plastic cones on the bow and the stern of the kayak.

The Story division one kayak seems to track quite well. 

While the cockpit of the kayak is quite roomy, we found that it took some fiddling to get the seat straps tight enough to hold the seat back in place.

The firm, high-pressure drop stitch floor chamber means that you do not get water pooling around your seat. 

Regarding stability, we found the Story Division I kayak to be less stable than any of the other kayaks that we’ve used.

This appears to be due to the shape of the hull, which seems to be designed for speed and tracking at the expense of stability.

As soon as you get into the kayak and start paddling, you will notice the hull wobbling from side to side, and this is a bit unnerving, especially if you are on the sea or a wide, river or estuary.

The front and rear decks have bungee cords for securing items to carry on top of the decks and items can also be stashed underneath the front and rear decks.

Due to the seat being positioned in the middle of the cockpit, you also have a lot of storage space in the cockpit itself behind the seat.

The paddle that is included with the story division 1 kayak is probably the worst of all of the included panels that we’ve had with any of our kayaks, being very loose. 

The large carry bag is useful in that you can both carry it on your back or, when possible, drag the bag along on the built-in wheels.  

6. PROS OF THE STORY KAYAK

• The drop stitch floor provides a firm and dry base to sit on 

• It is relatively light and portable for a full drop stitch kayak

• It seems to be a fast kayak, maybe the fastest of all of the kayaks that we have, although not significantly so.

• It tracks marginally better than the other kayaks that we have due to the V shaped hole and the plastic barrel and stern cones.

• The inclusion of a foot rest is a welcome addition since it helps to brace your legs against so that you can use your core strength to paddle.

7. CONS OF THE STORY KAYAK

• It is the least stable of all of the kayaks that we have owned. 

• The plastic stern and bow cones make the kayak awkward to fold over and roll up properly for storage in the carry bag.

• The seat back is more difficult to keep upright than on our other kayaks 

• The seat cushion is too thick be in about 8 cm thick, and when you use this with this ETA, it results in you being set to high which exacerbates the stability issues of the kayak. 

• The air valves do not feel as quality as on our other drop stitch kayaks which also use the same type of valve. 

• When we screw the tube into the connector on the pump, often times it does not sit properly and air leaks out when you start to pump it to a high pressure. The thread of the screw in the connection is very temperamental. 

• The included paddle is probably the worst paddle we’ve used 

8. SUMMARY OF THE STORY KAYAK

The Story Division 1 was the first 3 panel full drop stitch kayak that we’ve tried.

If you prioritise speed over stability and only generally go paddling on canals or sheltered rivers then you will probably get on very well with the Story kayak.

It therefore essentially boils down to what sort of padding you do and whether you prefer speed over stability when you are looking to buy a kayak.

The link to our video review of the Story kayak on our Youtube channel is below.