Alona SOT

On the same trip testing Katuka, I also tested another design named "Alona". It was a 2-person sit-on-top kayak.

Actually the Alona design preceded the Katuka, but it took a long time to adjust the shape to get the boat I want. I did not like many of the SOTs on the market, where the kayak is stable but sluggish, and always back-breaking to paddle because of the awkward sitting position. I wanted something that cruises well, stable, nautrally sitting, with minimal frills - something that I won't mind using for a round island tour.
The Alona started with dreamy coffee shop talk, then an abandoned factory, faith, hopes, and a shared sense of adventure that everything going forward would be fun. My 'partner in fun', a 30-year old Chinese engineering genius, designed and built all the machinery himself, while I design the kayak. We are in this together because we shared the same idea about good quality and proper ethics, which are so hard to find in China.

Because finances are tight, we don't own a car. So on test day, we had to portage the sample uphill to a small dam half an hour walk away. In retrospect, it was good because the huff/puff warmed up my body for the paddle!

I love the feel of Alona on the water - fast, stable, and comfortable - all that I wanted in a SOT kayak. But there was a flaw in the design of the luggage compartment, that disrupted the buoyancy of the stern. I cursed myself for not taking a closer look last time. So it is back to the drawing board again.

Because we were both inexperienced, there were mis-steps and lots of challenges sure. It looks another 2 months delay for the Alona, but if we know where we are going, and keep walking, we will reach there someday...we just have to believe we can.