First Impressions

At 17 feet, the Tempest 170 is a long kayak. It's torpedo shaped with a round hull and a low deck.  It is made to go fast, but also carry a of of gear for a long camping trip.  If you are entering the sport, this the boat to get. It is stable and forgiving to beginners, but also edges well, rolls easily, is maneuverable, and will catch the waves in the surf. You will grow with this kayak. It gave me many fond memories. I learned to roll with it, I learned to surf with it, and I went on my first multiday expedition with it.

 

I would say this boat is like your first girlfriend you actually liked. As you go through life you will remember the first time you paddled it, and how different and better it felt from everything else that had come before. 

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Cargo Capacity

The Tempest 170 has a lot of cargo space in the 3 hatches. The back hatch is oval shaped so it will be the best place to store bulkier items such as the tent and a dolly. It will also be easier to store the tent poles towards the back, as they can fit in between the spaces around the skegg box. The area behind the seat is also a very usable space for a water bag which is heavy, but will be near the lowest point in the boat, and will increase stability. 

 

Speed and Tracking

As I noted, the torpedo shape of the boat means that it is designed to go fast, and you should notice a considerable improvement if you are upgrading from a sit on top kayak. The boat tracks well and is responsive to edging, however, you will need to use the skegg in strong cross winds to avoid weather cocking. 

 

Maneuverability and Surfing

As with most boats designed for speed, there is some tradeoff at the expense of maneuverability. The Tempest does edge well and you can do all of the main edge turns, with it, but it won't be quite as agile as a Delphin or a Sterling Reflection. When surfing  I found that it is somewhat difficult to hold a course down the wave in part because the boat does not have much chine in the hull to carve into the wave, and any deviation from  perpendicular will quickly be amplified if you don't correct it quickly. It's possible to surf well with this kayak, and on small waves, you wont have issues,  but if you get into 6 to 10 foot breaking waves, be prepared with a solid brace for the broach, and to roll a lot.  If you learn to surf diagonally down a wave with this boat, you will be able to do it on any boat.

 

Rolling

The round hull and low back deck make this kayak very ideal to learn how to roll. Some kayaks with sharp chines can be  difficult to roll because they have a tipping point which must be crossed to have the kayak complete the roll. However, with a round hull, the roll is a smooth and continuous movement. 

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Rigidity

As with most most rotomolded boats, you will find that the hull may become soft, if you leave the boat in, strong sunlight, or under compressive stress such as on a car rack for a prolonged stretch. This however, is not a permanent issue, as the material has a natural memory for its shape, and will immediately return to it once cooled. The rotomolded plastic also has the great benefit that you will likely never bang this boat so badly that it will ever need repairs. You could throw it out of a window from a high rise and it would be perfectly usable, if but a little scratched. If you drop this boat on the ground when you take it off your car rack, it will forgive you. If you bang a boulder when you're rock gardening, it will forgive you. If a barrel wave dumps you hard on a pebbled beach, it will forgive you. If you get rammed by another kayak in the surf, it will forgive you. The same cannot be said for a fiberglass or carbon composite boat. Learn how to handle your boat with this boat before you invest some serious money on a top of the line model.