Kialoa Shaka Pu'u Paddle - Review

Yesterday I took the 2008 Kialoa Shaka Pu'u paddle for a test run. It was a demo from Andrew at Balmoral Boards.

One word: Agile.

This is an awesome paddle for performance SUP surfing where you need to throw it around quickly.

I went out the Bower at Manly which had a strong on/cross-shore blowing creating pretty much a constant paddle just to stay in the takeoff zone. The big ones were nearly head high and there were some great rides to be had.

We jumped in at the Bower Restaurant and started the 300m paddle to the point. From the first couple of strokes I could tell that the Shaka Pu'u had heaps of life. I've heard of guys saying that their paddle has plenty of "spring" - now I know what they are talking about. With each stroke you can really feel an extra bit of kick as the shaft returns to its original, straight, unloaded shape. You basically get that extra bit of power for free as you have just taken the human load off the handle and shaft. It's like: stroke, kick ... stroke, kick ... stroke, kick - where you are doing the stroke and the shaft is doing the kick by itself. Nice. Very efficient.

The simple "T" handle works great. It's very comfortable, creates good blade control and is easy to tell if you have thrown it into your hand the wrong way around. The thin, oval shaped shaft is also very nice to grip. The paddle I tried had a C4 paddle grip on it (which in itself was very comfortable and grippy) but his only accentuated the great shaft shape. I'm pretty sure, without the grip, it would still feel very nice in the hand.

The Shaka Pu'u has a relatively small surface area on the blade. This is one of the reasons it is a very agile paddle and great for surfing. The slightly smaller blade allows for quick dips in and out of the wall of the wave without too much resistance, bogging or getting "stuck". It's also great for those frantic, quick, little stokes you often need to put in just before a late takeoff. Overall the small blade allows for enhanced control. The blade is still big enough to easily stroke into waves however, even those fuller ones.

I don't know the exact weight of this Kialoa, but I do know that it is very light ... much lighter than the composite fiberglass paddle I usually ride with. This is the other reason I'm calling this an agile paddle. Quick hand changes and generally moving the paddle around while on a wave is greatly enhanced by the lightness of the Shaka Pu'u.

When you look closely at the workmanship and materials used in a Kialoa paddle - I think you'll be hard pressed to find any flaws - I certainly was. It just looks and feels like a quality product where a lot of care has gone into its construction.

Highs:
- Light weight.
- Comfortable design.
- Efficient paddler.
- Quality construction.
- Agile in the surf.

Lows:
- Relatively high price tag (I think).
- Logo is just a sticker which may come off over time.

Here is some video of the session, showing the paddle in action:

"Baked Beans" and "Pu'u" - hmmmmm.

Yeah, thinking back, it does skim nicely across the wave face. Another plus due to it's great design.

Hey guys,
The KIALOA paddles are available from both STRAPPER and SHQ in Vicco and we plan to have demo's at the Torquay demo day.

The Shakka Pu'u is the best surf paddle and retails for $495.
The NALU has a bigger blade for all-round performance with the same 'liveliness' as the Shakka
If you want more info on KIALOA SUP PADDLES or wish to find your closest KIALOA dealer - drop me a line.

Andrew.A
info@paddlesurfing.com.au