Surfskis tend to fall into two main camps, 19’ x 19” ‘stable’ skis, tailored for those individuals welcomed to the fold, moving up from fast sea kayaks and the like, and the high performance skis (H.P.S.), measuring in at needlelike 21” x 17” dimensions. The transition (a.k.a.. ‘leap’) from one to the other can be daunting, generally accompanied by a marked increase in swimming prowess. You pay your dues. For this reason, many paddlers prefer to keep a small quiver, with one ‘stable’ ski for big conditions, and one ‘tippy’ boat for flatter, faster work. Occasionally, a ski comes along that attempts to lessen the learning curve from one scale to another, perfect for those moving up, or those for whom owning multiple boats is just not an option, one that offers the speed of an H.P.S., with the confidence inspiring behaviors of a ‘stable’ boat. Sometimes, such offerings are neither here nor there; in their quest to hit both marks, the arrows falls ineffectively in between them. Occasionally, a boat comes along that successfully accomplishes this purpose, providing the speed of an H.P.S., with the reassuring attributes of more stable craft. The Custom Kayaks Synergy (fiberglass hybrid layup), and Synergy Lite (carbon layup), produced in South Africa by Mark Llewin, does this quite nicely.


I’ve owned a number of others boats including a Fenn Mako XT, a Huki S1-R, several Epic V10Ls, and a Think Legend, and paddled others as well. I purchased a Synergy Lite hoping to obtain a number of attributes: greater speed than the S1-R I continue to keep in my stable, more stability in confused water than the V10Ls, and more predictability than my Legend. For the most part, it has succeeded on all counts. At approximately 26 lbs., it’s acceptably light, but not exceedingly fragile, and the epoxy carbon layup is plenty stiff for efficient power transfer. The build layup is good-some ripples and gelcoat imperfections are apparent, but it’s at least on a par with the Fenn boats, IMO. The graphics are simple and clean. Although the high visibility neon triangle decals definitely are of benefit in aiding the ski to be seen at sea, I can’t help but think I’ve traveled back to the 80s-good friends don’t let good friends paddle neon-smile. It is a handsome boat though, crisp and clean with purposeful lines, and a distinctive chopped off stern, resembling the transom on a racing yacht.

Cockpit: The seatwell is nicely shaped and exceptionally deep, giving the Synergy an almost uncanny degree of secondary stability. The bucket is quite comfortable. A bit more cutaway on the seat back would be nice, but a thing layer of minicell positioned at the ridge changed things dramatically for me. The deep bucket is that sometimes it feels like you feel like you are paddling slightly uphill. A seat pad would do away with this sensation, but would also raise your center of gravity. Here, it feels exactly the opposite of the Legend, where, although conducive to efficient power transfer, my COG always felt higher than it needed to be. (Note: the latest incarnation of the Synergy incorporates the footwell of the Horizon ski, wider and slightly lower than the model reviewed here, so I’m curious what effect this might have on power transfer.) It may just be me, but I find the Synergy more difficult to remount than other H.P.S. with shallower buckets. When mounting sidesaddle, that deep well holds a whole lot of water. Swinging your leg over the high rails requires an effort, and it feels like you drop down, down, down into the seatwell, similar to a Mako 6/Elite. I’ve heard mixed reviews on this, some folks finding it easy to climb back on, and others echoing my impressions. Maybe I just have not figured it out on this boat. Everything comes at a price, it seems; what makes for stability and a dry ride requires compromise in other areas.

The footwell is fairly spacious, accommodating even my size 12s clad in wool socks, neoprene socks, drysuit and neoprene booties for Northeast winter paddling. The footstrap is broad and easily adjustable, as is the footplate itself, via an easy to use adjusting mechanism with locking detent pins riding on two horizontal tracks. At 6’1” with a 34” inseam, I have five more clicks left of travel before it’s bottomed out at the stops. The cables self adjust, a huge plus if you’ve ever tied the endless knots required of some systems. There is a simple grab loop at the forward cockpit header, helpful for carrying and remounts. Two large venturis take up residence in the footwells-the boat clears quickly and efficiently and rarely, if ever, carries any residual water in the wells. You can hear them sucking away when the boat comes up to speed.

Flatwater Speed: The Synergy is faster than seat of pants impressions bear. It has the odd sensation of feeling somewhat lethargic at slower speeds, then seems to get up and plane at speeds above 6.5 mph, provided its engine can hold a constant effort. I’ve not done empirical tests from boat to boat, although I’d hazard to say the Synergy gives something away here to the skis at the upper echelon of the speed range, namely the V12/V10/L, Mako 6/Elite, S1-X/Special, and Uno. It just doesn’t feel as efficient as these boats when the water’s mirror calm, largely due to the very deep bucket and ‘heels high’ seating that gives the boat its stability, but is less than optimal for flatwater ergonomics. The addition of a seat pad would increase the leverage advantage for power transfer. On purely flatwater, it would not be my first choice, but throw in a little texture though and things change…

Upwind: The Synergy holds a decent rhythm in upwind sections. The shape of the aft deck (termed by the company as it’s Y Tech’ construction) sheds water easily in bigger conditions. The high cockpit sides make for an extremely dry ride. The bow tends to ride up and over the wave tops, rather than bobbing up and slapping down, despite its rocker. Its stability is confidence inspiring in confused chop, and although it has an ample amount of volume in the bow, it doesn’t seem as adversely affected by wind gusts as, for example, a V10.

Side Chop and the Jobblies: Beam chop is managed nicely as well. One friend observed: “It feels like it fits nicely between the waves.” It doesn’t catch an edge in the same way my Legend did. In confused chop, it gets bounced around about the same as any other boat, but its prodigious amount of secondary stability is a Godsend. Not quite in the same class as my S1-R here, I’d much rather be in the Synergy in the wobbly bits than my V10L.

Steering: The steering is spot on, and it tracks true on a wave face. Custom Kayaks only uses Spectra like cable for about the first foot and a half of the cable run off the pedals, then mates it to stainless line. The end result is zero flex in the steering system. It doesn’t pivot as quickly as what I consider to be the benchmark here, a Huki, but is very precise, enabling you to work your way on the little runs in complete control. The turning radius falls somewhere between the Huki and Epic boats. The foot pedals are broad and comfortable, and the footplate itself has little flex, facilitating strong leg drive. The rudder is quite large, and benefits from some form of kelp or weed guard to keep from collecting aquatic flora specimens. I’m curious what an elliptical design would do for its already unerring response.

Downwind: We save the best for last…downwind seems to be what this boat is designed for-little wonder coming from its South African breeding. It lifts off on the slightest swell and just goes. You can effortlessly pick up bumps you’d miss on other boats. I found it carries speed well from run to run, and it’s almost laughable in its ability to pick up the smallest riffles and make them work for you. On one outing side by side with a friend in a Mako 6, a ski known for its surfing prowess, I was right there with him-we managed to outdistance the other boats in the group, and were whooping and hollering in the process.

In closing, the Synergy/Lite seems best suited to an individual looking for one boat to do it all. It falls somewhere between the more stable skis and the highly caffeinated models. If flat out velocity on the flats is your thing, there are likely other choices better suited, but remember the adage: ‘Stability Before Speed’. You are only as fast as you are stable. Here, the Synergy offers a great deal-a nice blend of stability and speed. The very definition of its name sums it up:

Synergy (from the Greek syn-ergos, συνεργός meaning working together) the working together of two things to produce an effect greater than the sum of their individual effects