boat review: Riot Magnum 80

With a freshly-broken boat (courtesy of the North Fork Clackamas) and a California creeking trip coming up, I found myself in the market for a new boat. I'd always looked at the Riot Magnum 72 and wished there was a bigger version, so I jumped at the chance to demo the Magnum 80 on the East Fork Lewis River before my trip. The East Fork is a great place to test a boat, because there is a little bit of everything. Halfway through the run, I knew I'd found a keeper. I've owned a Magnum 80 for about 3 weeks now, and had the opportunity to thoroughly test it on Class V California creeks.

I was raised on a low-rocker planing-hull river-runner (the Bliss-Stick MAC-1), but as I boated more Class IV and V creeks, it became clear that I needed a proper creekboat. I couldn't stand the pure displacement hull boats I tried, but knew I needed some of their features. The Magnum 80 is my dream creeker -- Riot has managed to bring the best of both planing and displacement hull creekboats into one design.

The wide base means it sits high enough to glide over boogie water, pushy hydraulics, and holes. If you manage to get it down into the meat, the predictable resurfacing and stable side-surf will equip you to handle the situation. The bow design punches well for those times when you just have to charge through. The slight V-hull at the stern makes the rear edges less grabby and helps tracking, while the stubbed stern end works with the rocker to make the Magnum 80 release well when boofing. Boof landings are surprisingly soft, considering the performance of the hull. The stern grooves require a fair amount of boat tilt before they engage and carve, which plays well with how stable it is on edge. Once the grooves are engaged, the Magnum 80 can and will whip into eddies like an oversized playboat.

This boat likes to be driven -- the complacent paddler will find themselves blown around a bit, but the aggressive paddler will find the Magnum 80 very rewarding to paddle. The combination of easy turning and solid tracking to a line has to be experienced to be believed. What the Magnum 80 lacks in top speed and holding that speed, it makes up for in raw acceleration -- this boat leaps from the water when you really get after it, and has plenty of low-end speed to make critical ferry moves a piece of cake. This responsiveness comes in really handy during last-second corrections and other dynamic situations, as well.

Outfitting-wise, the new Riot "big boy" seat should be able to accommodate some of the biggest paddlers out there, and the cockpit is large enough for this 6'0" paddler to pull both knees out at once, even when seated quite forward in the boat. The height of the bow up near the cockpit makes for a comfortable seating position without getting in the way of paddle strokes. The high deck also makes the Magnum 80 pretty easy to roll. Riot's outfitting doesn't disappoint, with an adjustable-height backband and easy-to-shim hip pads, which is good -- paddlers on the lower end of the weight range for this boat will find themselves adding quite a bit of foam to the hips. One recommended addition to the outfitting would be some glued-in minicell foam to cushion knees in case of a piton. Expedition and exploratory boaters will appreciate the balance between sturdiness and running weight, as well as the roomy stern compartment.

Riot have definitely outdone themselves with this boat, and I'd recommend anyone in the market for a big creeker give it a try before deciding. It's that good. My name is Willie Illingworth, and I approve this message.