Has anyone seen the new Alpacka Valkyrie

I stumbled on it a few days ago and…WOW!

If Ferrari were to start building packrafts the Valkyrie is most likely what it would look like. Simply put the Valkyrie exudes sex appeal and has “fun” written all over it.

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Yeah, I got to demo on on the SF American River Gorge. Really cool, and definitely you feel the difference peeling in and out of eddies. I can’t wait until I can get one for myself, hopefully they will be available soon.

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Did you get to paddle it?

Absolutely gorgeous’
European and Asian Brands have already copied the design and released boats…
Current raft in Germany has a very similar one.
And Frontier Audac Sports which I think is China also has one…

Anyone know why the weight is so much higher?
Is it not the regular 210d 840d or 420d 840d?
And what sizes it comes in?.. they seem to be releasing it soon, it’s a promo up on the website now…

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I haven’t seen any other brands who have copied it in person, from pics it looks like they have copied the volume reduction in the stern but have they also pulled off the inflatable floor with edges? It’s amazing how blatant the copying is, it would be nice if someone else was doing some innovation in the space other than Alpacka. I hope folks watch the Sheri documentary on Alpacka founder so they can really appreciate what they are buying when they get a genuine article.

The weight is higher because there is a fully inflatable floor, and just more seams and panels. It’s built in a way that gives edges to the bottom of the boat. It’s WAY different, and it’s less stable so harder to paddle if you don’t have skill. It’s the hardshell kayakers packrat. I’m sure it will come in a few sizes. Not sure what the fabric weight will be.

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You might be right that they have only copied the most superficial parts of it like the stern reduction. But I know that at least Frontier has added the inflatable floor. Though I doubt it is as well balanced and structurally engineered as the Alpacka Original 10years+ in the making Valkyrie. And probably lack all of its high function details.

I mean this seem to have been Alpackas baby and it has changed names as much as design throughout the years to finally be released with this much care and precision. Alpacka are the O.Gs and still the market leaders and all innovation should be cherished.

That said’ I will never shun the brands out there that make innovations of their own that due to a later entry to the market are variations of the O.Gs…

Many times (not talking Alpacka) when the big brands end up lazy and greedy the newer copy cats end-up making the true innovations without limiting consumers with sky high prices (not talking fake profit copycats who uses inferior material etc)… this does gladly not apply to the packraft industry though… I love Alpacka. But without MRS for instance one of my favorite flat water rides would never have been made (Nomad S1D)

That’s true, Alpacka didn’t add the removable skeg and other brands have made boats that seem like they would be more fun to paddle on flat water.

If you want to see it in action, Jeffrey Creamer out of Durango has uploaded several videos of him using it on some of his amazing expeditions. Check out his channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/jeffreycreamer/videos

He also talks about what’s it been like using and and how it compares to hard shells and other packrafts he’s used in the past in The Packrafting Podcast. Great episode! Listen to it here: https://the-packrafting-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/8-skirafting-and-technical-whitewater-jeffrey-creamer

Here’s a great picture of it to:
image

It’s also available starting this Friday, 11.11. See Alpacka’s website for further info!

The Valkyrie currently only has one size, which means only one size cockpit = not a great boat for bigger/taller paddlers, but awesome first stab at such a design. Also, check out MRS Alligator Pro.

Hey @zdog,

Just checked, and the Valkyrie does come in multiple sizes: M and L.

Should be a great boat for larger paddlers. Have only heard great things!

Yes, Alpacka updated 2022 release with two cockpit sizes, versus a single cockpit size for prototype release. That said, I guess it depends on how one defines a “large” paddler. Based on my experience, I wouldn’t recommend for anyone over 6’2" and/or 200 lbs. Great boat for hard-shell kayakers and packrafter looking to progress to hardish chines and roll-ability, because tight (locked-in) cockpit fitment and primary stability is more like a hard-shell.

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