Pyranha 9R vs. Pyranha 9R II – What is The Difference?

The Pyranha 9R was one of the first kayaks under 9ft that was designed solely for speed. The 9R went on to become one of Pyranha’s best selling and most popular whitewater kayak.

Soon after the release of the 9R, other manufacturers started working on their own sub 9ft creek racing whitewater kayaks. Jackson released the Nirvana, Dagger released the Phantom, and Wavesport released the Phoenix. I guess you can say the Pyranha 9R started the wave. If you look at most pro kayakers today, they paddle a 9ft facing creek boat in one form or another. Many people wonder why this is. The simple answer is “it is very fun.”

Problems With The Original Pyranha 9R Design

There were really only three problems with the original Pyranha 9R design. The first and most obvious problem with the original 9r was sizing. When Pyranha initially released the 9R it came in only one size. Later on they created the Pyranha 9R L which was a larger boat for larger paddlers. They never made a small size which prevented a lot of paddlers from being able to enjoy the 9R.

Another problem with the 9R was that the edges were not forgiving enough for some. Although designed with highly skilled creek racing paddlers in mind, the 9R became a hit with boaters of all skill levels who enjoyed the speed that the boat offered. Many paddlers who may not classify themselves as professionals purchased a 9R and found that the edges were very sharp and unforgiving. This is great for holding a line and carving in rough water if you are skilled enough to do so, but many found the edges to be more of a nuisance.

The other big problem with the 9R was that when paddled over a decent sized drop, the bow had a tendency to rock up into the air. For some this makes the ride more fun. For those who need as much speed as possible to win a race, which is who the 9R was designed for, it seemed to slow them down and waste downstream momentum.

These three problems prompted Pyranha to begin the design and production of the new 9R II.

What Is Different About The New Pyranha 9R II? Pyranha 9R II vs. Pyranha 9R

The Pyranha 9R II was a multi-year project for Pyranha, they wanted to be sure that they solved all the problems with the original 9R and created a whitewater kayak that was as close to perfect as possible. There are a lot of differences between the original 9R and the 9R II. Here are some of the biggest differences.

9R II vs. 9R Rocker Profile

The original 9R had a continuous rocker profile designed solely for speed. The 9R II features a progressive rocker which allows the boat to be both agile and fast depending on the situation. If the paddler is driving forward the stern sinks in and holds a line. When moving slower the stern rises out of the water a bit and allows the kayak to turn on a dime. This feature allows the 9R II to be fast but also allow beginners to adjust their line if need be.

9r II vs. 9R Planing Hull

Both the 9R and 9R II utilize a planing hull which allows the boat to lift itself over current and turbulence and hold its speed. The 9R II has a more narrow planing surface which slightly increases the hull speed of the kayak. Basically the 9R II has a faster hull which theoretically makes it a faster overall whitewater kayak than the original 9R.

9R II vs. 9R Stern

The original 9R had edges that stretched to the very tip of the stern. These hard edges were great for holding a line but made the 9R very unforgiving in big water and unexpected currents. In the 9R II, Pyranha fixed this problem by softening all the lines, including the edges, in the stern of the kayak. This created a much more forgiving whitewater kayak.

The 9R II also has more volume and width in the stern. These two factors help the kayak propel out of river features such as holes and drops faster. This extra volume combined with less rocker in the stern help keep the 9R II from rocking up into the air after drops and holes.

9R II vs. 9R Bow

Pyranha made a few improvements to the bow of the 9R when designing the 9R II. The first big improvement you will notice is that the 9R II has much more bow rocker than the 9R. This helps keep the boat from plugging in and slowing down and allows the 9R II to skip out of holes and drops.

Another improvement you will find in the bow of the 9R II is the addition of lower bow edges. These additional edges allow the 9R II to maintain planing speed many different angles. This means that the 9R II will be able to carry more speed while on edge than the original 9R.

The final improvement that was made to the bow is, in our opinion, the most interesting. Pyranha added two “cutaways”, one on each side of the bow, which supposedly allows easier placement of strokes in the water. In our experience with the boat these did not make that big of an impact but any little leg up can prove important in a whitewater kayaking race.

9R vs. 9R II Sizes

The original 9R was initially produced in only one size… medium. Eventually Pyranha broke down and created a large size with the release of the Pyranha 9R L. This left people on the lighter side of life without a 9R that could properly be enjoyed. Luckily, Pyranha will produce the 9R II in three sizes: small, medium and large. This means that everyone, no matter what size, can enjoy the speed and forgiveness that the 9R II offers whitewater kayakers.

Is the New Pyranha 9R II a Better Kayak Than The Original Pyranha 9R?

Pyranha spend a lot of time making sure that the 9R II would be the best sub 9ft. racing kayak they could have come up with. From what we have experienced with the new 9R II, it performs slightly better than the original 9R in almost all categories. The one category that the original 9R is superior in is overall tracking and ability to hold a line. Not to say that the 9R II can’t hold a line, it just requires greater speed to do so. For most paddlers the original 9R held its line a little too well which is why for many, the 9R II is going to feel much better.

We would say overall the 9R II is going to make more people happy and more people will be able to have fun in it. Especially since the 9R II will come in three sizes: small, medium, and large. This means everyone will be able to get into a 9R II and go fast.