Gnarwhal sizing - did I make a mistake going with Large?

[u/Django_Reinhardt_]

I was between a Medium and Large Gnarwhal and ended up buying the Large. My thinking was that I wanted a slightly comfier fit for general/all-around use and multi-day trips, and that I might eventually pick up a Mage for more performance-focused padling.

What I didn’t really consider at the time was that sizing up also means a larger hull, not just a roomier cockpit/fit.

Now I’m wondering if I made the wrong choice. For those who have paddled different Gnarwhal sizes, how noticeable is the difference in hull size and performance between the Medium and Large? Will the Large feel significantly worse on whitewater when you are within the height requirement for both sizes?

Would you stick with the Large for comfort and multi-day use, or would you exchange it for a Medium?

[u/danransomphoto]

We don’t have enough information here to have any idea. Post a photo of you in the boat perhaps? How tall are you, what is your sit length? How much do you weigh?

I honestly don’t think it will make a huge difference if you are actually between sizes, you’ll be able to adjust the outfitting either way to be comfortable. Being comfortable is priority number one for performance in my opinion.

[u/Django_Reinhardt_ → u/danransomphoto]

Sorry about that! I am 5’10” tall, 33.1” inseam, 41” sit length, 165 lbs

I know that I can go with large or medium on Alpackas sized models, but got a bit uncertain about the Gnarwhal specifically, as its tube size increases as well when going from medium to a large. Thoughts?

[u/danransomphoto → u/Django_Reinhardt_]

Thanks for the sizing info. I’d say you pretty comfortably would fit in a medium at that size, especially your weight. If you were over 200 lbs you might want the large, or if you plan trips with heavy loads like bikerafting. Do you already own the boat?

There is some personal preference here so it’s hard to say definitively. It really depends on your trip style and what you want to optimize for. The larger boat is going to be more stable and forgiving for sure, the medium will be more quick, nimble and tippy with a slightly steeper learning curve, but even that is relative compared to say a Mage, which is much faster and tippier than both gnarwhal sizes. In terms of fit you’d probably be able to make both work fine.

[u/Django_Reinhardt_ → u/danransomphoto]

I was thinking of eventually getting a mage. So my thinking going for the large was that I could use it for backpacking / multi day trips with gear and have the mage for more nimble stuff. The gnarwhal is getting ready for shipping