Van Dusen Mohican and Mohawk Kayaks

The Mohican is suitable for all paddlers entering unlimited kayak marathon, multisport, and surfski races.

The Mohican combines the best features of an unlimited racing kayak with the safety and seaworthiness of a surfski. It comes with a sealed self bailing cockpit with a little more room than most surfskis for more powerful leg drive and torso rotation. It has the narrow foredeck and generous cockpit of an ICF kayak. In event of a capsize it is easy to remount and the cockpit drains quickly. The Mohican has less resistance than any known production ski or unlimited kayak and is as fast as the best ICF kayaks at marathon speeds of 6.5 to 8 mph. Shallow water performance is exceptional.

It used to be that you had to give up speed and good paddling ergonomics to get stability. The Mohican offers enough stability for the intermediate paddlers to improve their technique or the experienced paddler to propel the boat at maximum power in all conditions while setting a new speed standard.

The Mohawk K-1 comes in two models for ICF sprint and marathon racing.

The Mohawk K1, introduced in 2003, is the first in our line of kayaks designed to the new ICF “no minimum width” specification. It allows elite paddlers to continue racing with the Van Dusen winning tradition that began in the mid 1980’s with the Eagle and Hawk. These kayaks were outstanding for their speed, relative stability, good handling, stiffness, durability, and fully adjustable comfortable fittings. The Mohawk is the next level in this evolution and offers unmatched speed, narrower foredeck for a more powerful stroke, and an even better feeling of unity with the boat.Since the ICF rules changed in 2005 to prevent rudders behind sprint boats, we have found that the most efficient location for the rudder is under the very back of the hull.

If you plan to race marathon, you may want to consider our kick-up rudder mounted behind the stern. A light spring holds it down and allows it to automatically shed weeds and other debris. We also make an under-stern rudder that kicks up if you race sprint and marathon with the same boat or train in shallow water.

Visit our Online Store – Kayak Rudders