A Photo Slide Show

Alaska float hunting expert Larry Bartlett discovered SOARs in 2001, bought a few for his guiding business Pristine Ventures in Fairbanks, and lived to write about it. (His first review of the S16 can be found here.) He even featured a SOAR on the cover of his Complete Guide to Alaska Float Hunting. Larry’s need for a small highly maneuverable craft capable of carrying large loads and being totally reliable in the Alaskan Bush made our SOAR 16 the best choice on the market.

Then Aire came out with the Traveler in 2003, and there was some ugly debate in Alaska as to which boat was better. We don’t like when folks with little knowledge of SOARs or paddling start dissing our products, so we decided to settle once and for all which boat would perform the best under tough wilderness conditions.

In April 2003 during a visit to the Anchorage Sportsmens Show, I had a chance to spend some time with Bartlett looking at the different hull designs on boats available in Alaska. Explaining to him why our hull design creates better performance, he asked if we could build a bigger version of our S16, one that could hold even more load capacity, yet remain as maneuverable. Over a few beers that evening, we drew out several different hull designs on cocktail napkins, and ended up agreeing that our current hull design with 14 inch diameter tubes (instead of our standard 12”), and a thicker floor would give Bartlett the additional load carrying ability he sought.

An Alaska Exclusive
During 2004, the first year of limited production, Pioneer will be sold exclusively in Alaska. It can be purchased either through SOAR or Larry Bartlett of Pristine Ventures in Fairbanks. Early orders are recommended.

Cost

$2095 includes shipping to Fairbanks. You pay any shipping costs from Fairbanks.