

Recreational kayaks generally favor increased stability at the cost of speed. “Recreational” describes a kayak designed for use on calmer waterways, such as sheltered lakes, bays or slow-moving rivers. What exactly is a recreational kayak? Aren’t we all recreating no matter the kayak we are in? Good question. The Pelican Mustang 100x is classified as a recreational fishing kayak. The combination of these channels and the skeg help the Mustang 100x travel in a straight line, instead of having the bow slip from side to side with each paddle stroke. The twin-arch hull provides two channels for water to travel along, rather than an even flat bottom. As well as by the twin-arch hull mentioned earlier. The Pelican Mustang 100x also boasts decent tracking ability thanks to the skeg that projects along the keel at the stern of the Mustang 100x. The multi-chined edges assist in allowing waves to roll under the boat with less resistance. This allows the bottom of the boat to have a flat shape to provide initial stability without a hard right angle edge which would be liable to catch a wave and potentially capsize the kayak. This creates more of a curved shape than an abrupt edge. The edges, where the bottom of the boat meets the side, go through staged transitions. The other design feature which contributes to secondary stability is multi-chined edges. This shape creates a flat center with two flanking areas to provide good initial stability. Another way to refer to this would be a multi-hull or pontoon hull. The Mustang 100x has what Pelican refers to as a twin-arched, channeled hull. So what makes the Pelican Mustang 100x kayak stable? Looking at the boat, it seems fair to say it does a good job of achieving both types of stability, or a reasonable compromise between them. This secondary stability allows the waves to pass around the boat with little resistance which prevents capsizing. This would include soft, curving, edges where the bottom of the hull and sides of the kayak meet, rather than an abrupt edge, like a right angle. Secondary stability is often provided by an overall rounded hull shape. This creates a large, fairly even, surface area for the boat to rest on while on calm water. Good initial stability is often provided by a wide, flat hull on a kayak. Secondary is how stable the boat feels when you tilt the boat or encounter waves. Initial refers to how stable the boat feels when you are sitting still on flatwater. When discussing stability in a kayak it is important to note the two types: initial stability and secondary stability. Users of the Pelican Mustang 100x often note the kayak’s good stability. The EXO designation simply indicates that for that model there is a storage bag included on the rear deck. For all intents and purposes, they are the same boat. If you are curious as to whether you are reading a review of the Pelican Mustang 100x kayak or Pelican Mustang 100x EXO fear not.


It’s common to also see kayakers with sit-inside kayaks wearing sprayskirts covering the cockpit of the kayak to keep water from entering. The Pelican Mustang 100x is a sit-inside kayak, meaning the paddler slides into the cockpit, with legs enclosed or partially enclosed within the kayak. This is a topic we will discuss further in the Performance and Demographic portions of this Pelican Mustang 100x review. The term recreational describes kayaks that favor increased stability at the cost of speed and rough-water performance. The 10-foot-long Pelican Mustang 100x falls into the recreational kayak category. Pelican’s kayaks are regularly available at large retailers in North America, including Dick’s Sporting Goods and Canadian Tire. Along with kayaks they produce canoes, standup paddleboards, pedal boats and even small motorboats. Pelican International was founded in Quebec in 1968. For these reasons, and more, it has become a popular choice for those who paddle and fish in sheltered waterways. The Pelican Mustang 100x is an inexpensive, lightweight, stable, sit-inside fishing kayak.
