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Best kayak for dealing with wind


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16 hours ago, kross57 said:

The point I was making is about "in the cockpit" storage. All 3 kayaks have a large center hatch where I put my water, the tackle I use during an outing, and a few odds and ends. But that's it. No cupholder, no side pockets.  It's an adjustment. As far as main storage, the rear hatch on my Kaskazi is cavernous. So is the front hatch on a Scupper Pro, and they have either a tankwell or a huge rear hatch.     

That huge cockpit hatch on the SA boats would make a difference, but the front and rear hatches are utterly useless to me on the water. The only thing I put in my front hatch is the battery. The C-14 has no cupholders or pockets either. I just toss my water bottle, pliers and gripper in the cockpit.  I usually have 2 or 3 rods, plus flag and net, 2 flushmounts and a scotty won't cut it even if I could figure out something for my 2 plano boxes and other loose junk like leader, grubs, trailers etc.  I like the new Scupper's 8" cockpit hatch and tankwell. A hatch that big is actually useful, unlike a 6" that I really only use for spare glasses. 

 

Back to the OP: Joe, the bottom line is the only thing to reduce the wind resistance heading dead into it is get lower, like the boats Ross and I are talking about. I don't know what these lawnchair guys do sitting so high, guess they just muscle it with the pedals. The other thing is a shorter paddle or narrower blades, and faster cadence but easier stroke. Downshifting a bike going uphill is a no brainer, why does anyone think a kayak should be different? I love my telescoping paddle!

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6 hours ago, gellfex said:

That huge cockpit hatch on the SA boats would make a difference, but the front and rear hatches are utterly useless to me on the water. The only thing I put in my front hatch is the battery. The C-14 has no cupholders or pockets either. I just toss my water bottle, pliers and gripper in the cockpit.  I usually have 2 or 3 rods, plus flag and net, 2 flushmounts and a scotty won't cut it even if I could figure out something for my 2 plano boxes and other loose junk like leader, grubs, trailers etc.  I like the new Scupper's 8" cockpit hatch and tankwell. A hatch that big is actually useful, unlike a 6" that I really only use for spare glasses. 

 

Back to the OP: Joe, the bottom line is the only thing to reduce the wind resistance heading dead into it is get lower, like the boats Ross and I are talking about. I don't know what these lawnchair guys do sitting so high, guess they just muscle it with the pedals. The other thing is a shorter paddle or narrower blades, and faster cadence but easier stroke. Downshifting a bike going uphill is a no brainer, why does anyone think a kayak should be different? I love my telescoping paddle!

I don't understand why the hatches are useless. With the Scupper Pro and Kaskazi Marlin, the rear hatch is reachable from the cockpit by sitting sidesaddle. Easy as pie. I keep all my extra gear in there and get it out whenever I want. The Stealth and Kaskazi Dorado also have tankwells, as do most old Scupper Pros. 

 

In the Scupper Pro, the front hatch is totally accessible. Just scootch forward. NO loss of stability at all. And it is huge.

 

With my Marlin the front hatch is difficult to access on the water. But, that's it. As I said, if you want to talk yourself out of one, I guess you can. But there really is no reason to prevent you.  

 

To the OP, if wind is the problem, wind just slows you down. If you are already in a slow kayak it can almost stop you. The answer is to get a faster kayak. I realize the mindset in the USA is that kayaks need to be wide to be stable but that just isn't so.  Sleek  - long and lean, is the way to go. 

Edited by kross57
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Eh, it's more neck problems than the back, I do pretty active work and can still roll a decked boat fine. But I do need to practice self rescue, problem is I rarely launch at a friendly place.  Plus, a longtime WW guy I just can't get my head around doing anything but sitting straight in my boat like God intended!

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I didn't say I can't sit sidesaddle, I just don't. It feels WRONG!!  And as I said, there's a lot of crap between me and the front hatch. I sure don't want to have to deal with all that just to get a tackle box when I can have it in a crate behind me easily reachable.

 

What also feels wrong is spending $2500 or more for a glass kayak (or any kayak). Maybe I'll get there, but that's a lot, at least to me. You say you only live once, but being cheapskates has worked out very well for my wife and I! Like I said in Joe's other thread, my fantasy boat right now is the AI, because I grew up sailing and combining sailing,fishing and kayaking seems awesome. But I'm not dropping $5000 for it anytime soon.

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7 hours ago, gellfex said:

I didn't say I can't sit sidesaddle, I just don't. It feels WRONG!!  And as I said, there's a lot of crap between me and the front hatch. I sure don't want to have to deal with all that just to get a tackle box when I can have it in a crate behind me easily reachable.

 

What also feels wrong is spending $2500 or more for a glass kayak (or any kayak). Maybe I'll get there, but that's a lot, at least to me. You say you only live once, but being cheapskates has worked out very well for my wife and I! Like I said in Joe's other thread, my fantasy boat right now is the AI, because I grew up sailing and combining sailing,fishing and kayaking seems awesome. But I'm not dropping $5000 for it anytime soon.

Like I said, the SA glass boats and the old Scupper have either a tankwell or a rear hatch. No reason to go forward. And if you can reach your crate without sitting sidesaddle, you can reach those.

 

As far as money, the Caribbean you have is already $1,500, and there was a used, like-new, Kaskazi Dorado selling here recently for the exact same price. You even commented on the thread.  Another was offered for $1,250, and not a nibble. So, it's all in what you want. I can't believe nobody here snapped those boats up. It's a shame. 

Edited by kross57
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4 hours ago, kross57 said:

Like I said, the SA glass boats and the old Scupper have either a tankwell or a rear hatch. No reason to go forward. And if you can reach your crate without sitting sidesaddle, you can reach those.

 

As far as money, the Caribbean you have is already $1,500, and there was a used, like-new, Kaskazi Dorado selling here recently for the exact same price. You even commented on the thread.  Another was offered for $1,250, and not a nibble. So, it's all in what you want. I can't believe nobody here snapped those boats up. It's a shame. 

Had I not just bought the used C14 for $1000, I'd have definitely taken that boat. But one kid is a college freshman and the other a HS sophomore, resources are not unlimited!

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