• Welcome to AlpineZone, the largest online community of skiers and snowboarders in the Northeast!

    You may have to REGISTER before you can post. Registering is FREE, gets rid of the majority of advertisements, and lets you participate in giveaways and other AlpineZone events!

Looking at Kayaks

yeggous

Active member
Joined
Oct 8, 2012
Messages
2,170
Points
36
Location
Eagle, CO
Always wondered about that? I have seen some really shaky setups on top of cars and trucks. We almost lost 2 surf boards last summer because I trusted my kids! Imagine being a car behind that situation - mayhem!

I thought I was doing the responsible thing. I had a J-bar kayak rack and all. It's hard to tell what let go first and what followed, but by the time I pulled over the kayak, straps, and one J-bar were all gone.
 

bigbog

Active member
Joined
Feb 17, 2004
Messages
4,882
Points
38
Location
Bangor and the state's woodlands
Yeah yeggous,
That footing area is where all the mass loads up, the weights plus force of the air against..especially at highway speeds! The footings of whatever bars one has have to be REALLY fastened to the roof somehow. Highway speeds = a LOT of air really pushing bigtime on the bars + boats.
Better luck in the future...
EDIT: Need for burly bars(Thule, Yakima = leaders) and footings...to handle more weight than stuff often sold at your local thrift stores.....
 
Last edited:

dlague

Active member
Joined
Nov 7, 2012
Messages
8,792
Points
36
Location
CS, Colorado
Last year I wanted to pull the trigger of a couple kayaks but never did. However, this year an opportunity fell on my lap. I bought some lift tickets through Boston Deals and never got to use them. While Boston Deals had a seven year redemption policy, Sugarbush and Owlshead did not want to play along. So after some haggling, Boston Deals gave me a credit for $223 (4 Sugarbush and 2 Owlshead). Well since then (two years), I have been wanting to use the credit towards skiing. Since they became Boston Finds no such deals ever popped up. Now, in my hunt for kayaks, paddleboards, etc., I got an email from Boston Finds about season passes towards rentals from Boating In Boston which has 7-8 locations around the Boston area. So I got two passes for season long rentals. I remembered the credit and used it towards that plus $35 and now we can try various craft and get a feel for what we want. They rent Kayaks SOT and SI, canoes, paddle boards and smaller sail craft. Rentals come with paddles and life jackets and no additional costs. My wife and I rent one each and if we ask for multi-passenger craft, additional people ride for free including vests. Quite a deal.

Yesterday, we kayaked on Mother's Day on the Charles River using a Ocean Kayak Malibu 2 XL (SIT) which was pretty nice IMO. Our boys used a Perception Prodigy II 14.5 Tandem (SI) which they liked. The Perception seemed to track straighter and faster so we will try that too but sitting inside a hull, on the hot day we had yesterday, they were not cooled as easily as the craft we were on. It was simple, we present our passes for two craft and all four went kayaking at no additional costs.

In case any one is interested:

When going to the link below the price is misleading. When clicking on Buy Now, other options are available.

http://finds.boston.com/deal/boston/10-kayak-boston-7-locations-thru-summer-50-off#

You get a voucher via email then go to

http://boatinginboston.com/season-passes
 
Last edited:

bigbog

Active member
Joined
Feb 17, 2004
Messages
4,882
Points
38
Location
Bangor and the state's woodlands
Yeah, in carrying watercraft and now boards...when they get loose they can go right through a windshield..not to mention even the costly little bit of damage if small... so they need to be tied down well, but the main link of failure IS the footing of the bars. There are so many cheap bars out there...not to mention the stock bars on most SUVs that can't support much weight, unless you've carried watercraft it's really tough to visualize just what can happen. You'd be looking at big legal action should they do damage to others.
 
Last edited:

bigbog

Active member
Joined
Feb 17, 2004
Messages
4,882
Points
38
Location
Bangor and the state's woodlands


I noticed that your original post included “light coastal paddling” If this is still the case you shouldn’t be looking at anything under 14 feet.

Another thing to consider is initial vs secondary stability. Wide short boats have great initial stability but awful second stability when underway. I have many friends who mistakenly bought a wide kayak because it was less tippy to get into but the boats are extremely slow and not stable when underway. A few had to sell their boats and get a narrower and longer kayak.

If you are going to go out into salt water I’d recommend taking a beginning kayak course at a place like the Kayak Centre in Wickford RI.
If you’re just going to be messing around small inland ponds and small lakes then the short recreational boat may be fine. Just don’t try to bring it out in the ocean.

The forums at www.paddling.net have great information

Yeah, nothing substitutes for paddling skills....and the legitimate hull design of a real touring kayak. Have seen a few 13 footers but have true lines of initial and secondary resistance/stability. It's too bad more people haven't taken a few lessons to gain some paddling skills...the cheap, fake, recreational boats...made for pond lillydippers...have little to no stability at all...except for the fact that the paddler should remain motionless = resulting in wrist, elbow or shoulder pain/injury...
 

dlague

Active member
Joined
Nov 7, 2012
Messages
8,792
Points
36
Location
CS, Colorado
Yeah, nothing substitutes for paddling skills....and the legitimate hull design of a real touring kayak. Have seen a few 13 footers but have true lines of initial and secondary resistance/stability. It's too bad more people haven't taken a few lessons to gain some paddling skills...the cheap, fake, recreational boats...made for pond lillydippers...have little to no stability at all...except for the fact that the paddler should remain motionless = resulting in wrist, elbow or shoulder pain/injury...

The nice thing about this season pass is that there are paddling clinics which we might consider. The two boats we used the other day were long enough that paddling was not an issue for us. The SIT (Malibu 2 XL) was so easy to paddle that there were times when I told my wife to relax and not paddle and I paddled by myself. The craft was very stable to the point where I could get on to it and sit down from a dock with out any tipping going on and it was long enough with a decent shaped bow that it tracked well too.

Ultimately, as I mentioned last year, I would like to kayak surf. We will be trying paddle boards and single person kayaks this summer as well.
 

Hawkshot99

Active member
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
4,489
Points
36
Location
Poughkeepsie, NY
The nice thing about this season pass is that there are paddling clinics which we might consider. The two boats we used the other day were long enough that paddling was not an issue for us. The SIT (Malibu 2 XL) was so easy to paddle that there were times when I told my wife to relax and not paddle and I paddled by myself. The craft was very stable to the point where I could get on to it and sit down from a dock with out any tipping going on and it was long enough with a decent shaped bow that it tracked well too.

Ultimately, as I mentioned last year, I would like to kayak surf. We will be trying paddle boards and single person kayaks this summer as well.

I have tje single seat malibu. I use it only out in the surf riding waves and paddling along with dolphins. Very maneuverable, although doesn't track the greatest because of length. Very easy to get it to ride waves and carve on them as well. Also quite easy to get back on when it flips.

Before I bought it I rented a few surf kayaks. Many of them had a broader bow that got pushed around when trying to paddle out through the surf. The malibu is sharper and was able to cut through the breakers easier.
 

dlague

Active member
Joined
Nov 7, 2012
Messages
8,792
Points
36
Location
CS, Colorado
I have tje single seat malibu. I use it only out in the surf riding waves and paddling along with dolphins. Very maneuverable, although doesn't track the greatest because of length. Very easy to get it to ride waves and carve on them as well. Also quite easy to get back on when it flips.

Before I bought it I rented a few surf kayaks. Many of them had a broader bow that got pushed around when trying to paddle out through the surf. The malibu is sharper and was able to cut through the breakers easier.

That is good to know!
 

benski

Active member
Joined
Jun 18, 2014
Messages
1,114
Points
36
Location
Binghamton NY
I have used Ocean Kayak Frenzy. Its great! Though there are many nice options on amazon.

I rented them this summer, they were not popular. I think Old Town's Twister is much better. The Frenzy has a problem with the seat part ending up under water. Twisters stay a little dry and are faster.
 

Nick

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
13,176
Points
48
Location
Bradenton, FL
Website
www.alpinezone.com
I'd actually like a kayak now down here in FL haha. i have some great places near me. That or a paddleboard. I just picked up a new Mt bike though so it might be a few months before I spring for the kayak.
 
Top