anyone use those kayak sails you see advertised ? just curious how they really work and if they are worth the $$ and how much of a hassle they are to use. thanx.
They’re fun
and add a new twist to paddling. I have a Pacific Action Sail that I put on my long skinny kayak. In the right wind, it flies.
http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/549410980UxKxcV
Andy
Liked mine
http://foldingkayaks.org/gallery/album94/kayak2s?full=1
Got a little hand held sail, but have not tried it yet.
Much fun can be had…
http://sailboatstogo.com/catalog/product.php?category=KAYAK_RIG
I figgure if you’re going to bother with a sail, why not get something to go upwind or downwind. The place above has sail kits for kayaks that break down and can be folded up and stowed (on deck in a worse case).
Man!!! Only $1199 for a whole outfit?!
That’s an awesome price for an inflatable AND sail rig:
http://sailboatstogo.com/v_page.php?content=SVX200_pictures
I think an inflatable makes much more sense on big water than a sit in, especially if you want to go without any stabilizer bars.
Thanks for the link.
Yos
Stabilizers!
Weenie! Who needs stabilizers. I use the paddle when I’m moving fast to keep me upright. Just skim it across the surface on whichever side your leaning towards.
McCrea can verify how fast I went in Raystown and didn’t spill.
Andy
WEENIE?!!!? lol
I never said I wanted to use stabilizers. That’s why I said I’d rather have an inflatable. Easier to get back in after a spill.
I’m no weenie, but I have zero self-rescue skills w/ a SINK. 'Don’t do any large lakes for paddling, but if I had a sail, obviously I would. Being able to climb right back in would be far preferable to pumping a SINK out.
BTW, does anyone not see the irony in calling a sit-in kayak a “SINK”? ;~)
YoS
But…
the trick is not to fall out. That fast run I took at Raystown scared the crap out of me. Can’t wait to do it again, but this time with a rudder so I can bail out from the wind easier. The wind was so strong I couldn’t pull the sail down.
Andy
(not a weenie)
Brian Schulz uses
a kite, one of those para-wing things, awesome.
Well, that’s a neat trick.
But all I own currently are wide, recs with no secondary stability. For $1199 for a total package, that would be my best, affordable route, AND I’d have room for my kids to go w/ me, while knowing I can get them back in the kayak. Can’t do THAT with your sea kayak, now can you? lol
YoS
(not a weenie either)
Build your own system
With PVC and pool noodles basicly…
this one is my rig…
http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/559053822fBwOeD
My sailing rig
I’ve erected a simple sailing rig on my kayak:
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2099974410103319591FdYnec
Can you e-mail us the plans? ;~)
The plans are in
"Modern Seamanship" by Austin Knight, the 1908 edition.
what i want
here’ s a link to what i would really like to try …i’ll bet these things scream over the surface with the right wind.
http://www.triaksports.com/gallery/
Is it a kayak?
I paddled with this crusty old guy from Tasmania whose boat had two fore-and-aft triangular sails, one stepped forward of the cockpit and one aft. He could whip them up and down very quickly and slid them into nylon fabric sleves on his foredeck when not in use.
He was fast and could sail into the wind three or four points. I suggested that he install a skeg box in the cockpit between his legs to cut down his leeway. He growled “If I wanted a sailboat I’d buy meself one.”
arledge!!! LOL, that was good
and here is the oldest daughter at Assategue (sp?) using her cockpit cover as expedient sail
LOL!
what size crew do you yak with, and do you mount any guns for a boadside? 
Alright I’m a weenie then…
I have a kit from SAILBOATSTOGO and from experience I’ll say stabilizers definitely have thier uses. When I first started I found them invaluable for investigating how far I could push the sail rig without going for a swim each time.
Now I run with the stabilizers in the highest position of adjustment (not dragging in the water), and they only come into play when I get heeled by a big puff, or decide to stand up and waltz about while underway.
I can’t see the merit of all of these downwind sails, if you’re going to bother carrying a sail, why not just get a sail kit that allows you to go upwind as well as down? A a kayak can point pretty close to the wind with a decent lateen sail, plus you can drop the whole thing by releasing a single line in a worse case.
It’s damn good fun, especialy when I’ve had my 38" wide canoe hull planning on top of the water in 22mph winds.
chuckie
Crew
Thirty capuchin monkeys with tiny little sailor hats.