Good point. Swim outlet said it was a final sale, so no return likely. So probably best to stay away from that $30 savings if I can’t try it on first!
I noticed that PFD’s are not required at least in Kansas for kayaks. I would prefer to not wear one. When I canoed I wore a fanny pack inflatable PFD that was super light and comfortable.
But I know I should buy and wear a standard PFD, and not an inflatable PFD.
I like your initiative in buying the Ford cargo van, and buying the hardshell! I am going to drive my 2007 Mazda 3 into the ground, so perhaps when the time comes, then I can buy a hardshell, and a different vehicle. But from what I read. Lots of people are reporting long term success with Sea Eagle drop stich boats. So hopefully it can last me 5 years or more with it’s $999 price tag.
Your right. Camping and hiking is not paddling. But now it’s my time to paddle, and make 2025 a great paddling year. Thanks again
The actual cost of the SwimOutlet PFD is $60 and I don’t know if you noticed, but it only comes in small/ medium and xxlarge, their size chart does not correspond to the PFD sizing making it harder to size and as you said, may be a “final sale” offering. That is a $12 difference with the Blue Amazon PFD for Amazon’s security.
It was just a suggestion, I am prejudiced, a kayak is a hardshell, you stick the paddle in the water and it responds, not flex. Nimble. But you have the Mazda and you have already bought the Sea Eagle, so there is that, that does not change. But I see a lot of people buy boats based on storage, you have a van that goes away, at least for short rec kayaks and is a neat way to transport, hassle free. Ask @MohaveFlyer about my truck. Then there is this.
Thank you for the thoughtful response. I really don’t need many pockets either. Just to carry car keys, whistle, and phone. You made a lot good points in not putting my efforts into bargain shopping, and buying the right fit for my needs. This makes a lot of sense, as I need to think more about what I will carry with me. I don’t think I paid any attention to the weight requirement, so I will definitely check for ones that can accommodate my weight of 139lbs.
I will definitely make good use of it, and consider it a lifeline to my safety needs. Happy paddling to you this year!
Always wear a PFD anytime you’re paddling! I agree to find a shop where you can test the fit and function. I’ve paddled my Sea Eagle Explorer off and on for 5 years in up to class III rivers and I’m happy with it’s performance. Which model are you looking at? Although I prefer my hard shell for better maneuverability and playing in rapids.
The Astral V8 PFD have ALWAYS had a mesh back. The photos in that Ebay ad for the orange one just show it sitting on a table and the back padding has slipped down below and behind the lower half mesh, as you can see in the third pic down. If it was photographed on a person you would see that the lower portion of the vest is mesh.
I regularly haul hardshell kayaks as long as 17’ on my Mazda CX5 which is not much bigger than your Mazda 3. In this photo I have a 15’ hardshell and an 18’ rigid wood framed kayak with nylon skin during a trip where I drove over 2000 highway miles with them on the rack that has only 40" spacing between the crossbars. I also have folding/inflatable kayaks, so I know they can be handy for travel. But there is no reason that a small car means you can’t transport a hardshell. Look at the thread in these forums (under “Paddlers Place”) called “Let’s see kayaks on cars”. In fact a friend of mine whose daughter was an Olympics prospect for racing surf ski kayaks used to haul her 21’ kayak on top of a Smart Car (photo at bottom) though not at highway speeds. Notice that I have bow and stern lines on the two boats on the Mazda for extra security for highway travel.
I have to take that back (about the fit of Stohlquists). I just checked on my current closet full of PFDs (I have 9 of them – yikes!) and one of them is actually a Stohlquist I bought last summer and quite a good fit, a S/M size Edge model. I’m very short-waisted but busty with narrow shoulders so fit is tricky (one reason I have so many, as well as having gained some PFDs because people selling their kayaks to me threw in the vest as part of the deal, and I use them as loaners when paddling with friends.)
I have found that different PFDs work better for me with certain boats (I have 8 kayaks and a solo canoe at the moment). And I also paddle sometimes in colder water so I use a larger sized PFD to fit over a drysuit with insulating layers under it. For hot weather and warm water where I am dressed lightly, my usual choice is the V8
Welcome to the forum @FroggyGotSpunk . As stated above…Astral, NRS, and Sohlquist make good paddling pfd’s. I’m sure there are others too. I personally have a sohlquist rocker but I’m not brand loyal. It just happened to fit me the best of what was in stock on that soecific day. Lol
I bought the Sea Eagle 393RL 2025 remodeled kayak. It has the new center floor strap for easy carrying. I am paddling in a calm lake, or creeks. It is considered a close to shore only kayak, so I guess that is the downside of it. However, I don’t mind being close to shore. I’m not sure where I can try on PFDs. I only know of REI, and I am not sure they have many options in stock. Something I need to check into! Glad you are paddling those rapids with your explorer. Sounds like fun! Thank you for the response
Sorry I got a notification from this website saying I was barred from replying as I exceeded my reply “count” as a new user account yesterday!
That is an impressive fleet of kayaks along with the one canoe! I think I will try and stick with one kayak going forward, as I don’t have any outdoor storage. I could hang a hardshell kayak below my deck, but then It would be visible from the street, so then I’d be worrying about theft. I saw that Kansas has a dedicated Facebook page for Kayak/Canoe theft. I’ve had one porch pirate incident recently, and still need to invest in installing a hard wired doorbell camera.
I just worry about theft, but perhaps I could build a storage container one day. Something that could lock and secure one hardshell kayak.
REI is where we got my wife her PFD. She was able to try it on, so knew it fit. I would encourage you to go check REI near you. They may not have a wide selection, but if they have one that fits you, your done. If not, find other places, or get one mail order.
Wow that is impressive. Do most new kayakers have a fear in approaching a rooftop solution for transporting a kayak. It seems a little intimidating for someone who has never done this before, but I’m glad to see people take the initiative to problem solve hardshell kayak transportation obstacles. I guess thats with any thing new, sometimes the fear takes over, and someone says I’ll just get an inflatable.
My issue is the lack of outdoor storage at this time, but that is something I can figure out. Also the Sea Eagle 393 RL seems like a very impressive boat.
I like look for that post you mentioned in the paddlers place!
What I really want to do is take my 3 legged cat Kayaking. I called Sea Eagle and discussed this. They say dogs are in there boats all the time and they don’t get reports for dog claw punctures. They said a cat would likely be fine. But I’m a little hesitant, as Cat claws are extremely sharp! I could cut the cat’s claws before each boat outing. Or maybe put door a door mat for my cat, or buy a tarp and lay in across the cats area on the kayak. I would also buy my cat a life vest.
Has anyone had experience taking a cat on a drop stitch kayak?
That’s a great idea. I could try it on, then shop around for one at a lower price. It seems like there is a huge surplus of life vest and tons of them marked down. Thank you Evan
