Time to get the Skerrey outfitted and start working on some SINK skills. Way too lazy to actually work on it myself.
I was thinking of starting to work on some nice clean lake between Sacramento and Tahoe, so Sacramento might be the easiest place to have the work done. I know several here like California Canoe and Kayak. Do they do good outfitting. Someone else maybe?
Or should I go out of my way to take it over to a Monterey Bay shop like MBK.
Riptides and Rapids
– Last Updated: Feb-04-05 6:51 PM EST –
in Mountain View does outfitting. www.riptidesandrapids.com But I have a better idea! I have seen pics of Brian Nystrom's work and it is awesome. Why don't we kidnap him, stash him at the Mustang Ranch and force him to wear non breathable dryware until he modifies our Valley boats.
Ditto Riptides and Rapids.
That is where I have gone, and would go again. They are also very familiar with your boat.
Maybe Worth a Trip
I quess I could drop the boat off on the way to Santa Cruz some weekend, and pick it up on the way back.
You So Crazy!
Why should I pay to put him up at the Bunny Ranch? I haven’t even been there myself, yet!
Bet it doesn’t have the “character” that the Mustang Ranch had!
And I thought I was lazy!!!
You got be beat! Just buy some minicell and glue!
Someone else can make your boat better, but only you can make it truly yours. Anyone I’ve ever seen who was happy with their outfitting did it themselves and it was not quite like anyone else’s.
Since my Kim’s small I changed out the little foam humps in our ocean cockpit Pintail for larger ones of similar design and brought it all the way forward (it’s also thicker and more comfortable as they’re 3" thick minicell instead of discard foam from corrugated roofing). The basic VCP design isn’t bad, she just needed a little more. As she progresses, I’ll likely be helping her redo the foam again at some point, but for now the better contact the little bit of extra foam does the trick and made the boat more responsive and easier for her to handle. Just 1/2" under the thigh braces of my QCC did the same for me last year. I though I’d need more to get the roll - but turns out it rolls fine as is. Sometimes pretty minor adjustments are all you need.
Another option is to put in a piece of foam under the deck more like a Masik on a Greenland boat. This may be a bit much for you in a first SINK as they can really lock you in solid (See Brian’s pics).
Skerray’s a wider boat - so I can’t say - but if it’s seat is similar to the Pintail’s it should be narrow enough that for someone your size it shouldn’t need much outfitting for hips. Maybe you want to lose the seat altogether (ala Nystrom again)? If the Pintail was mine instead of Kim’s I’d do it as I’m about 1/2" too snug - but she fits/likes the seat, and I’m losing weight :).
You could also consider losing the foot pegs and going to foam. Very nice option with skeg/nothing boats.
Outfitting can definitely help you, but you may be better off doing some roll/bracing practice and seeing what needs adjustment as you go rather than having someone else’s interpretation of what you need installed for you.
Everyone’s different. Some like snugness and some like more room. Different shapes/contact in different places. Not having much SINK time, how do you know what will work for you or how far to go without trying some (maybe temporary) options? This is the easiest stuff to do on kayaks - and the easiest to redo if it’s not right.
Actually, this shop is great at working
with you. They helped me tremendously and I love paddling my boat now. They are very skilled at listening to what your concerns/discomforts are, and giving you good ideas on what to try. I would definitely talk to them and bring my boat in to see them, so they can see how you fit. You may end up doing some, or even all of the work yourself, but I would still consider meeting with them and my boat, worthwhile. They are also excellent paddlers.
BTW, Greyak, I had my own tools before I met my husband, just in case you were wondering:)
I guess there are worse places to live
However, I don’t think my girlfriend would appreciate me living at either “ranch”. Thanks for thinking of me, though. 
Skerray vs. Pintail outfitting
We knew we would be paddling Skerrays in on our trip to Shetland last summer, so I fabricated some pads in advance and brought them with us, then fit them to the boats on site. We stuck them in with Velcro, since we were only going to be using the boats for two weeks and I figured it would hold up for that long (it did, just barely).
There isn’t much difference between the two cockpits, other than the Skerray being an inch wider. Once the padding was installed, they felt quite familiar and we were comfortable for the trip. The seat width is about the same as a Pintail’s, so I didn’t need any hip pads. I hated the stock back band (nothing new there), but that was the only complaint I had. It was really nice having boats that felt comfortable and familiar when paddling foreign waters.
Yes, I Am That Lazy!
And since I haven’t ever done it before, and don’t have a roll yet, I think I will get professional help.
Dude, The Truckee runs right by it.
Tell you GF you were kidnapped. Or just bring her along.
Truckee Runs Right By It?
I think the Carson River runs past the Bunny Ranch near Minden.
The old Mustang Ranch was on the Truckee in Sparks.
Or so I have been told…
Backband suggestions?
I haven’t paddled it much, but find the backband lacking too (useless maybe being a better word). Kim has mentioned it too so that’s next thing I’ll fix for her.
Suggestions that would work with the stock seat since she wants to keep it (your seat is gone, no?). A better band is pretty obvious - but what? Love my IR Reggie in my QCC and it’s flatter seat pan, but it could be overkill with the Pintail seat.
So are you going to remove the chimp
pump and put in a bulkhead and day hatch? That is what I want to do with my Nordkapp.
I have a couple of custom Reggie’s…
…without the stupid ratchet straps. I attach them using the nylon straps and add a padeye on the back for a bungee attachment to the D-ring at the back of the coaming. They work fine in VCP boats.
Thanks
Sounds good - and actually what I was thinking as I like mine.
Hmmmmmmmm Good Question…
To be honest I sort of forgot about that issue since last season.
My concern about the chimp pump is that it make make deep water re-entry even harder. I thiink the ocean cockpit will be hard enough. I am not that flexible. Maybe I should work with it before I decide.
I like your idea of a slanted bulkhead like on the Romany to facilitate dumping water out, and a day hatch where I can reach it would be nice.
I did that on my Pintail…
…and it was quite easy. However, the Skerrays I’ve seen all have curved aft decks, unlike the flat aft deck on my older ('92) Pintail. That complicates things considerably, since the hatch ring really needs a flat surface to mount to.