The most common question on most of these yak sites is, “Which yak should I get?”
Although that is certainly a valid concern, this is the wrong place to ask it!
I’m certainly in no position to make a comparative analysis between models, since the one I own is the only one I’ve ever been in, but that is an irrelevant point!
If everyone was the same size and shared identical preferences, likes, and dislikes, there would only be one yak on the market!
You cannot judge a yak based on some of the complaints you read here, because many of them are made by folks who have an ulterior motive - - they either sell kayaks or they simply want to see their name on the Internet! Many of the complaints you read are unfounded, baseless, or just don’t make any sense!
Some people complain about a hatch being difficult to access while they’re underway! Well Duh! Ever tried to access the trunk of your car while you’re going down the highway? Some hatches aren’t designed to be accessed while you are under way! They are designed for storage! And why would anyone even want to access a hatch that they are sitting on?
It is common knowledge, that in order for a boat to float, it AND its contents must weigh less that the water it displaces! If a 250-pound person with 30 pounds of gear gets in a boat that has a 275 pound capacity, something’s gonna get wet! Don’t blame it on the design!
If you’ve got a “Sasquatch” foot instead of a “Tinkerbelle” foot, many foot wells will be unacceptable to you! But it isn’t fair to blame it on the design of the yak! On one site, there is an individual who adamantly maintains that the size of the foot well on his kayak is never a problem for anyone, and if someone says it is, they are sitting wrong in the kayak! This joker probably buys his shoes at “Toys Are Us”.
Severe or heavy winds are a problem for a specific yak design? Really? If you walk down to the shore, and the first five feet of water are straight up, you have no business getting on any boat that is less than 300 feet long! Wind can be a problem for ANY yak!
Kayaking is a water sport! You’re gonna get wet! Count on it! Stop blaming the designers!
If you are looking for the yak that is best for you, it really doesn’t do much good to ask anyone here what you should get! Everyone else’s opinions, likes, dislikes, expectations, and preferences WILL NOT be the same as yours!
I would strongly recommend that you contact or join one of your local kayaking groups or clubs, get on their website or attend their meeting, explain your situation to them, and find out when and where their next “meet” on the water is going to be! There is always a wide variety of yaks at the meet, and all yakers take a lot of “pride in their ride”, and all, if not most, will be tickled to let you try their’s on for size! That way, you can find out for yourself which one suits you best!
Or, if you are ever in the Mansfield area and you would like to try out my yak, we will make a run out to Joe Pool at your convenience and stay for an hour or a day! Your call!
However, as long as we are on the subject of complaints, I will voice two major complaints I have about my yak!
1. I always get very wet every time I get broadsided by a four-foot wave!
2. For some reason, my yak does not go out to the lake nearly as often as I think it should!
Deral
Happy New Year to you too
Of course an amount of stuff posted here is off the point or from a very personal point of view. It’s a discussion board populated by people who, at times, may be accused of being a little overly focused on what is an awfully niche activity for most of middle America.
However, I think it’s out of line to say this site is loaded up with people trying to sell their wares via phantom names or posts. Yes someone occasionally tries, but I’ve never seen it be at all successful.
As to useful help - comments on this board are what pointed my husband and myself towards planing hull boats to start our forays into WW. We had started out thinking (and getting) old school displacement hull boats. But several folks on this board who really know their stuff spoke very well about why we should look to the newer boats. We took their advice, picked up a couple of Inazones, and have been extremely happy we did.
I have also heard from people via email that, from input they got on this board, they ended up going for a different boat than they would have otherwise. Once they started really working with the boat, they were very happy with that choice.
And heck - where else can someone go and get free advice from some of the guys who actually design kayaks?
Maybe your post is intended as a joke - don’t know. But it’s close enough to being read as serious that I wanted to respond.
yeah
but whats the best COLOR?
But Celia, where else can you get told
that planing hulls versus displacement hulls is a myth. They’re ALL displacement hulls.
Shark yellow (Yummy)
yum yum yellow
explains a lot
from profile..
"Own a Cobra Fish N' Dive. First kayak I've ever owned or been in!"
..and maybe started celebrating early today, ya think...
If yer gonna play in Texas
you gotta have a fiddle in the band…
Thanks, Deral!
You really seem to know what you're talking about! You have a great sense of kayaking and weight limits and know that this is a water sport and that, if someone puts over 275 pounds in a kayak rated for 275 pounds, they're gonna get wet! You must be an engineer in your "real life"! You have "no ulterior motives", as you put it, and with your verbage and grammar, no one could fault you for "grandstanding" and wanting your name and foibles plastered all over the internet! Good for you, deral, and thanks for just being you! Most people are so into using spell checkers and stuff, you just write it as it spews out! Excellent, you Cobra Kayaker, you!
You rock, and I think your opinion is valid! If I'm ever in Mansfield, TX, I am gonna take you up on your invitation! I don't have any desire to demo paddle a lowly Cobra shityak, frankly, but I think a test walk in your shoes is a must since most other of these Toys R Us jokers on Pnet have either Sasquatch or Tinkerbelle feet! The mongrels! Us flat footed size 9.5s gotta stick together, I tell you! Thanks for supporting kayak designers across the world. Hope they just make one kayak design--one that fits only you, deral, and I--just to stick it to all these paddlers comparing one boat to another! That'd teach 'em.
Happy New Year and thanks for being the first Pnetter to actually turn on that fluid filled dome over their eyebrows called a brain! I'll contact you when I need advice on paddling! Thanks a million, deral!! (may I use a double exclamation point there--would you permit me the exuberance?)
No Ulterior Motives (Mostly…)
it’s just normal PNet Yakity Yak… 
Every one has the “perfect” boat to recommend when you decide it’s time to switch. LOL!
sing
Doggone It!
This is a "Yak" site and I'm a "Canoe" man, guess I've been hanging out in the wrong place the last seven years. Happy New Year! WW
Deral, drink wisely.
Which yak should I get anyway?
Chewed Out!
Boy! Was I reamed out royally for my post! Guess I’d better restate my case!
Whether we like it or not, or believe it or not, there are those “out there” who will readily take unfair advantage of the uninformed, the uneducated, or the inexperienced! Anyone who knows as little about automobile engines as I do, and have ever taken their car to a dishonest mechanic, knows exactly what I’m talking about!
Granted, their number may be in the minority, but it has something to do with that proverbial “bad apple in the barrel”!
OF COURSE it is an excellent idea to read up on and research any product that you are not familiar with and are thinking about buying! But don’t visit your local kayak dealer armed only with other people’s opinions! If you do, you are quite likely to end up buying the prettiest or most expensive yak there! And Murphy’s Law can, and usually does, prevail in a situation like that!
Use these web sites, these suggestions, these ideas, and these opinions as a guide to narrow your search field, but before you buy, find out for yourself which one will work best for you! Don’t let other people do your thinking for you!
Apparently, a number of folks didn’t agree with some of my statements, but that’s fine! I don’t mind it a bit when someone disagrees with me! It does not upset or offend me! It might hurt my feelings, but I’ll get over it in a few months! (JUST KIDDING, OF COURSE!) I don’t agree with everything my wife says and does either, but that doesn’t make me love her any less!
However, there were obviously a few folks who were downright insulted by some of the things I said! That’s fine, too! Those who took it as an insult, most likely, don’t like being nailed by the truth, and will, in all probability, fit into the same category as that mechanic I once visited! Perhaps my wording was a bit strong, but I can’t help it! Guess I’m just not smart enough to know the politically correct way to say “ASSHOLE”!
I have no intention or desire to respond to those few individuals because of an old saying, “Don’t ever get into a pissing match with a skunk! No matter who wins, you will always come out smelling second best!”
To those who disagreed, let’s talk about it!
I still adamantly maintain - - - Stop blaming the designer!
I once got on a bicycle that was so tall, I couldn’t reach the pedals! Was that a design flaw?
I once squeezed into one of those little bitty sub-compact mini-cars, and by the time I got the door closed, my chin was between my knees! Not a comfortable experience! Was that the designers fault? Or could it be that car was not designed for someone my height or waist line?
If the foot well in a kayak is too small for your foot, don’t buy that kayak! It was designed for someone with a smaller foot than you!
I also maintain that wind resistance, and kayak design, are neither commensurate nor synonymous! Anything that floats can be detrimentally affected by high winds! History books are full of stories about everything from wash tubs to ocean liners that had problems with the wind! And if you believe your yak is “windproof” or “wind resistant”, drop me a note and I will tell you where you can find a tombstone really cheap!
- - - - This is my story, and I’m stickin’ to it! - - - -
If anyone still has a problem with it, PM me, and I promise, I will accept your apology!
Deral
So you’ve owned one paddle boat,
and I’ve owned more than a dozen over 35 years, and you think newbies shouldn’t ask me more advice about what boat to buy, or about what boats may have serious design flaws?
Thank you, that certainly makes sense. )
Problems with your statements
People who asked opinions about this yak vs. that yak often gave their height and weight info and the intended use. They asked because many experienced paddlers have done comparisons of those boats. They asked so that “Sasquatch” foot will not end up with a yak for “Tinkerbelle” foot.
You should complain and blame the manufacturers about the leaky hatches, uncomfortable seats, back bands, lack of primary or secondary stability, wetter rides, poor riggings, poor tracking, awkward rudder controls, poor craftmanship. Why the hell not? Boat designers, if they are smart, would take notes and improve their products. For potential buyers, this is valuable information that they can’t find from the dealers.
If there is particular thread that you disagree, respond timely and specifically. Your blanket statements are not well received.
More Response
Swordfish;
Guess I just don’t understand what you mean by “blanket statement”. Would you be so kind as to explain it?
Also, with the term, “timely response”, are you saying that proper etiquette requires responding to a post within the limitations of a specific time period? I wasn’t aware of that! Sorry ‘bout that! But I don’t understand the reasoning there, either!
I am very much aware of why people post questions on these sites! I’ve done it many times myself! But personally, I don’t think the fact that someone posts their vital statistics and intentions in a query, is a valid reason for them to simply “take my word for it” when they decide to spend their money on a yak. Or a pick-up truck! Or a wheel barrow! I thought I made that clear on previous posts, but in case the point was missed, here are some quotes;
“If you are looking for the yak that is best for you, it really doesn’t do much good to ask anyone here what you should get! Everyone else’s opinions, likes, dislikes, expectations, and preferences WILL NOT be the same as yours”
This post goes on to say;
“I would strongly recommend that you contact or join one of your local kayaking groups or clubs, get on their website or attend their meeting, explain your situation to them, and find out when and where their next “meet” on the water is going to be! There is always a wide variety of yaks at the meet, and all yakers take a lot of “pride in their ride”, and all, if not most, will be tickled to let you try their’s on for size! That way, you can find out for yourself which one suits you best!”
Another post says;
“OF COURSE it is an excellent idea to read up on and research any product that you are not familiar with and are thinking about buying! But don’t visit your local kayak dealer armed only with other people’s opinions! If you do, you are quite likely to end up buying the prettiest or most expensive yak there! And Murphy’s Law can, and usually does, prevail in a situation like that!
Use these web sites, these suggestions, these ideas, and these opinions as a guide to narrow your search field, but before you buy, find out for yourself which one will work best for you! Don’t let other people do your thinking for you!”
Is this considered too much of a “blanket statement”?
Perhaps you’re right! Maybe the manufacturers should concentrate more on designing a seat made from a Sealy Posturpetic Mattress to improve comfort! Or maybe they could install a hydraulically controlled air suspension seat! How about a gyroscopic/computer controlled system that would improve stability as well as tracking?!?
I’m being a sarcastic smart aleck now, but come on! Let’s get serious about these complaints! These are kayaks - - not cruise ships!
By the way, I have “Sasquatch” feet! They look like duck feet! Very difficult to find shoes that fit well, but I am an excellent swimmer!
g2d;
You are absolutely correct! The little plastic boat that I presently own is indeed the only boat I own! But I didn’t say I’ve never been in or owned other boats! This does not include the rowboats, bass boats, bay boats, pontoon boats, deck boats, party barges, canoes, rafts, fishing tubes, and inflatable crafts I’ve either owned or fished out of in the last sixty years. The largest boat I’ve fished out of was a ship while crossing the Atlantic. The smallest was a wash tub I fished out of when I was 6 years old. So I really don’t think it would be appropriate for us to turn this into a “meeting of the minds” between you and me based on our years of experience! It would not be fair to you, and I have no desire to be unfair with anyone!
There is absolutely nothing wrong with anyone asking you your opinion, but a “newbie” should not take mere opinions to the store! (Please review the above statement to swordfish)
Please keep in mind the old saying, “One man’s garbage can be another man’s treasure!”, when describing or defining a “flaw” to a newbie! A feature of a kayak that you may consider a blessing may be nothing more than a nuisance to someone one else! Does that make it a “flaw”?
Personally, I don’t care for canoes because they are so unstable! Does that mean all canoes are “flawed”? Or is that nothing more than a matter of a personal opinion? Please choose your wording carefully when describing a “serious flaw” to a newbie!
cd1;
Got a question for you! - - - HUH???
I certainly do choose my words
carefully when I describe a design flaw to a newbie. And I don’t make stuff up. I speak up when I, and others, have identified a flaw, and have assessed its seriousness.
There is certainly some bad advice given on this board, but in several years of reading posts here, I’ve seen good advice triumph repeatedly. When things don’t get settled, the newbie at least gets the impression that there is an issue to be resolved.
What would be accomplished if we said, “Sorry, we can’t be sure, but the designer probably knew what he was doing” ?!?
WOW, cat fight
Well really I am playing a little there, but that is quite a heated debate up there!
Personally I just can’t accept that people are hawking wares or have deep dark motives to defame someone else’s product. I don’t read every post though.
I am personally on the “ask as many people their opinions to help inform me” band wagon. I want people to tell me what they like and dislike about their boats. This helps me narrow choices quicker. I was looking at one boat on sale at my local shop, I think 9 out of 10 people here said the seat was horrible. The shop still has that beauty.
NOW HERE is my real point. If you ask your local paddle shop there is a good chance they will be selling you a higher priced boat. This is not just business, but it is good customer service. The money is spent on a better designed boat. The money is in higher quality materials. The money spent will pay off by a better time on the water and/or LESS money spent in the long run. A quality boat will last longer and you will not out grow it too quickly. The cheapest boat will be pretty attractive when you see $234 compared to $1000. saving a few hundred may help you choose a lesser boat. you will be buying a better boat pretty soon or, possibly, not be happy at all and it will keep you off the water. I am not saying the shop may not try to get a little more profit somewhere, but really they are doing their job, and doing the new buyer a service.
Well there are my two cents. Take 'em or leave 'em they are my thoughts.
Liveoutside
Sixty years of paddling?
And why do I guess that much of it was alone...
Deral, this is reading as you having a personal problem. Said more bluntly, that there is something not quite right on your end. You may want to use your 60 years of paddling experience and age to moderate your response.
Bad hair day?