Wilderness Ride 115X for BTB ?
 

At the urging of a friend, I've started looking at the Ride 115x as a BTB machine.

I'm intrigued by a few things about this yak. The slide-traxx system, the elevated seat, the removable console/fishfinder mount. I really like that it's 33" wide and can carry 500 lbs.

I'm not so sure about it being only 11'6" and that it's reputedly somewhat slow. However, right now, stability and layout's more important to me than speed.

A few questions for any of you that know a bit about this yak.

-How does it handle surf launches/reentries?

- Can I fit a baitwell in the rear storage area? It looks kind of small (based solely on pictures)

- I'm not completely sure where I'd put my tackle if I had a baitwell in the rear area. I don't want to have everything in the front hatch. Any ideas about what I do about this? I would like to be able to bring 3-4 Plano 3700s with me. I like chunking lures!!! :)

Thanks for any/all input!!!

Some seats, like the one I have, have integrated pouches that are sized for plano tackle boxes. Actually mine came with two large ones and three small ones.

This year I have spent more time in my 115x than any other kayak and am VERY impressed by it. It is a little shorter than what I would usually tell folks for a BTB boat but overall it is very nice. Throw in the new Hi/LO AirMax Pro seat that is being released in October and I think it is a great choice.

Want to try one? Hit me up you can borrow mine for a day or come demo at OEX.

Thanks, CJ. I went down to oex last friday and looked at a bunch of yaks including the 115x. Its undoubtedly a nice yak, but just by looking at it, i think i would probably be more comfortable with a yak in the 14' range that would probably track a little better on long paddles since i'll probably want to use it for btb fishing most of the time. I guess the 115x kind of strikes me as more of a bass fishing yak.

Did you check out the tarpon line?

Wilderness Systems are more designed to be freshwater but they are really nice anyway you fish them. The track system can be added to many other kayaks though and I would personally want a longer kayak for what you are doing. Just my opinion. Have you checked out the 140?

Yeah, the Tarpon 140's a really good looking yak. I'm still thinking stable/wide is the way I want to go and the Tarpon 140 with 30" width is decent, but the Malibu Stealth 14 and/or X-Factor with 33" is still what I'm kinda leaning towards.

Admittedly, I like the slide trax rails on the wilderness yaks a lot better than I like malibu's design, mounted on the sides instead of the top of the yak -- which apparently can be only used with the x-wing. I don't plan on having a x-wing if I buy a malibu (don't like paddling around with what appears to be a low hanging bridge right in front of me for perpetuity) and I've been wondering if I could mount something similar to the slide trax on the malibu, mostly so I could have a rod or two in front of me when trolling live bait. I suppose I probably could just use one of those ball style ram mounts...

I have the 160 and I love it. And for its length/width its suprisingly stable. I looked at the 140 and it felt incredibly stable dont let the width fool you the secondary stability is pretty awesome, and it tracks like a dream. The deck layout and storage is something you have to figure out, but like I said I love it. I had an xfactor 14 and sold it and got my tarpon. The tarpon is so much faster and and a much easier paddle. With the X Factor I felt like I was paddling a tank. The stability was unmatched but once I got comfortable on the water, the size seemed more of a hassle when paddling long distances.thats my .02

Thanks, easyday. That's really something to chew on, especially since I have a bad shoulder. In the past, "harder to paddle" would've translated to "better workout" for me but now with this shoulder, it might mean "less time on the water!"

Hmm... I am making another trip to OEX soon and will give the T140 some more thought.

Couple things:

- Do you really need a rudder with this yak to help with tracking/drifts or would that be more of a luxury?

- How's standing up in this yak? I'm not sure the area by your feet is configured in the best way for this.

For the rudder absolutely on the 160, after having a rudder I will never own a kayak longer than 14 without one. I think you could probably get away without one on the 140 but the huge advantage of the rudder is no hard paddling only one side to do slight turns or course adjustments, and in the wind the rudder keeps it tracking nice. The whole standing thing is very iffy. I have stood in my 160 but it was for a brief second in a sheltered cove on a lake. I wouldn't recommend standing in a tarpon. I never stood in my x factor, not being able to stand on a kayak isnt a big deal for me I never do it anyway. Then again I am 6'2 and 220 lbs so my center of gravity isnt really working in my odds on this one. I can say this though when I go out I spend 10+ hours on the water and the seat on the tarpons are amazing. I dont know where you are located but im in the Irvine area. I would be happy to meet ya somewhere so you can test out the 160 just to get a feel for the speed of the tarpon series. I mainly fish big open water, if you are looking for fresh water stand up bass fishing the ride series is what you wanna take a look at.

Absolutely come try them.

Rudders are a luxury, the Wildy boats perform GREAT without but all kayaks perform better with. Not to mention the increased control while drifting. Every yak I own has a rudder, I love them.

A lot of poeple stand on the 140, I am not one of them. The boat is definitely not meant as a stand up fishing boat, it is a performance based boat. It offers plenty of stability but not the stupid amounts that you find in those stand up boats like the Ride. The real question is how much will you really stand? Even on a Ride I stand rarely. In the Commander I stand more than anything but even still it is just for the occasional flip or pitch to cover in freshwater.

Have you considered the Ride 135? It may be the bets of both worlds for you and with the new AirPro Max seat coming out in October this boat is going to be hard to beat in its class.

Thanks easyday (and cj). Went with a xfactor. Made a separate post about that. Appreciate the advice!