Hobie or keep my Malibu stealth 14

[dorado50]

I really don't know why anyone states the real benefits of a hobie. Yes they are all of the above but when it comes to fishing they have a reel advantage. Instead of the fish taking you into the kelp or into a lobster line you can lead that fish away from said objects,thus increaseing your chances of landing fish. Also a Hobie allows you to have better control of fish by keeping rod to one side of kayak at all times thus eliminating those over the bow swings during different stages of fight,which obviously keeps your rod and spool /line tension consistent throughout the battle. Just two prime examples of why hobies work!

[Salty Dog]

I have a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 160 and a Hobie Revolution 13.

I got the Tarpon first. I wanted a kayak that was seaworthy and could cover long distances. The first thing I bought after was a carbon fiber paddle. A good paddle can turn any kayak into a better kayak. I have paddled and fished with it from Newport Beach to Laguna Beach and back without too much trouble. I think someone made the crossing to Catalina on one.
Paddling for fish is an art. More skills are required to handle the kayak. I welcome the challenge.

I got the Hobie when I noticed that my my legs were beginning to look like chicken legs while my shoulders were all buffed out. Balance is the key. Great training for hiking or backpacking!!!
Pedaling for fish is fun! No skills required! With paddling I had to stop to have a drink. Now I just keep going and not waste any precious beer drinking time

I better get back on the Tarpon soon. My arms are starting to look like chicken wings.

[jorluivil]

Get a Hobie

When your battery dies I'll peddle past you
When you paddle breaks I'll peddle past you
When my peddles break, your battery dies and your paddle breaks I'll paddle past you
When my paddle breaks......I'll call you and ask you how you got in when your motor and your paddle broke.

I've owned both types of kayaks but nothing beats a Hobie.

[mazilla]

Originally Posted by jorluivil

Get a Hobie

When your battery dies I'll peddle past you
When you paddle breaks I'll peddle past you
When my peddles break, your battery dies and your paddle breaks I'll paddle past you
When my paddle breaks......I'll call you and ask you how you got in when your motor and your paddle broke.

I've owned both types of kayaks but nothing beats a Hobie.

Ha! You've never owned a luxury liner with a motor...you'd change your tune.

Then again, not too many people have the mechanical ability to design a motor system...so they don't have much of a choice.


When your struggling to get back, I'll motor past you in reverse and ask you what the big deal is...as I clip my toe nails. I can cruise my motorized yak for 7+ hours(haven't run out of battery yet)...how many hours can you peddle before you pass out? HAHAHAHA

[PapaDave]

Originally Posted by mazilla

Ha! You've never owned a luxury liner with a motor...you'd change your tune.

Then again, not too many people have the mechanical ability to design a motor system...so they don't have much of a choice.


When your struggling to get back, I'll motor past you in reverse and ask you what the big deal is...as I clip my toe nails. I can cruise my motorized yak for 7+ hours(haven't run out of battery yet)...how many hours can you peddle before you pass out? HAHAHAHA

I'd say about 14 hours... isn't that about right Jorluivil?

I recently went from a Stealth 12 to a Hobie Pro Angler. I've found a lot of benifits, mostly listed above. But to be honest, I find myself Kayaking 300% more than I did with the stealth. Just the little things you can do on a hobie make it so much more enjoyable on the water. I hated having to secure my poles, grab the paddle, and move back on top of a good spot.

Maintaining position on the Hobie is so much easier. Point your bow toward where the wind/current is coming from, set the rudder and just slowly peddle, all the while you still have your rod in your hand.

Trolling is another good example. I like trolling with my rod in my hand. I can control the baits better by controlling the rod tip, jerking plastics, feeling hits ect.

Also, when you got caught on the bottom or in some kelp, you know right away. As opposed to when you're paddling and you're already to far to really do your self any favors. In a hobie, you can peddle around whatever you're caught on and are much more likely to free your rig.

I will say this though. I miss the side compartments on my Stealth more than anything, those were the best things to have.

[jorluivil]

Originally Posted by PapaDCh

I'd say about 14 hours... isn't that about right Jorluivil?

Longest I've gone is from about 6am until about 4pm.

Originally Posted by Drake

I recently went from a Stealth 12 to a Hobie Pro Angler. I've found a lot of benifits, mostly listed above. But to be honest, I find myself Kayaking 300% more than I did with the stealth. Just the little things you can do on a hobie make it so much more enjoyable on the water. I hated having to secure my poles, grab the paddle, and move back on top of a good spot.

Maintaining position on the Hobie is so much easier. Point your bow toward where the wind/current is coming from, set the rudder and just slowly peddle, all the while you still have your rod in your hand.

Trolling is another good example. I like trolling with my rod in my hand. I can control the baits better by controlling the rod tip, jerking plastics, feeling hits ect.

Also, when you got caught on the bottom or in some kelp, you know right away. As opposed to when you're paddling and you're already to far to really do your self any favors. In a hobie, you can peddle around whatever you're caught on and are much more likely to free your rig.

I will say this though. I miss the side compartments on my Stealth more than anything, those were the best things to have.

What ^^^he^^^ said. Especially, the stuff in bold print regarding storage


There's a reason why Hobie is taking over the market. Many of us have been on both types of yaks and so far I haven't met one person that has said, "I'm going back to paddling".

[Iebadboy]

well im apart of a new family now!! !!

[jorluivil]

Originally Posted by Iebadboy

well im apart of a new family now!! !!

Don't forget to remove the wrapping before you launch

[Iebadboy]

So that's why it was hard to sit on......

Originally Posted by Iebadboy

well im apart of a new family now!! !!

I carry my PA on my toaster too, its so easy to get it on and off

[bus kid]

Originally Posted by Iebadboy

well im apart of a new family now!! !!

Congrats, on buying a hobie but that was the easy part, now you gotta rig it.

[Iebadboy]

Already done!! upgraded to turbo Finns, rudder, got the hobie bait tank already have my brand new hummingbird 597ci with DI, and two custom rod mount extensions.. Set and ready to go

[mtnbykr2]

Originally Posted by Iebadboy

Already done!! upgraded to turbo Finns, rudder, got the hobie bait tank already have my brand new hummingbird 597ci with DI, and two custom rod mount extensions.. Set and ready to go

Sounds like you are all set good luck hopefully will get out sometime

[dsafety]

Most of the comments posted above are valid and reasonable. IMO, the most valuable feature of the Hobie system is the "hands free" factor. You can go where you want to go while still keeping your hand on your rod making it possible to instantly respond to whatever is on the other end of the line.

If this is important to you, then Hobie is the way to go.

That said, many of us are regularly out-fished by folks with better skills on other platforms.

Bob

[Fish Taco]

Originally Posted by dsafety

Most of the comments posted above are valid and reasonable. IMO, the most valuable feature of the Hobie system is the "hands free" factor. You can go where you want to go while still keeping your hand on your rod making it possible to instantly respond to whatever is on the other end of the line.

If this is important to you, then Hobie is the way to go.

That said, many of us are regularly out-fished by folks with better skills on other platforms.

Bob

This has been an interesting thread for sure... and the debate continues... but, I have a question for all of you Hobie mirage drive users...

I water tested a Hobie Outback before I made a decision not to go with a Hobie mirage drive system... and this is why... My experience while testing this kayak was that while underway, feet in stirrups and pedaling away... I felt like I almost needed to grab the sides of the kayak seat to get the proper leverage while pedaling. I tried to pedal without grabbing the bars on the sides of the seat (I think there were some sort of bars or handles there, can't remember exactly) but anyway... I wasn't comfortable being totally hands free while pedaling. I felt as if my feet were positioned too high in the air. Now I'm about 5' 8" tall and have somewhat short legs (28" inseam) but still felt as though this shouldn't have been an issue for me. The guys at the kayak place didn't offer any solutions or suggestions when I explained that I felt like I kept wanting to hold on at the side of the seat while paddling... so I just figured that that is the way it is with a Hobie Mirage Drive... and my conclusion at that point was... "What's the point of pedaling if you can't comfortably free up your hands - I mean, isn't that the whole point of the mirage drive?" I wanted a yak that I could fish from more than anything else. Needless to say, I was kinda bummed that it didn't work out for me with the Hobie. Although, my eye was always on the Stealth series from the get-go too, but really wanted to give the Hobie a fair try.

That being said, it wasn't until recently that I heard one Hobie user tell me that all I needed to do was raise the seat up some, and I would have been fine. Hmmm, nobody ever suggested that to me before, not even the owner of the kayak outfitter who was pushing me to buy the same boat he had, the Hobie Outback. I am happy with what I ended up with however, and I purchased a killer Stealth 14 from OEX in Mission Bay from CJ, who helped me rig it just the way I wanted it, complete with a Bassyaks motor & lift kit.

But I do wonder if any of you Hobie users have ever experienced what I did, and the urge or need to want to grab the side of the seat to get leverage while pedaling... or have any of you heard of this, and/or remedied it by raising your seat?

I'm just curious is all. The one thing I DO really like about my Stealth is that I can get into very skinny water without worrying about the mirage drive fins... where I live out here in New York (Long Island's North shore) there is plenty of flats and estuaries to fish from that hold large striped bass feeding on small baitfish, sand eels, grass shrimp, etc. and this yak will be easy to get in skinny water where other boats cannot.

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and experiences with using your Hobies and what you encountered with leverage and pedaling.

Tight lines!

- Ken

[jorluivil]

Originally Posted by Fish Taco

This has been an interesting thread for sure... and the debate continues... but, I have a question for all of you Hobie mirage drive users...

I water tested a Hobie Outback before I made a decision not to go with a Hobie mirage drive system... and this is why... My experience while testing this kayak was that while underway, feet in stirrups and pedaling away... I felt like I almost needed to grab the sides of the kayak seat to get the proper leverage while pedaling.

I think this might be a natural human reaction.....I experienced the same thing but only on my first kayak, never with my Outback. The minute your body goes sideways for a split second your first reaction is to hold onto something ......its what we all do regardless of whether we're sitting, standing, walking or running and we start to fall.

I'm thinking that the only reason you don't feel the same way in your Stealth is because your hands are holding onto something(paddle), your mind is telling you its OK because your hands aren't free. If you paddled as fast as possible, drop your paddle and a wake came your way what would be your first reaction? I'm betting the farm that your first reaction would be to grab onto something. Do the same thing but don't lay the paddle down and I guarantee you your first reaction will not be to hold on....why? because you can't.

[PapaDave]

^ what he said ^

While I have a Pro Angler, and it is very stable, I still find myself holding onto the rail when I am peddling. I don't do that when I am fishing though. As for the seat and peddles, the peddles are adjustable and on my PA I raised the seat up about an inch, initially not for comfort though. My hands are large and they kept getting stuck between the seat and the hull whenever I tried to retreive something that fell down there.

[Fish Taco]

Originally Posted by PapaDCh

While I have a Pro Angler, and it is very stable, I still find myself holding onto the rail when I am peddling. I don't do that when I am fishing though. As for the seat and peddles, the peddles are adjustable and on my PA I raised the seat up about an inch, initially not for comfort though. My hands are large and they kept getting stuck between the seat and the hull whenever I tried to retreive something that fell down there.

Hmm... interesting that you mention that your pedals are "adjustable"...

Does that mean in height or in the distance (length) between the pedals and the foot of the kayaker? If it is in the height, that would explain why I felt like they were too high in the air for me.

If they were adjustable on the 2011 Outback like the one I was testing, then shame on the owner of the store for not bringing the "adjustment option" to my attention - as he just lost a sale and a customer! I won't mention any names, but suffice it to say, he's basically the only major fishing kayak dealer on Long Island here in NY.

[PapaDave]

Originally Posted by Fish Taco

Hmm... interesting that you mention that your pedals are "adjustable"...

Does that mean in height or in the distance (length) between the pedals and the foot of the kayaker? If it is in the height, that would explain why I felt like they were too high in the air for me.

If they were adjustable on the 2011 Outback like the one I was testing, then shame on the owner of the store for not bringing the "adjustment option" to my attention - as he just lost a sale and a customer! I won't mention any names, but suffice it to say, he's basically the only major fishing kayak dealer on Long Island here in NY.

The peddles are adjustable in the X direction but that inadvertantly affects the Y as well. After raising the seat in the PA I noticed it was much more comfortable and easier to peddle. Note that I am refering to a Hobie Pro Angler and not an Outback. The PA has a regular seat in it.