Is Pedaling For You?
On Wed, 28 Mar 2007 07:24:29 -0700, Oci-One Kanubi wrote:
On Mar 25, 2:13 pm, Al K wrote:
Hi Paddlers,
(snip)
What do you think about this sailing, pedaling, paddling kayak?
Al K
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Is Pedaling For You?
Hobie Cat, the sailboat company has made a splash on the kayak fishing
scene, [SNIPEROO]
Al Kubelius, Hobie rep?
-Richard, His Kanubic Travesty
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Richard Hopley Winston-Salem, NC, USA
. rhopley[at]earthlink[dot]net
. Nothing really matters except Boats, Sex, and Rock'n'Roll
. rhopley[at]wfubmc[dot]edu
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I thought I'd reply to this article since although I have no kayaking
experience so far (I just put my first kayak, a Hobie Revolution Fish on
order today) I've been lurking around the Hobie forums for a while.
In shallow water you can pedal with very short strokes and still get
around ok. The Mirage drive goes up against the hull with one pedal in the
far forward position and the other in the far reverse position.
As far as damaging the drive unit by impacts with logs, rocks, etc. as
far as I can tell yes it can be done but not that easily. If you do damage
the Mirage system you can bring it on board and make simple repairs. If you
can't repair it you can paddle your way home or sail your way home if your
kayak can take a sail and you happen to have one.
My main interest in getting a kayak for fishing and for this purpose I
think the advantages of having both hands free outweigh any potential
issues with the pedal system. And users of the Mirage system report they
can make as good a speed if not better than kayakers using paddles.
So that is my $.02 on the subject. After I've had my kayak a few months
and put some miles on her I should know if all this is true.
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