I had experience in a Field and Stream Eagle Run 12 foot boat. It was fast and narrow, but hard to maneuver in our tiny creek that we use often. I felt like I wanted a 10 foot model, something wide and stable, easy to control and steer, and that could be used for fishing. I also knew I wanted a sit in boat, not a sit on. The guy who got me into kayaks had something that seemed pretty much dead on what I wanted. I took a good hard look at his, and hit up all the sporting goods stores in town.
Three different chains had boats, some a lot more to choose from than others. Some had pretty cheap boats, great for kids or the guy that thinks he wants to kayak and then gets out just as quick. Some were stupid expensive. More and more, the one my friend had was looking better and better. I tried to read as much as I could on paddling sites and so forth, learn as much about the boats as I thought I would need to make an intelligent decision. In my visits to local sporting goods stores, I found the boat my friend owned for sale. I felt happy about the seat, foot pegs, blah blah blah, and went back one night to take the yak home. This, it turns out, would be as much an adventure as a trip down the creek.
I ran into a pretty knowledgeable and very helpful guy working in the store, who was a kayaker himself. He answered my onslaught of endless questions, helped me pick out a decent and cheap foam block roof rack mount kit, and offered to carry the boat to the front for me if I bought it. We weren't sure the foam blocks for the kit would fit the super fat bars on the roof rack that my Tank has, so he offered for us to go outside, open the pack, and give them a try. This guy really went the extra mile and then some to help me out, not knowing for sure if I would really buy the damn boat, or just order one online after finding what I wanted and seeing it up close in his store. I did not disappoint him. He shouldered my new toy up front, I paid the lady, and then the man helped me haul the boat out to the Tank. He didn't have time, or permission, unfortunately, to stay and help me load and strap the boat down, and I could tell that he really wanted to. I thanked him for the mountain of help he had already given me, and made a mental note to contact the chain to let them know how awesome he was.
I figured out how to get the foam padding blocks on my cargo rack, broke out the tie downs, and eventually managed to get the boat into position on top of the blocks. Now came the adventure of trying to figure out how all these tie downs worked. I was super nervous about the boat shifting during the trip home, or worse - coming loose and falling off in transit. The idea of a broken boat and damage to someone else's car on the ride home was making me more paranoid than usual, which is a feat. I was baffled by what I eventually determined were two completely useless and fake tie down straps with non-functioning, mock buckles. I ran back inside the store while they were still open, and bought a four pack of twelve foot long ratcheting tow straps. Ha ha! Problem solved. I finally had the boat practically chained down where it couldn't wiggle, then rigged the bow and stern tie downs as tight as I could get them. My kayak was actually bent out of shape the whole trip. Thankfully, the flexing was not permanent and the boat retained its' real shape.
I made a very slow, laborious, and panic stricken drive home, without incident, backed the Tank into the front yard, and then happily and confidently unloaded my new ticket to freedom, fun, exercise, and what turned out to be pretty damn good physical therapy for my injured back.
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| A little preview... |
For details of the boat itself, and some of the fun I've had with it, check out part two of this little story, coming very soon, I suspect.
-Owen
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