Hobie for Wife?

Hi, All -

I have an Outback that I bought last year. Last weekend, my wife came with me to the lake and absolutely loved pedaling around the lake in my Outback. She has decided she would like a Hobie of her own. She has absolutely no desire to fish. She just wants to buzz around the lake, ICW, or wherever I am fishing. If I wasn't fishing, we'd go on mini-cruises together in our Hobies, sight-seeing or going on a picnic, etc.

She's only 5'6" and weighs about 100 pounds. Would the Revo 11 be a good choice for her? Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

not sure what happened to my first reply, but I was saying the Hobie Sport might be a better fit. Its basically a jr Outback so if your wife liked the balance of the Outback the Sport would be easier for her to get used to than a Revo which can be tippy to the uninitiated.

Ahem..
I thought I saw the subject title as.. : Hobie or Wife..

Anyway..I am 5'4" ...weighing 115 pounds and using a Rev 11..and no problem at all.

I have a Revo 11 and feel that it's extremely stable.

If you are going on mini tours together I think it is important to try to match (roughly) the cruising speeds of the two kayaks. No matter how considerate is the peddler of the faster kayak, it is a bit wearing to always being playing catch-up over longer journeys.

The speed of a kayak is largely a function of its length at the waterline (LWL) and displacement (the rigged weight of the kayak, plus the weight of the sailor, plus cargo). My rough calculations suggest a Revolution 11 (LWL of 11’6”; rigged weight of 81 pounds; sailor’s weight 100 pounds; no cargo) would have about the same cruising speed (or maybe a bit faster!) as your Outback (LWL of 12’1”; rigged weight of 99 pounds; assumed sailor’s weight of 180 pounds; cargo of 15 pounds) whereas your wife in a Sport (LWL of 9’7”; rigged weight of 79 pounds: no cargo) would be around 0.75 nautical miles per hour slower.

I have a Sport (2013 model) that I think is the best boat I have ever owned after a succession of boats including (in order) Hobie 14, Mirror 10 dinghy, Laser and various windsurfers (spoilt me for boats that can’t be carried to and from the water by one person). The Sport was the closest I could get to get to a windsurfer in terms of minimalism and portability but have a stable platform for sailing and peddle-driven touring. (I'm getting older). Boat weight is not the only factor in shoulder high portability; boat length is also a factor on windy days.

Think about this. What if after four or five trip out she decides she does want to learn how to fish. Well, then I would go and get another Outback and have two.. Then when she does not want to go, maybe a friend would want to go and fish with you... Then you would have a much more useful kayak for larger person and better for fishing too.... Just my two cents worth. (Disclaimer: I do not work for Hobie).

Agreed, look at an Outback, similar decision and thought process for me:

I was getting a PA14 and wanted a 2nd boat for my non-fishing wife. Thought about a Revo11 or Sport, maybe a Revo13. Decided on an Outback because it covered almost any kind of visitor situation, backup fishing for me, mothership fishing trips, etc.


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