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PostPosted: Thu Apr 01, 2010 11:18 pm 
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The Tandem Adventure Island may have been built as a sailboat, but the Hobie designers didn't neglect its kayak heritage. This topic looks at both its tandem and solo performance as a stand alone kayak.

Hull characteristics have been discussed, but let me comment here about the amazing stability of this hull. It almost rivals the Pro Angler (with its 38" beam) for initial stability -- you can stand up and fish all day with this platform.
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Hobie accomplishes this by flattening out the bottom of the hull and hardening up the chine to maximize stability. Personally I think it's a little excessive, but it seems to work great and most new buyers apparently want a boat they can't manage to tip over in. Somehow Hobie has a talent for combining speed and performance in one package.

Tandem pedaling: There is no doubt about it, the TA is now the fastest kayak in the Hobie fleet. In a "one hour fast cruise", we were able to cover 5.62 miles in calm conditions with Turbofins, slightly faster than the Adventure under similar conditions. The boat ran quietly, with only the subtle chortle of stern wake interrupting its stealthy glide. Rudder authority was excellent and the boat turned well considering its length.
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Solo pedaling front seat: Unlike sailing, where the back seat is best, I prefer the front seat (without ballast) for pedaling. The TA runs as quietly as the Adventure and makes good speed. I pedaled 5.03 miles on a one hour cruise in light to moderate wind and light chop (two directions) with Turbofins. The unused drivewell was plugged. Obviously calm conditions would have been better for comparing speeds, but I would guess that the equivalent is about .5 MPH slower than the tandem mode under similar conditions or about as fast as a Revolution.
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Rudder authority is again excellent and turning is quite good, with the stern swinging wide in turns. As I mentioned before, dropping the centerboard down while turning helps swing this boat around fast! Actually, it works so well, it's rather fun to flip up and down anyway.
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Solo pedaling from the rear seat: Without 70 lbs. of amas, akas and mast attached to the forward half of the boat, the bow becomes a little light, easily lifting with any speed, and creating an annoying pounding in all but calm conditions. Of course, ballast can be added to correct this, but pedaling from the front seat is a better option IMO. I didn't have the energy to do another "one hour fast cruise" from the back, but would suspect comparable speeds in calm conditions.
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I didn't try any paddle work, not because of my allergy to paddles, but because of the limited time available. My tandem partner briefly did some paddling while pedaling, giving us a nice boost in speed, and he didn't voice any difficulties or negative comments about paddling.

The boat performs and handles very well in the kayak mode, although Hobie apparently has no plans to sell it as a stand alone kayak at this time. I would think it to be ideal for larger kayakers (who can't fit properly into existing models), those who want to stay as dry as possible, those who want a super stable boat and those who want more storage room and deck space for expeditions, dogs, etc.

I was the tiniest bit disappointed that I couldn't get more pedaling speed out of the TA. But then, with 9 holes in the hull (not including drivewells) and at least 20 lbs of permanent sailing gear, I was probably just dreaming. Overall, the Tandem Adventure is an outstanding kayak cruiser!

Next, we'll look at transportation and handling. 8)


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 12:55 am 
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Thanks Roadrunner once again. 8)
This was the mode I was most interested in, especially as Hobie isn't selling it as a stand alone kayak at this stage.
I'm surprised about the stability being so good, given its relatively narrow width compared to the Oasis.
Also that the front seat is best for solo use. The kayak looks well trimmed in your forward solo pic.
How difficult was it to remove the daggerboard and would it actually be of benefit if you were planning a kayak only trip?
I can see your tape streamlining of holes becoming important.
I'm curious- you're wanting to go for a solo pedal/paddle and on the lake edge is an Oasis and a TI hull only. What would you choose? :wink:


Last edited by stringy on Fri Apr 02, 2010 3:04 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 2:30 am 
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Roadrunner - Another great review.
Look forward to reading more.

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purchased NEW Nov 2021 - My 5th
Adventure Island Sailing since 2008


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 2:33 am 
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Good report, RR. Thanks again!

Keith

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"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 10:08 am 
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stringy wrote:
This was the mode I was most interested in, especially as Hobie isn't selling it as a stand alone kayak at this stage.
I'm surprised about the stability being so good, given its relatively narrow width compared to the Oasis.
Also that the front seat is best for solo use. The kayak looks well trimmed in your forward solo pic.
How difficult was it to remove the daggerboard and would it actually be of benefit if you were planning a kayak only trip?
I can see your tape streamlining of holes becoming important.
I'm curious- you're wanting to go for a solo pedal/paddle and on the lake edge is an Oasis and a TI hull only. What would you choose? :wink:
I was surprised by the stability as well. I learned that it's not just the width that matters (even among similar hull shapes), but length times width. If I were standing on a rectangular flat bottomed boat say, 2 ft x 20 ft, I think it might be about as stable as one 3 ft x 10 ft for instance. I think that's how the TA gets its amazing stability -- it caries its lesser width for a greater length. Of course, this combines with the fact that there is very little deadrise throughout much of the hull's bottom.

The centerboard weighs about 5 lb so it's not a major contributor of weight. You have to remove 2 screws on the bottom and the handle assembly to slide the board out the bottom. Pedaling from the front, you can hear the water gurgling in the well, so taping it over would be a nice improvement.

Which boat to pick for a solo pedaling ride if both were waiting at the edge of the lake? You know I like speed and the TI is faster than the Oasis. It's also quieter in the water. As much as I love the Oasis, I'm probably going to go for the TI. The Oasis obviously turns better and is more maneuverable, but I like the feel of the TI cockpit -- more spacious. It's also more of a challenge -- it has more speed potential because, although there is more surface drag, there is less of an induced drag issue (a little extra kick gives a nice uptick in speed). With some tape in the right spots, I am confident that the boat will be even faster yet!

There is a big paddling/pedaling race every June in San Diego. I'm planning to enter this year with my daughter in the tandem category. My choice is the Tandem Adventure. :wink:


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 10:44 am 
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RoadRunner - Great stuff. The stability is impressive.

Waiting to hear about loading/hauling.

My big question is can O car top this beast and save myself some $$$ and avoid buying a trailer or will the extra expense pay off in ease of loading/unloading especially if I go out alone?

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 11:26 am 
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Thanks for a great review of the TI Roadrunner, now I don't have many questions left to ponder. :-)
One that's left though is how fast it was when pedaling in "sail mode" with the sail furled? Since the outriggers are larger then the ones on the AI it seems as if it might take a larger speed hit compared to "kayak mode", was that the case?


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 12:05 pm 
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Upset_Nerd wrote:
Thanks for a great review of the TI Roadrunner, now I don't have many questions left to ponder. :-)
One that's left though is how fast it was when pedaling in "sail mode" with the sail furled? Since the outriggers are larger then the ones on the AI it seems as if it might take a larger speed hit compared to "kayak mode", was that the case?
With one person pedaling a fully rigged TI it is slower, mainly because of the larger hull surface and weight. Amas are out of the water. With 2 people it is faster since the power is doubled. Amas are barely skinning the surface (depending on crew weight). Any breeze will have a greater effect, especially on the beam with respect to steering at slow speeds. The larger furled mast catches the wind more. 8)


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 12:31 pm 
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So, does the TI keep the amas out of the water by raking the akas up at a steeper angle? I wonder if that would be a desirable upgrade for the AI, to improve its pedalling speed.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 1:00 pm 
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chrisj wrote:
So, does the TI keep the amas out of the water by raking the akas up at a steeper angle? I wonder if that would be a desirable upgrade for the AI, to improve its pedalling speed.
Possibly, but not that I noticed. The TI deck sits higher off the water so the whole superstructure sits higher. Addiutionally I think the insertion depth of at least one of the akas is slightly different.

This is also related to the question about whether the TI amas will fit the AI akas. According to Hobie, the answer is yes and no. Apparently they will fit (sort of) and it can be made to work, but the akas don't fit properly in the ama sleeves for adequate strength (slightly different internal design/depth) and may rip a hole in the sleeve.
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That would make an interesting sail adventure! Their recommendation is don't try it. 8)


Last edited by Roadrunner on Fri Apr 02, 2010 1:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 1:03 pm 
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Roadrunner:

I realised that my question was pretty stupid since I don't actually own an AI to compare with so if you recall the actual pedaling speeds you reached that would be great. :-)

Even better would be a comparison with an Oasis which is what I currently own. I only have the standard fins; do you think it's possible that the TI with outriggers attached will be about as fast since it has turbo fins to compensate for it's higher drag and weight?


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 2:09 pm 
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Much appreciated Roadrunner.
All the best in that race! :)


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 2:53 pm 
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Upset_Nerd wrote:
...if you recall the actual pedaling speeds you reached that would be great. :-)

Even better would be a comparison with an Oasis which is what I currently own. I only have the standard fins; do you think it's possible that the TI with outriggers attached will be about as fast since it has turbo fins to compensate for it's higher drag and weight?
Speeds really vary much more with a breeze when pedaling a rigged TI or AI than with the comparable hull in kayak mode. So I haven't kept any speed logs on pedaling in the sailing configuration. Even if we had the same fins and comparable Drives, our speeds would likely differ anyway. Sorry I can't provide more specific information. If you get a chance to demo the AI or TI, that will be the best way to get a feel for it.

With the same pedaler, I think the Oasis is still faster with standard fins than the TI with full rigging being pedaled with Turbofins and no wind; but I'm not sure. I do about 5 miles on a one hour fast cruise with the Oasis ballasted (Turbofins, no wind or current) if that helps. It's been a long time since I've used standard fins, but as I recall, turbos make about a 10% difference in speed. 8)


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 4:33 pm 
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Thanks a lot Roadrunner! Really appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions.


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PostPosted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 5:19 am 
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Well we finally got a chance to try the TI in kayak mode.
In our Oasis we often go out with friends who have traditional SIK’s to explore our local smaller creeks and narrower waterways. I was very keen to see how the TI performed without ama and sail and even without the Miragedrive, paddling when the creek got very shallow.
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The TI is as Roadrunner reported a worthy kayak in its own right. We found we could cruise at a similar speed to the Oasis. I too was surprised that we weren’t faster. There is very little wake from the TI hull but it is a lot heavier and you could hear gurgling coming from the built in daggerboard. I will have to try taping this up next extended kayak only trip.
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We found it to be very manoueverable, especially considering its length and it handled narrow creeks fine. It has a very shallow draught and was easy to drag over portages. It can float in much shallower water than the Oasis (we have the older style Oasis hull)
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The stability was amazing. I used it like a standup paddle board at times.
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It was able to do everything the Oasis did and more.
I have always said that the Oasis was Hobie’s most versatile kayak but now I feel that the TI has taken that crown! :D


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