Hobie has a winner with its orginal PA, and they will keep improving that model
Now, Hobie has a winner for what I call the back of the pickup yak guys like me. My criteria now for any new yak is simple, "Can I fit it into and secure it in the back of my Ridgeline without or with the bed extender by myself."
At my age, I don't put gear in my yak for a 12 hour + day. 4-6 hours is about all that I want to fish or be on the water. The PA12 will easily hold any gear I need, basically two rods and some terminal fishing gear, tea/water/juice and a few granola bars.
The bow shape should be able to handle my concerns about wind, tide and waves. My new FH Pathfinder with a similiar bow performs very well in 10-12 mph wind and the waves created by that wind. This new PA should have no problem with a similiar bow shape. It should avoid the wet butts when one rides in a Revo 11 or Scout. It should be more sea worthy than the Outback in water conditions I have noted at the top of this paragraph.
The new seat may be the most comfortable and best on the yak market. My Freedom Hawk elite seat is excellent and very comfortable, but this seat may be a better deal for an old guy.
This will probably not be the only PA addition. I predict that Hobie will come out with a Tandem PA, even longer than the bigger one now.
Tom Kirkman wrote:
When I read the first blurbs about the new PA12, I immediately did something that I'm guessing a lot of folks did and will do over next little bit - I compared it to the PA14 which probably isn't fair.
Instead, it might be better to look at the PA12 against any other 12 foot fishing kayak. While it might come up short against the PA14 (hey, it's giving up 2 feet in length and a few inches in width) it doesn't seem to come up short against the type of 12 foot fishing kayak that has become the norm. Suddenly it's not less than the 14 - it's more than any other 12 foot kayak.