This was my first paddle in my Costco Tobin inflatable kayak which in fact is a rebranded Bestway kayak. In Australia's Costco it was $350 for the two-seat kayak.
I went against good written advice by a couple of experienced kayakers in their blogs who advised against the inner tube style inflatable because of the extra time required to dry it.
I support that observation and you didn't have a place to store the kayak in a bag in the boot of your car to get it home or planned to stack it on a shelf inside your home, this would be an issue.
My logic was that I didn't know if I would like kayaking and I would rather waste 350 dollars than 1500 dollars which is the approximate cost for the nice drop stitch kayak I plan to buy after ten hours are completed in this kayak.
Why ten hours? To hire a boat for a paddle on a Melbourne river costs around 35 dollars per hour. So ten hours of paddling will recover the cost and if it is still serviceable, becomes a second boat for our family of three.
This vessel, the HR Puffed Out, is very slow, very stable, and easy to inflate and deflate.
I was smart and chose a time when the tide was going out and paddled with the tide from Essendon Rowing club to the Footscray Rowing Club - a distance of 3.5 km. Certainly not a marathon effort, but the sheer tranquil pleasure suggests that it was a good way to start this paddling adventure.
23 окт 2021
