I've been trying out my new sail kit on a nearby pond in my 2019 Hobie Outback. Winds were in the 10-15mph range and I got up to 5.2mph under just sail power.
Lots of fun , I tip my kayak over when a strong gust of wind caught me by surprise and I didn’t let go of the sheet so over I went , I even had the inflatable side amada . I couldn’t flip it over in the water because of the inflatable side stabilizer kept me from flipping it over . I had to be a rescue, I learned a big lesson to keep an eye out for strong wings .
That was cool. I've been considering getting a Kayak. The Hobie Outback sure seems like a great choice for fishing since you can paddle with your feet or add a sail. Thanks for sharing that.
Love it! Look up mods that allow you to control how much sail you let out-helps a ton when winds kick up. Usually requires running a sheet to the opposite side of the main sheet (line) secured with a cleat. Wife and i purchased a proangler and outback in 2014 for fishing and exploring. Now all we do is sail them!
cool video Josh!!! hey I just got my sailing Kit but I would like to add a block like you have in the back, can you link a description or guide me in the right direction? and also what size cleat did you get? cheers man keep them coming
Hey Joan, I bought the block on Amazon. You could probably make a bunch of different blocks work just as well but here's the one I went with. I think the cleat was just an extra I had, not sure what it is but again, I think you could make a number of things work fine: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002NSSCF2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
In this video I got it up to 5.2mph. On a larger lake with more steady wind it should be able to go faster but at some point it will just flip over without outriggers on. I plan to find the tipping point this year :-)
First time I took my new Compass out, I took the sail and Sidekicks with me. I had a great time. You can easily submerge the Sidekicks in strong conditions, but I did not flip it.
Hey David, I have the Hobie sail kit, Hobie Furler kit, a small block (pulley) on the rear and a cleat to hold the sail in place to give my hand a rest. I've been really happy with this set up.
Did you ever push it to the limit and tip over? Good video, thanks for sharing. I have an Outback and have thought about the sail for playing around when fishing is slow.
Thanks! I've posted a few more recent videos on larger water/heavier winds and found out that as long as you're leaning properly, the 2019 Outback seems unlikely to flip (in my experience at least). If the wind gets too strong, the sail/bow tries to pull itself into facing the wind which takes the pressure off the sail. When this happens, the rudder is overwhelmed and starts to slide sideways through the water until the sail pressure is reduced and the rudder can steer the boat again. If the rudder was larger, it would probably keep tracking straight and eventually flip. This seems to happen at around 5.5mph which is fast enough for me. I love having the sail for fishing, it's fun and it can get you to further fishing locations with no effort.
