Let's get an expert opinion.
 

If you are lucky , it take both to tango. :grouphug:

Question for all the paddlers with rudder systems. How beneficial do you find the rudders?

I'm 175lbs and love my PA12. I started off lazy. :D

no but have peddled one on more than a few occasions. Room is nice but is not really needed .know PA owners that want a smaller one way way easier to transport in smaller launch points can put a revo over my head with ease nobody can say that about at PA unless your Lou ferrigno

If you are willing to go fishing with a greenhorn I would like to go with someone who knows what they are doing so I can learn.

Or Bert Vega :D

I like the room and at my height and weight a revo just wouldnt work for me. Outback was pushing it. PA12 why not just get a 14? Been out 10 miles and done 30 miles in a day. It was tuff but could do it back to back days and I am not a spring chicken.

Rudder is essential for some hulls, and not necessary for some. For long distance offshore paddling it is extremely beneficial. Many hulls will "broach" when they get going too fast on a swell which means they want to turn sideways. It can be very difficult to go diagonally downswell. Do you find yourself needing to paddle repeatedly on one side when you're going down wind?

215#here and the revo suits me just fine the nose of the revo cuts really well through big swell unlike the PA been side to side with buddy's on those 15 mile round trips the PA does keep up well but at trolling speed who cares

Do they make add on rudders for some yaks, since you can't use a hand tiller when paddling you would have to have foot rudders with cables going back to the rudder for steering. I could see where that would help after fighting a following quartering wind the other day

I'm a peddler (Revolution) but thinking about picking up a 15' trident for surf launches. Just curious about the rudder system.

The revo are super nice and fast. Just not the yak for me. My PA is a aircraft carrier compared to it. I am heavier then 215#. The revo 350# capacity didn't give me a confident feeling with bait tank, gear and a few blue gill. Would have me right at or over that mark. I not to concerned with speed. We are in yaks after all.

I owned a Revo 13 shortly and while quick and fun, its just not made for someone my size I'm 6'5" and 220lbs. I now own two PA14s and while not the speed demons the Revo was I have done plenty of 20+ mile days back to back with no issues. (Disclaimer) yes I do trailer my PA14s now but just for the ease of leaving it fully rigged and ready to go at a moments notice, before that I would put in in the back of my pickup with ease by myself so although its not a lightweight I don't think its to much weight for a single person in reasonable good shape.

No not everyone pedals, but ALL of us piddle!

I've never paddled a trident, but just from having a prowler i think a rudder would be really good to have. You can always pull it up if you you're not going far or playing in shallow surf.

That's right, you can actually play and have fun in the surf... side slips, cut backs, pulling out the back, you can even get barreled like this :kayak-surfer:

Maybe I'm doing something wrong but my trident 13 doesn't seem like something I'd want to "play" in the surf with and as I understand it, it's one of the better boats for the waves. This is coming from an experienced surfer too.

I'm 150 lbs and love my PA. Also love my scrambler for quick after-work harbor runs and my Trident 15 for surf launch & landings

Really I love surfing my yaks in some nice surf. San O is one of my favorite spots for it too,
Of course all my gear is back on the beach or below deck before I start 🏄

sent from my thumbs on my G4

Paddle AND peddle
 

Since we're on this topic of paddle vs pedal, is there anyone that does both simultaneously? I've never tried it (because I just recently purchased my PA12), but I was wondering if you kept the rudder up, and you paddled and pedaled simultaneously, what would the outcome be? Obviously, an increase in speed would be a byproduct, but what about longevity? Do you think you could get to locations farther out offshore? Do you think it would help maintain stamina, or exhaust you faster? Do you think you could do both without the kayak tracking to one side or the other? Just curious if any of you guys that own a kayak with a mirage drive has ever tried this?

LOOK at CWC new video posted today, Wade is doing both at the same time and at a pretty good clip with his wife aboard.

Paddle and Pedal
 

Coming back from fishing Cabrillo Harbor, the wind and chop was so strong I had to do both in my outback. (standard drive) It was exhausting, but was the only way to make any headway. About 3/4 of a mile. If I stopped I would get pushed back. Not fun.

Pardon my ignorance, but what is CWC?

Go to Fishing posts on this site the #2 post is titled NO SEA LIONS IN SIGHT by C.W.C. Check it out

After a fishing trip one day.... Unpack all your gear except paddle and seat. Strip down to your boardies, and let her rip. You'd be shocked at the waves you can make. Dog-patch is perfect for kayak surfing. Turmo is good too. Most important is learning to brace properly.

It truly is awesome the waves you can get on a kayak

sent from my thumbs on my G4

Nah, you can't surf a Trident 13, but a 15? Check out this from about 1:50 on.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNBrSiOSfo8
Just kidding about the 13.

don't forget the great upper body workout that comes along with paddling ;) :paddleersmilie:

Pfssssst

You should see what my legs look like from pedaling, I've been told I have legs of steel

A few bluegill huh.......

:reel:Yep

I think speed makes a big difference. Even a 0.5 mph increase is huge for a yak. Who wants to blow an hour minimum just traveling 3 miles in a slow yak? Add some wind and it can easily be a two hour energy dump.

I'm going to charge my GPS so I can see what kind of speed I'm getting with my yak. Just guessing I'm going about 3 mph but I could be way off. I'm going to Silverwood tomorrow so I will be able to test it.

Does everyone pedal?
 

You should be faster on a fresh water lake as compared to the open ocean.

I just took my kayak to a lake last month for the first time and I was shocked at how much faster it was on a calm fresh water lake.

And instead of struggling to stay in one spot over structure like on the ocean I had trouble with overshooting my intended spot

The kayak seemed like it would never come to a stop on fresh water. It felt like I used surf wax on the bottom of the kayak or something

A couple pedals and it just kept gliding and gliding




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Steel leader???

I started out paddling but after a major flare-up of my "De Quervain's" syndrome after repeated outings, I realized and confirmed by my Orthopedic Surgeon that paddling was not going to be practical in my future. :( :mad:
So I decided on pedaling (Outback).
FFY :sifone:

I never got my GPS charged and I found out my fish finder doesn't show speed, so no report on how fast I am. I did manage to catch a small striper this morning so it's a fish fry for dinner tonight. Another fisherman clued me in to what the stripers were doing so next week should see a few more in the boat.Paddling was pretty fast this morning on smooth water but when the wind came up it got slower.