Santa Cruz Raptor SOT

[junglejim]

Just bought this kayak and looking forward to fishing. I do a lot of flats fishing in Florida on the west coast tampa bay area. Will let you know how it works.

[junglejim]

got out on Saturday on my first trip. Only spent a couple hours mostly paddling although I did bring a rod. The kayak paddled well. I was able to stand up and fish. I have 2 ocean kayaks and have not been able to do that. You can move around quite easily with out fear of hitting the drink. This is a great kayak for someone wanting a stable platform to fish and still have some speed to get where you want. I did have some wind and waves and it did very well into both!

[MrM]

Funny. A vast majority of the posts about this kayak come from users with less than 10 posts, and always seem to be promoting the kayak. I wonder why that is?

[Siebler]

Originally Posted by MrM

Funny. A vast majority of the posts about this kayak come from users with less than 10 posts, and always seem to be promoting the kayak. I wonder why that is?

Pure coincidence. All 3 of his posts are about the kayak too so I have faith its not planned at all.

[junglejim]

I am a fisherman in Florida who visits cal just about every year. I came across this site while I was searching kayak fishing in California. Since the Raptor is built in CA. I thought fisherman might want to check this one out. I only posted my comments to let people know about it. I am a licensed captain and have fished over 35 years out of boats in Florida. Mostly fish offshore but about 7 years ago I bought my first kayak a Ocean Scupper Pro. Tipped it over 2 times while leaning a little bit. Lost some tackle in the process. I have not done that in over a couple of years. I like standing up when I fish as well was impossible to do in the Scupper and also a Prowler 15 . Just wanted fisherman to know about this one. I still love my Scupper Pro for longer trips or paddles and will keep it. It is a great kayak.

[Sdspeed]

Please keep posting your impressions, I am new to kayaks and mentioned this kayak before and heard alot of the same. Since no shop locally carries them it makes alot of people skeptical. Plus
Hobie being basically a local they have a following but to pricey for many of us. If you get a chance post a few pics. I know I'd like to hear more of your impressions as a rookie!

[MrM]

Originally Posted by junglejim

I am a fisherman in Florida who visits cal just about every year. I came across this site while I was searching kayak fishing in California. Since the Raptor is built in CA. I thought fisherman might want to check this one out. I only posted my comments to let people know about it. I am a licensed captain and have fished over 35 years out of boats in Florida. Mostly fish offshore but about 7 years ago I bought my first kayak a Ocean Scupper Pro. Tipped it over 2 times while leaning a little bit. Lost some tackle in the process. I have not done that in over a couple of years. I like standing up when I fish as well was impossible to do in the Scupper and also a Prowler 15 . Just wanted fisherman to know about this one. I still love my Scupper Pro for longer trips or paddles and will keep it. It is a great kayak.

Hey, I'll be the first to admit when I'm wrong. Glad to hear you're not just the owner trying to get some press. No one really uses this yak that posts on here, so the more "real world" information you have to share with us, the better.

Welcome!

[Baitman]

Hey guys,, I'm the owner / designer of the Raptors.
Totally understand the unwanted " Ad pitch" that a lot of people try to toss into forums. I don't like to see attempts at sales pitches on NCKA either,,, but on the other hand, sometimes it's information which some members might be interested in. A sale,,,or a sponsored event. In two years time for this reason, I've never posted anything about my kayaks here, though I have responded to posts. NCKA keeps me plenty busy,,, sometimes I forget there's other Kayak fishing sites out there.

There's a guy setting up a kayak shop near Ventura, he will become a dealer for the Raptor and offer demos soon. With Hobie and Malibu firmly entrenched , it's extremely difficult to even get a dealer to consider carrying an unknown brand. Maybe it's the economy,, maybe it's the profit margins aren't big enough... Maybe it's just me...
Odd that I have more dealers in Florida than California. Especially with the shipping disadvantage.

Thanks Junglejim for posting your experience on the Raptor. I read this yesterday but didn't want to add to the "conspiracy theory". hahaha Glad to hear you like it ! ( knew you would ! ) Sorry we can't provide the bait tank in camo. Trying to keep it light colored to deflect heat.
Yeah, I was at the Cambria Slamdown tourney. Calm a day you could ask for, A guy rolled just 100 feet from me and lost gear... I thought to myself " wouldn't have happened if he was in a Raptor,,, Here's your sign" About half of my customers already have several kayaks and been fishing a long time. One guy in Sitka AK teaches kayak classes and purchased 4 Raptors for his fishing lodge after I met him for a demo paddle.

For "Real World" info, Check out this site, user rated reviews. Santa Cruz Raptor always seems to be in the Top User rated category,,, even though we've got the smallest distribution and only been in business a VERY short time! That says a lot...

http://www.kayakfishingmagazine.net/...k-reviews.html

Those reviews come from genuine owners who've purchased it..

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This video posted from a kayak fisherman in Lompoc who recently received the new SOT model. Nice Lings !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYVgRnHDhCU&sns=em

Would love to add more,,, check out our website for more info. Thanks, Jim