Narrowed my search down to the cuda 14 and ride 135. Will be fishing large lake in east Texas. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

i have a cuda 14 and love it. Great all around yak. Handles big water very well. Lots of storage. Nice seat. I can't stand, but I'm fairly tall (6'3") and not the most stable person, even on solid ground....

The best advise I can give you is to demo them both. It's the only way to know which one you'll like. Thats what I did

If you decide to buy I have a 2012/13 Jackson Cuda 14' that's never been on the water, bought it from a kid that never used nor have I. It has the anchor trolley, rear rudder, center storage hatch and scupper plugs. It is blue. Can send pics if interested. Asking$1200, a good deal with the extras and no tax. Located near Wylie.

Just trying to figure out which one would suit my needs better for lake fishing. I don't have time to make a trip to the metroplex to demo so I figured I would roll the dice and order one.

Go with the Cuda. The Jackson seats are awesome and won't leave you sitting directly on the kayak like the WS junk. Plus when the new WS seat comes out you won't be squeezed of every Nickle and dime you own for a seat because you bought the Jackson Cuda. Cuda 14 speed is awesome, great dry storage that WS just doesn't try for, great little features like bungees, rod and paddle stagers, pad eyes. Just a quality kayak.

"Shoulda got a Jackson"

Here are some pics of mine.

I agree with supporting your brand and recommending your brand when people ask opinions, but I don't think that bashing other brands is necessary and I don't think its a positive reflection of this forum. I would like to point out however that if Wildy charges the full price as rumored you will end up at the same price as a Cuda, and no one is "squeezed" for any more money on either brand. Thats if he decided to go with the upgraded seat. You do not sit directly on the kayak in a ride either, as of now you have an option to get a high or low air pro seat with the purchase of a Ride. You can also take a quick peek at Craigslist and see which brand is for sale more.

... never mind

Proud owner of three pieces of "junk"

Didn't we have a conversation once about how we type then delete a lot more than we ever post.




The average difference in cost between a Cuda and Ride is $400. Not sure what you drive but Grand Saline isn't that far. Also if you take pdtazg151's advise and spend the $400 extra for a Cuda and don't like it then you have to sale it and that will be a loss. Oh and ask pdtazg151 how ording a kayak online is...

As for lake fishing both will do the job great. Good luck!!!

The Ride 135 with their new Hi/Lo seat that's soon to come out will still be $100 cheaper than the Cuda 14 if the rumored price is correct, so your nickle & dime argument is completely off base. Also, if you purchase the Ride 135 night now you're able to receive a coupn for $150 off the new seat when they come out. I would check with Mariner Sails since I know their doing the rebate and there's a deadline to get the coupon. The Ride 135 has much more internal storage than the Cuda 14 too. As far as your assessment of little features, pad eyes are cheap and easy to instal, there is a paddle stager on the Ride, plenty of bungees (and easy to add more), OK the Cuda does have rod stagers that the Ride does not.

BOTH are high quality kayaks.

This is my comparison between the two kayaks that I posted awhile back. I have updated some things sine my original post a year ago and they will be in italics:



I'll preface this by saying I own the current WS Ride 135.

I'll start with hull performance. The Ride is definitely the more stable kayak of the two. I'm not sure why the Cuda 14 is always compared to Ride for stability as I liken Cuda more to the Redfish 14. Both are stable enough to stand if your sense of balance is good enough, but the Ride is more stable in either the high or low seat option. (Update: I have very good sense of balance and can stand and fish from most kayaks, even ones most people don't consider a standing capable kayak. But I do stand by my comment that the Ride is more stable than the Cuda 14).

The Cuda hull is a little more efficient hull than the Ride. It's only going to be a couple tenths of a mph on average, but it adds up for longer distance paddling. Normally when you want a more stable kayak you're going to trade off on speed, but the new Ride actually balances both rather well with the addition of the hard chines which means the kayak has a narrower waterline. One thing that also helps with speed is rocker, especially in windier conditions because it allows the kayak to ride up/slice through the waves instead of plowing through it. The Ride does have more rocker than the Cuda which helps close the speed gap with the Cuda. To me the Cuda needs a touch more rocker.

Tracking/Manueverablity, like speed/stability, you can't have'em both. I was shocked at how well the Cuda tracks; it tracks more like a 16 foot kayak. That's a good thing in open water, but not so good on smaller bodies of water or rivers/creeks; a rudder would help. The Ride tracks well, I'm never really having to make correcting strokes for weather vaneing when paddling with quartering the winds. The continous running keel is the reason it tracks the way it does, without it it would weather vane.

One thing that does hurt the Ride is the amount of freeboard. There's a lot of kayak sticking out of the water. When paddling perpendicular to the wind you notice that the kayak slides because of the wind hitting the kayak. It doesn't weather vane, just gets pushed some. It's a little frustrating and rudder would help this problem. The Cuda has little freeboard, so it's not as affected by cross winds and because it tracks so well.

The Ride easily beats the Cuda for weight capacity. Granted for a 3 or 4 day river camping trip you'll have enough capacity and storage with either kayak. The Ride would let you bring a few more creature comforts. The kayaks are both heavy and fall under the the same weight category of super crazy heavy for a kayak. Thankfully, their not in the ludicrously crazy heavy category that the Pro Anglers fall in.

For the record I don't understand the the obsession with hi/lo seating options. If you need to see better stand up. Moving the seat up a couple of inches doesn't really do anything. A quality pair of polarized glasses will have a greater impact. (Update: I have a better understanding that higher seats allow for more bend in the knee which leads to better comfort. I understand why people want this option) Having said that the seat on the Cuda does have the advantage because you can move between the high and low position whenever you want, which is a good thing if the winds pick up you can lower the seat. Something you can't do with the current Ride(Update: Until Wilderness Systems releases their new seat later this year). It will take some practice to change the seat position while on the water because I was a little uneasy doing it for the first time. It would get easier the more times you do it though. With the Ride you either will have the High seat or the low one, that's it. (update: Not for long) With the seat in the high position on the Cuda it has a big affect on the stability. You can't move the center of gravity that far above the waterline without compromising stability. I haven't paddled the Ride 135 with the high seat, but even with raising the center of gravity it should fair better than the Cuda because it has the better stability of the two. (Update: I have paddled the Ride 135 with the high seat and my initial comment stands. The stability is affected with the higher center of gravity, but the Ride hull handles it well. It does do better than the Cuda 14.) The Cuda seat is more comfortable than the Phase 3 seat from WS. Both seats could work as a camp chair, but the Jackson is nicer in that aspect. I would make sure you get a 240cm paddle with the Cuda or the Ride with High low seat. I use a 230cm paddle with my Ride with the low seat, but a 240cm would work fine with it. (Update: I would get a 250cm paddle for the Ride if you plan on getting the high seat or their new hi/lo seat)

Deck layout is a personal preference. I wish the Ride had the gear track for the tankwell, I'm not sure why they didn't mold that in. The sliding seat is nice, which allows you to trim the kayak. The flat floor beneath the seat is very nice to stand on. I do like the orbit hatches, I feel they're an improvement over the tupperware style found on other kayaks. The Ride does have a deeper tankwell, which is nice. I don't really like the Cuda layout. It think it's over designed and doesn't provided enough flat surfaces in front of the seat to attach items. I've never liked the long skinny hatches in the cockpit that Jackson and Ocean Kayak do either, it makes the deck feel really cluttered. Part of my problem is I've kayaking for a long time and am set in my ways, and I like to keep the front of me open, clean, and simple. However, all the hatches on the Cuda do offer a lot of interior access. I also, don't like how it comes from the factory with the Ram rod holders behind the seat. Basically, most of the deck features that those who own a Cuda love, I don't. If I purchased a Cuda I'd end up paying for features I'd never use.

Which brings me to cost. The Ride is $400 cheaper with the low seat option (Update: $370 cheaper for the Advanced model & about $100 cheaper with their soon to be released hi/lo seat). You could buy an awfully nice paddle with the leftover coin. Or add a rudder and still have some bucks left to play around with.

That's my comparison and opinions of the two, your mileage may vary. Think about where you intend to paddle the most, what features you'd like to have, and most importantly test paddle both kayaks. I own 4 kayaks and can pick and choose one depending on where I'm fishing. The Ride 135 was bought for overnight river camping trips specifically in mind. Having said that though if I had to chose just one kayak to own it would be the Ride 135, and I fish small lakes, reservoirs, rivers, and bays (occasionally BTB). There is no perfect kayak that can do it all, but in my opinion the Ride 135 balances its compromises very well.

The best advice has already been given. What ever it takes to make it happen, you should definitely demo them both, and demo more if you possibly can.
As far as the bashing other brands goes, it isn't necessary and shows how immature some people are.
Buy what you like but don't talk [censored] about other people's yaks. Thats not acceptable behavior around here.

My dad used to say "Opinions are like butt holes. Everybody has one and most of them stink"
Do yourself a HUGE favor and demo before you buy.
Good luck!