Can anyone recommend paddle kayaks that as far as speed is concerned can keep up with the pedal kayaks. My fishing buddy has an Outback and was considering purchasing a kayak that could keep up with him when we both go out together. I can't afford a Hobie or a Kayak in the $1.800 price range. any suggestions would be appreciated. My budget is around $1,000. Majority of fishing is inshore and bays.

Thanks

Check out the Santa Cruz Raptor. Christian can leave us Hobies in his wake

I think I'm the only person who doesn't think the Raptors are as efficient as most people think they are.

You're going to have go with a long, narrow beamed kayak if you're looking for efficiency; such as:
Necky Vector 14 (14'1", 25" Beam)
Ocean Kayak Trident Ultra 4.7 (15'5", 29.1" beam)
Wilderness System Tarpon 160 (16'0", 28" beam)

The kayak is this thread is probably the quickest SOT hull I've ever paddled.

Other than those models (and similar ones) you'll probably have to go to a sit-inside kayak for even more efficiency.

The Tarpon and Trident Ultra probably have the best platforms from those I listed.

Any yak with Christian in it is fast. I believe he said he averaged over 6mph during a 5k race recently - I KNOW I can't do that in my PA.

The Neumie choices are good - I think you could even go to a Tarpon 14 and be just fine. That yak listed on CL is very interesting......the Hurricane website does not show it unless I overlooked it. Prob not a bad buy at that price but a 16' boat can be a bit limiting if you do a lot of small body fishing and doesn't cartop or even truck bed as easily as a 12 or 14. But the longer boat is usally a faster boat all other things being equal.

With that said, be realistic about your boat selection. If you and your bud always fish together and travel a lot, maybe a priority should be a fast boat. However, you also compromise other things in the process. Make sure you are buying a boat that fits your total needs - not just one to keep up with your bud.

I would start off looking at boats that best fit your fishing needs as if you were fishing alone.......and then start ranking those in order of speed. And then buy a good paddle and develop an efficient paddle stroke and the Hobie will be no problem to keep up with.

I really don't see much of an issue with an average paddle yak keeping up with an Outback under normal conditions. Granted, I have a slower Hobie (PA14), but have fished with paddlers enough to think that it would't be an issue (and I did have an Outback briefly).

I think that opens up your choices considerably. What do you think Neumie?

I agree. An average kayaker should be able to paddle side by side with any mirage driven kayak as long as the kayak hull is designed for more efficiency than stability. So I would say a kayak that's 13 feet in length or more with a beam under 30" would be sufficient.

FishAll50, he finished a 5K in/under 30 minutes? That's really, really fast.

I've got a Tarpon 140... It's a great boat for speed and it's also a lot more versatile than the 160 IMO... With a good paddle, a little bit of paddling form and some muscle memory in the shoulders that comes from a decent amount of experience, he might start struggling to keep up

I agree with Tom. I had the privilege of paddling his 140 Tarpon and was very impressed. If I was looking for a fishing kayak that I wanted to be able to cover great distances with my search would start there. There's no doubt in my mind that you could keep up with or pass any of your fishing partners after minimal time in that kayak

I've done enough shotgun starts at tournaments to know that standard paddle kayak can keep up with or outpace a pedal boat. I would get the fishing boat that you want and ask your partner to slow down a bit. I've never seen a paddle boat that couldn't pace a pedal boat under most conditions. I've been outrun by paddlers in boats that are supposed to be damn slow (Diablos).

There are no secrets to staying up with or even passing a pedal driven kayak. You need an efficient hull, an efficient paddle/stroke, and an equal or better conditioned paddler over the guy pedaling. Lacking in any one of those areas will normally lead to buttthurt for paddler.

Getting a kayak at least 14 feet in length and 28 inch beam or less will keep any experienced paddler in the ball game IF paddler and gear weigh less than 200 lbs. I'm not familiar with the heavier payloads so someone else can better tell ya what works for those folks.

What a kayak that fits those specs will do is put you in a lower seating position, a more efficient paddling position, and a much lower wind profile. If you want to stand to fish you had better have great balance or find hard bottom and get out and wade.

Glad to see both Jackson with the Kraken and Wilderness with the Thresher start to realize there are a lot of old timers that are glad to see the trend towards more efficient paddling kayaks back on the menu.

For someone looking for a great paddling used or new kayaks, as Nuemie mentioned the Wilderness Tarpons in the 14 and 16, the Ocean Kayaks Ultra 4.7 along with any of the discontinued Perceptions...Bimini, Search 15, or even the Illusion 14 if you don't need a tankwell.

The Native Manta Ray 14 or Tarpon 140 would probably be my choice today in something new.

How does the Tarpon or Prowler 13 compare with the Tarpon 140 as far as speed and fishing platform? I would assume by the width of the Ride 135, it would a slow paddle compared to the Trident, Ultra and Tarpons, even though it is over 13 feet

Thanks for everyone help, need to narrow it down and go test drive.

Tarpon 140 is longer and narrower than a trident 13 so all things being equal it will be faster. Ride 135 is not in the same class as the others you mentioned. It is a wide, high capacity pontoon hull. Which means it's going to be slower.

Also referring to kayaks in terms of faster/ slower is misleading a lot of times. Efficiency as others have referenced is the better measurement IMO. There are to many factors that go into the speed of the boat. That is why some guys will be faster than peddle boats in a raptor but that does not really directly reflect the efficiency of the hull.

I think certain 13ft kayaks can maintain adequate efficiency to keep up with pedal kayaks, mainly the the OK Trident and the old Perception Search 13. Lower seating position and lower freeboard are helpful for paddling. Hull design is important too, so rounded chines and an asymmetrical hull mean a a more efficient hull. I'm lucky that I have great sense of balance and can stand and fish from a lot of kayaks comfortably.

I think half of the kayakers these days would spend more time in the water than sitting on top of their kayak. The original Tarpon 160 (and 160i), OK Scupper Pro, and the Perception (Aquaterra) Bimini, Illusion and Prism were paddling machines; narrow beams, rounded chines, and lover 14ft long. I still think the Perception Search 13 & 15 were two very underrated fishing platforms. And that's an extremely biased point of view since I own both. I really can't wight to paddle the new Thresher and Kraken.


Tarpon 140 will be a little quicker while the Prowler 13 a little more stable. The Prowler's seat pan is also lower than the Tarpon, so that helps attribute the more stable feel of the kayak. As far as a fishing platform that's a personal choice. I like a clean, open deck with fewer hatches. I've never really liked the long, skinny center hatches that are common these days. Best bet is to paddle each kayak as you've already mentioned. Your list is pretty short as i stands, so I would start with the Tarpon 140, OK Trident 13 or Ultra 4.3, or Native Watercraft Manta Ray 14.