He revealed that due to the physical effort on his legs he would have to peddle and paddle alternatively each hour. Mark was very strong, but have you ever tried paddling the wide Hobbie? This forced us to add 3 hours to our original plan.
At top speed, Mark could not stay with us even peddling for more than a couple of minutes. Another important consideration is that a paddle is what enables a kayak to stay upright in big seas. The brace IS the essential stroke. With the Hobbie, your hands are occupied for steering, therefore, no brace in big seas.
Having said this. A very experienced sea kayak group did not make it across on the same night due to conditions leading to tiredness. Mark did very well to make it across on the Hobbie.
The record still stands. Maybe another crack on just skis is due to knock off those 3 hours. Surfski Schools. Index Recent Topics Search. Log in Username. Remember me. Log in Forgot your password? Everyone seen this? Hobie mirage drive vs. Start Prev 1 Next End 1. That's interesting, and I also recently saw this post with accompanying video of a 2-man hobie beating some OC-1s www. This makes sense physics wise for a couple reasons that come to mind. Second its hard to tell exactly how big the flippers are but to me it looks like, the small surface area of the flippers allow them to spool to a higher cadence, and their thrust-atspeed is much more "torquey" than a wing blade.
In my experience, a wing blade is very un-fluid at 0 speed and really needs forward speed to 'fly' through the water and perform optimally. So to me it makes perfect sense a pedal drive would win a 0 speed tug of war.
That would more accurately compare a SS on its home turf. Last edit: 2 years 4 months ago by MCImes. How sustainable is this rate of pedalling over anything longer than a tug of war? Mirage drive is really cool.
It allows people mostly kayak fisherman it seems to move a slow heavy wide short rotomolded boat way faster and way further than they could if they were using a paddle. In their current application the speed is limited by the hulls. Motivated guys get those barge like fishing kayaks up to 6 mph and hold them there a long time. I see no reason why the same gain in efficiency over paddling would not be found if the system could be installed in a fast long light skinny hull.
I am not aware of any creature in nature that paddles along plunging something in and out of the water with each stroke. Troll a lure whilst holding the rod, move the kayak whilst fighting a fish, hold position against the tide or river current and much more. Not only does the Mirage Drive offer advantages whilst fishing, it also makes life easier when getting to and from your fishing mark.
In the case of most people, your leg muscles have more strength and stamina than your arm muscles. With a Mirage Drive kayak being powered by your legs you are able to go further and faster than you would if paddling, or put in another way, you can do the same but with less effort.
Sounds like a winner to me! These are just some of the reasons why Mirage Drive kayaks have become increasingly popular amongst kayak anglers. After fishing alongside many friends who use Hobie kayaks, the advantages soon became obvious. Simply put, in many situations a Hobie Kayak puts you with a better chance of catching fish. Seeing as the reason I go kayak fishing is to catch fish, it would be mad not to put myself with a better chance of catching!
It was just a case of deciding which model to go for. There was only really model for me…. The Revolution The Revo 16 is the longest and fastest single seat Mirage kayak in the range and I have a need for speed! I mainly fish on open coastlines and occasionally offshore down here in Cornwall. The sea here is well known for being lively and unpredictable so I need a kayak that will take on open sea conditions and get me home through messy seas if needed.
The Revolution 16 was the kayak for me. The Revo 16 has a 16ft hull length and a width of This all means that the Revo 16 cuts through the water like a hot knife through butter! The rounded sides of the kayak will provide good amounts of secondary stability that will allow the hull to remain stable in messy conditions.
It does mean that the waterline length of the kayak is practically the full length of the hull, and the longer the waterline, the faster the kayak will be. Hobie use some of the best HDPE high density polyethylene plastic available for their kayak hulls so stiffness and durability is excellent too. Overall this hull is design to be fast and efficient through the water. Perfect for long distance kayak fishing trips. The hull is great, but so are the features that come as standard with this kayak.
All Hobie Kayaks come very well kitted out with high quality features and fittings, each designed and placed with much thought and based on years of user feedback. It makes for a kayak that feels just right from the second you sit in it and use the kayak. The guys at Hobie have made their kayaks so that very few extras are needed to get you on the water and the kayak is essentially water-ready straight from the bag!
They have also taken note that us kayak anglers love to customise our craft to be suited to our own fishing styles. As a result features are included to make customising that little bit easier and Hobie also offer a huge range of equipment and accessories for rigging up a fishing kayak.
This is a very clever piece of kit. By stepping alternately on each pedal, you drive the two rubber fins side to side beneath the kayak propelling the hull forwards with incredible efficiency!
A lot of development has gone into the Mirage Drive and there are many components involved. Maintenance is fairly minimal though - wash down with fresh water after each trip and put a drop of oil and grease on pivoting components every so often to keep things running smoothly.
Spare components are available if needed and Cornwall Canoes stocks all common spare parts for Hobie Kayaks. The drive slots into the kayak through a moulded hole in the front of the footwell, and secures into two Click-N-Go ports, locking the drive into the hull for use.
The drive can be used by various height users from short to tall, simply by adjusting the pedal crank arms. This is easy to do, simply push a lever on the crank arm, this dis-engages the arm from the drum and allows you to slide the arm along a numbered scale. Higher numbers for taller users, lower numbers for shorter users. I'm 6ft 2in and setting number 5 works well for me. You want the drive set up so you can pedal comfortably without bottoming out your legs or feeling to cramped up.
It takes a couple of minutes on the water to suss out which number to be on. This is a very comfortable seat! The seat is constructed from a ligthweight plastic frame with mesh covering. It secures onto the kayak by attaching to a cross bar, and for extra security, clips to a small leash behind the seat.
The seat has plenty of adjustment so that you can get into a comfortable pedalling position. Behind the seat on the right hand side there is a lever which adjusts the tilt of the seat.
There is also a Boa Lumbar Support adjustment wheel. Turning this tensions the material in the lower back area to provide lower back support. Pull the wheel outwards to slacken it off. Below the front of the seat there is an adjustment lever which adjusts the height of the front of the seat - pull the lever and apply pressure backwards on the backrest to raise the front, or apply pressure down onto the seat to lower it.
There is also a 'Kickstand' toggle. Pulling this deploys two short legs at the rear of the seat to raise the back of the seat base. The legs can be either deployed onto the deck or onto two small ledges at the back of the seat-well for the highest setting. I find the kayak most comfortable when the kickstand is not deployed, and the front of the seat base is raised slightly to support the underlegs whilst pedalling.
I tend to have the seat tilted right back too and find this comfortable for long distance pedalling. I don't like using the chair in the higher height settings as it makes the hull more unstable.
On the lowest setting you have a lower centre of gravity and i find the hull behaves much better in rougher waters in this position. There are 4 short legs stowed against the frame, which can be unclipped and popped into retainers.
A handy little feature and great for multi-day trips when you are camping! This has to be the most comfortable kayak seat i have ever used The fact that you are raised off the deck slightly makes for a much drier ride too. I have sat in this seat for up to 12 hours at a time and still get off the water without a bad back. The mesh means that the seat is easy to wash down at the end of the day too. There really is nothing bad to say about this seat! When stowed, the rudder blade lays flat on the stern deck and for transport and storage can be secured in place using the fitted bungee cord.
To deploy the rudder, firmly pull the Down toggle in front of the right hand storage pocket in the foot well. The rudder can be locked into it's down position by jamming the down cord into the cleat fitted to the storage pocket frame.
To haul the rudder, firmly pull the Up toggle in front of the left hand storage pocket in the foot well until the rudder blade is back on the stern deck. The steering control is all off the steering handle located just beside the seat on the left. This can be controlled using just your fingertips making control very easy. The rudder housing is held to the hull using a plastic rudder pin. This is designed to be a sacrificial weak-point in the rudder assembly - if you strike an object hard with the rudder blade the pin will break rather than the rudder.
A spare rudder pin is found in the stern hatch. The Revolution 16 comes complete with the Lowrance-Ready System. This system is designed to make fish finder installation much easier and comprises of a large transducer scupper recess with protective cover, along with several 3-way Thru Hull deck seals for fish finder wiring. Remove the protective cover, located under the front of the tank well, and you reveal a large moulded recess. I have also found that transducers from the Raymarine Dragonfly series, Garmin Striker series and the Humminbird DownScan transducer to also fit.
The Revolution 16 comes with fittings to attach compatible Lowrance transdcuers, however a little bit of DIY and other transducer can be made to fit. The cover protects the transducer from damage and does not effect transducer readings, and with the transducer in direct contact with the water you get a very clear reading.
The transducer cable is passed up through the moulded scupper to the tank-well above. Here we find a 3-Way Thru Hull deck seal at the bow end of the tank-well. The transducer cable can be routed inside the hull through this, and the kayak comes with a number of rubber inserts for the deck seal to suit various cable sizes. The battery and excess cabling can be stored inside the hull, and the fish finder unit connector passed back out to the deck through either deck seal located in each side storage pocket.
The fish finder head unit can then be mounted wherever is preferred on the gunwales of the kayak. I choose to use slide tracks to fit mine, this is discussed further on in this review. Storage space is plentiful on the Revolution A large bow hatch is held over via cross bungees and will easily store a fold-up trolley such as the Railblaza C-Tug, with still plenty of room for more.
You could easily fit enough gear in here for a weekend camp. The hatch features a soft rubber seal on the rim, giving a good waterproof fit. The hatch lid is also leashed to the kayak which is always a nice touch. There is an 8" Twist-N-Seal hatch located in front of the seat and on the stern deck. The centre hatch comes complete with a Hobie Gear Bucket for tackle storage.
This can be removed to access further storage space within the hull. The stern hatch features a spare rudder pin fitted into the hatch lid. Hobie also produce a number of other hatch buckets that fit these hatches, including a deep gear bucket for more storage. There are two storage pockets with mesh covers located in front of the seating area, along with two moulded-in cup holders. These are handy for keeping small items of tackle close to hand during a session. There is a massive rear tank-well behind the seat and this is perfect for storing a crate to keep the bulk of your fishing gear in.
Cross bungees keep items here secured to the hull. Hobie Kayaks come complete with a two-piece fibreglass shaft paddle, with simple push-button adjustment. The blades are a general touring shape and constructed from fibre-reinforced nylon. It is very much supplied as a back-up for the drive, should you experience failure on the water. It is also handly for paddling the first hundred yards or so from the launch until the water is deep enough to use the drive. You can also use it if you fancy going for a paddle instead of a pedal!
The paddle sits in a bungee holder on the right hand side of the hull. This is located at the bow end of the footwell and the mast tube sits beneath a rubber cap. The Revolution 16 also features a moulded-in daggerboard slot for the optional daggerboard. The daggerboard improves performance at sail by reducing lateral slippage. The side handles are well-placed at the mid-point of the kayak, and the bare hull is balanced with picked up by these for car topping.
The tank well features two reinforced scupper holes, designed to drain the tank well but can also be used with the Hobie through-scupper style trolleys. Personally I use a C-Tug as it cradles the weight of a heavy-laden fishing kayak much better.
Two drain bungs are located at the stern - a small one on the keel line, and a larger one on the deck side. Us kayak anglers love to customise our craft to make them into more efficient and comfortable fishing vessels.
There were a number of additions I made to the Revolution 16 before I was ready to do some serious fishing. I have been using a Raymarine Dragonfly 5 Pro for the last few years. With the propeller drive, you need "X" amount of water depth to use it. If the water depth is too shallow the propeller drive comes out out of the water. The mirage drive has a required depth when you do a complete stroke back and forth.
BUT, you can do short strokes so the fins don't extend to full depth. This is known as "flutter" kick or short stroke. It allows you to use the pedal drive in shallow water that is not quite deep enough to extend the fins top to bottom The hands free benefits of pedal kayaks make them attractive for photographers, anglers and anyone who wants to be on the water without having to hassle with a paddle all the time.
Your legs are a more powerful muscle group than your arms, so a pedal system will help you go further, stay on the water longer and enjoy your recreation more. Learn about all the Hobie Mirage Drive Kayaks!
How do you launch a pedal drive kayak from shore?
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