Pre-race warm up

 Just out of curiosity, I have often wondered which one of the faster SOT fishing boats really is the quickest.
That kind of functional speed that gets you up and over that next wave before the thumping or helps you get to a partner in trouble.
Im interested in the traditional 12'-16' ROTO-MOLDED fishing SOTs.
So, I decided to start a thread with a poll asking which is believed to be fastest.
That will be followed by "speed tests" and documenting results.

Before I create the poll, I was hoping to have an accurate list of these boats.

Ocean Kayak              Scupper Pro   

Wilderness Systems    T-160i

Malibu kayaks            The Express          (Could be tough to find)

RTM                           Disco

These were the initial 4 that I thought stood out as the faster plastic.

I have not paddled the Viking Pro-Reload, but I like the lines enough to put it on the list and Ill have a reason to go test it.

I decided to omit the Cobra Expedition.  At 18' it's just outside of the parameters that I'm interested in, and it wasn't marketed as a fishing boat.


So, any boats that belong in this group that I have left out?

Hobie Adventure
LOL J/K
What about the Prowler series, are they fast? Never paddled one, but wondered if they were quick.

WS Freedom 15!

Are you looking for paddle yaks only or pedal as well? The Hobie Adventure  pedal kayak is probably the fastest roto moulded production sot  kayak around.

 

Hobie Adventure
LOL J/K
What about the Prowler series, are they fast? Never paddled one, but wondered if they were quick.

Are you looking for paddle yaks only or pedal as well? The Hobie Adventure  pedal kayak is probably the fastest roto moulded production sot  kayak around.

I'll put the Hobie Adventure on the list.
Ive pedaled and paddled it and I agree that its extremely fast but Im not sure if its the fastest, yet.
Ill paddle it vs the non mirage drive boats to keep things consistent.

I might have thought that the mirage drive with the turbo fins would be faster than a paddler but I have recently matched the T140 vs the Hobie revolution and......well, we will have to see how the Adventure does with and without the drive.

WS Freedom 15!

 Thats a good one!  and longer than the Disco.
Do you have one Brian?    Could also be tough to find.

I have one and welcome to loan her out for a paddle. She is what started my kayak fishing on. She's like the Millennium Falcon, a bit old, beat up, stained, mising hatch seals and a few extra holes from early kayak fishing era modificatios of a broke college student but she's damn fast. Oh yea, she has over 100 halibut hit the deck in her ten year run and maybe even once paddled as a tandem with rangerette as copilot.

Over what distance? Is it a 100 m sprint, or a quarter mile, or a mile, or a day of trolling, or something else? I suspect you might get different answers for different distances, especially if you consider both paddle and pedal kayaks...

I have one and welcome to loan her out for a paddle. She is what started my kayak fishing on. She's like the Millennium Falcon, a bit old, beat up, stained, mising hatch seals and a few extra holes from early kayak fishing era modificatios of a broke college student but she's damn fast. Oh yea, she has over 100 halibut hit the deck in her ten year run and maybe even once paddled as a tandem with rangerette as copilot.

 Perfect. Lets plan on early spring? Ill be there when the Stani gets to 900.
Headwaters is my outfitter and Im sure thats where ill go to paddle the Viking.

Are you willing to let me take it back to the lair?
Its like a kayak day spa and I might be able to repair some of the hull damage.
And, I would really like to have some solid time on the water with it and then be able to document the Freedom vs the other boats in consistent conditions.
Thanks for the stoke Brian.

 I hope that finding the Express will be as easy.

Over what distance? Is it a 100 m sprint, or a quarter mile, or a mile, or a day of trolling, or something else? I suspect you might get different answers for different distances, especially if you consider both paddle and pedal kayaks...

Just putting the list together here and I will share specifics with the poll.
Ill give this some more time,gather pictures of the contestants, and then go to work.

What about the Prowler series, are they fast? Never paddled one, but wondered if they were quick.

I kind of view the Prowler as one of those boats that can do just about everything pretty well.
That nice balance also slows it down. Its not really "slow" and actually kind of quick off the line, but these boats don't continue to accelerate like a Tarpon 160 or others on this list.

Good times on the prowler

 This would be a lot more exciting if you had a betting line.  My money is on the t-160

Hobie Adventure
LOL J/K
What about the Prowler series, are they fast? Never paddled one, but wondered if they were quick.

Prowlers are fast enough, but not as fast as the Scupper Pro.

It seems like Necky may have had a few fast SOTs, but I don't know if they were in a class with the Scupper Pro or the Disco. Just want the list to be complete and the results unquestionable.

 Spent some time with the forum search engine and some other resources.
Found members claiming that the Scupper Pro is the fastest plastic.
Also found some that believe the Tarpon 160 is faster.
I learned that the Neckys can be crossed off.
But most importantly I didn't find any boats that are not already on the list.

 Not that I want to really get into it in this thread,  but the current version of the T160 has already been eliminated. The T160i is still a contender.

Ill let this sit for a while longer then create the poll. If you think there is a faster model not listed, speak now or shut it when the race thread starts.
Thanks for the support on this project.

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=70593.0