Rigging thoughts for the Sidekick

Hi All.  I've been seeing a lot of good ideas for rigging my recently acquired Sidekick.  Here's a pic of my initial setup.



This set up has worked for me so far, but it's pretty ghetto (not that there's anything wrong with ghetto).  The rod and net are just rammed into the rear scuppers.  I realize this eliminates the self-bailing capacity of the tankwell, but this boat sits so high in the water that it hasn't been an issue yet.  The tote up front serves as my fish box, and I've been keeping my gear in the dry bag in the tankwell.  Like I said, it works, but I'm realizing that there are many possibilities for pimpin this yak.  Some ideas I've had are: get rid of the tote up front and toss fish in the tankwell in a burlap sack; move my dry bag to the front where the tote was; invest in some pvc and make a couple low budget scupper mounted rod holders a la Dirobolo.  That should get me most of the way to a more manageable system without breaking the bank.  I have milk crates, both square and rectangular, but this boat does not accomodate them nicely (hence the tote up front idea).  I had the pvc-scupper-mount-rod holder idea myself and had even dreamed up small holes near the boat/pvc interface to retain drainage capacity, but I see its already been done... GMTA.  I'll probably work on that in a couple weeks after my wedding/honeymoon.  Anyway, just thought I'd post here to see how other people have rigged their Sidekicks.  I know its not the most common boat out there, but I think at least a few people have them...

Brian

Shoot man don't worry about ghetto. A pretty boat a'int what catches fish. Gear security and saftey on the water are what matters. Besides that boat you got has some killer reviews, guys like those alot.

Brian, what do you keep in that big topper wear up front? It seems to stand up high and will catch wind AND it would be harder to self rescue if and when your kayak flips over. I suggest using a burlap sack (cost a couple of bucks in some tackle shops - mostly on the coast side like Half Moon bay or anywhere you can find charter boats)

I also noticed you have a screw in circle hatch....be very careful not to get sand or dirt with in the grooves or you'll never get it open...I suggest you don't store you cell phone or car keys in there. The new kayak models now use the toggle hatch which is much better - IMO.

Just my 2 cents...

Good luck and paddle safe!

yeah ditch the box/sail up front. it doesn't look like you have much flat space for flush mount rod holders. you may want to look at some ram mounts. I have them on my boats that will free up some space inthe tank well and allow your scuppers to work properly. you also could add one up front for accessories (depending one what you want/need)