Tarpon 160 secondary stability tested

I Demo'd a Tarpon 160 at Moss.   As I suspected, it floats me better than the 140.  The 140 had an inch of water on deck and a constant stream of water gushing in and out of the scuppers.   The water stayed down in the 160's scuppers.    I noticed that the wind did push the 160's bow and stern around .  This longer boat needs a rudder.  You might not need one with a 140.

  Funny thing happened to me while I was paddling through the Commercial harbor.   I could see seals and dolphins zooming around under the water.   It looks like they were chasing fish.  Occasionally, a seal or dolphin would leap out of the water and plunge down on  unsuspecting fish.    Then it happened, a young Sea Lion flew out of the water, headed straight for me.  He landed on the bow of the Tarpon with a splat and slid down into the cockpit coming to a stop between my leg. His furry face pressed against mine.I was just thinking about squid breath, when he rolled over my leg into the water. I bent back and nearly flipped out of the Tarpon, but caught myself.   

  I would now rate the Tarpon 160 as "excellent" in the second stability test.

  By the way, seals in the flesh feel soft and blubbery.  Their coat is pretty soft.

Craig

thank god is was a baby! great story

I noticed that the wind did push the 160's bow and stern around . This longer boat needs a rudder. You might not need one with a 140.

If you are talking about maneuverability, I can do a 180 in my rudderless T160 DH with just over three sweep strokes. Elapsed time about 6 seconds.

If you're talking weathercocking, then remember that when you start putting weight in the rear/tankwell of these boats, it becomes more neutral in the wind.

Scott

 I'm new to this Yak, so, I might get better with it over time.  I was by myself, so it may have been light.

thank god is was a baby!

No sh#t!

I'm new enough to this that the seals still make me really nervous when they're breaking around my boat.

Craig, you'll have no problem turning your yak. I have a rudder on mine, but don't use it often. I have to say, though, when I do use it, I'm glad it's there.

Thanks for the story!

Ben

dont get too used to that blubbery feel!

as to the rudder, I think the time its really important is when the weather turns to crap, and you need to be able to paddle both sides to make headway.  Without the rudder, in certain conditions, you cant do that.

Hi Craig, Great meeting you yesterday and I'm glad you liked the 160. The sea lion population at Moss is getting out of control. Harbor patrol kicked them off the old launch ramp dock in the north harbor this morning and they went right back on the dock minutes later. Lots of desperate looking juveniles chasing bait and hauled out everywhere. Glad your story ended in a laugh and not a bite.

 There and gone in a flash w/o problem.

  I was thinking in the back of my head that this might happen.  "what are the chances".   You never know when your number is up.