kayak maintenance and repair guide

What do you think about this very detailed kayak maintenance and repair guide by the Southern Nevada Paddling Club?

http://www.kayaknevada.org/maint2002.pdf

I like the stuff about maintenance and lube of the rudder pedals/ cables and the warnings about deforming hull in storage and transport.

Any ideas on how to protect the bottom of our yaks from getting tore up?

Any ideas on how to protect the bottom of our yaks from getting tore up?

The problem with polyethele kayaks is that they scratch way too easily.  I minimize scrapes by simply by not dragging my kayaks over rocks whenever possible.  Since the keel at the bow and stearn gets scuffed up more than any other part of the hull, I'll sometimes lay down a bead of clear epoxy to serve as a "keel guard".

One day, Chef Stefano and I were over 4 miles offshore when he discovered that his kayak started taking on a little water.  Luckily he had a small cup to bail water through the hatch periodically until we got back.  In the parking lot, after loading his kayak on the rack, we discover water was dripping out of a small hole that had been worn in the rear end of his kayak from excessive dragging.

Take care of your kayak and it'll take care of you.