What made you choose your kayak

I didnt choose, it chose me.

Started of with a perception sport pescador and it was a blast with that kayak! Took it every where. Then I got my hobie outback and I'm stuck with it!

I started with a cobra navigator and then switched to the cobra marauder. They were both heavy and hard to get in top of my truck. I then got a Necky Vector which I really loved it, it was fast but I still wanted something lighter. I now own an Eddyline Caribbean 12 and 14 and Ocean Kayak Tandem.

Had a dozen + kayaks over the years but shoulder problems led me to Hobie.
I'll never look at another kayak.

I got my first yak back in 2003; an Ocean Kayak Scrambler XT. It basically fell in my lap. A buddy bought it new from a shop he worked at (fat discount) then offloaded it to me for $300 with a set of Yakima racks for my old jeep, paddle, seat, and some accessories. I still love that boat, but it doesn't drift well (tends to spin around). It's now my beater/loaner/crabbing machine. Great for playing around in rivers and lakes, too.

A couple/few years ago I spring for a Hobie Outback, which has greatly improved my success. I attribute this to a very simple fact; the less time I spend with a paddle in my hands, the more time my bait and lures spend in the strike zone.

My next boat will either be a Hobie Revo or an Adventure Island (dream boat...).

Started with a Mad River Explorer canoe which we used for 20 years then moved to a Current Designs Kevlar Kestrel. Beautiful, light, and fast but I couldn't fish or photograph from it. Sold it and bought a 2012 Hobie Outback which works perfectly for me. I don't get paddle water on my Nikon and I can fish from it. I'm 6'3" and 235 and this kayak is very stable.

I bought my first kayak, (Drifter) cuz it was only $300 at Sports Authority.  Second one, (
liquid Logic Manta Ray 14) for stability and dry ride, but eventually I went back to the Drifter when I realized the importance of a low freeboard, for ease of re-entry, and for less wind resistance.  I don't mind the wet ride when the tradeoff is worth it.

Another factor for me is not having any moving parts...  less to go wrong on the water.

Guy at work was selling 2 Aquaterra SOT's that he had bought for himself and the spouse. She took a spill in the Alameda Estuary the first trip and said sell them. Got a killer deal, $500 for the pair. Dove and fished them hard for 7 years and then sold them to friends that I used to loan them to for enough to buy a Trident 15. I do miss having 2 kayaks though. It made it much easier to bring a friend. Probably gonna try and buy a used SOT for a backup soon.

My first kayak was a used Necky Zoar sit-inside. I was seduced by the speed & handling (and still am - that's why I still own it & use it occasionally). But it just isn't fishing friendly, so, after trying out LOTS of alternatives, about 10 years ago I got a Hobie Quest.

Why that boat? It's got the right combination for me of reasonable weight (65 lbs), length (13'6"), layout for fishing, and, most important of all, FIT! it's the right size for me (5'9, 175 lbs) - very comfortable right away. And it's not bad for speed & good for tracking, even without the rudder (which I have & which improves the tracking significantly when deployed).

Really interested in the Eddylines due to lower weight (I'm no spring chicken either). Probably going to sell/donate the Necky & buy one of those in next year or 2.
Bill

I picked up a used Tarpon 140 off of CL because of the price. Cheap enough, looked cool, close by, and I thought I'd fit ok in it - all reasons which proved to be really dumb. I did a little research through reviews of that model and was impressed by what I read. Reassured, I jumped on the deal. I'm a big guy, both tall and broad, and my first paddle on it was literally my third or fourth time in a kayak ever. It felt tippy and I rolled it a few times but as my paddling skill improved, I got more confident and never rolled it again. That being said, I just always felt cramped. The seat felt small, my legs were always uncomfortably bent, and I always had that tippy feeling in the back of my head.

It fit my GF perfectly though and she uses it now. I did more research and probably went too far in the opposite direction when I picked up a used Prowler Big Game. Slow and bulky, but I dont feel cramped and I can move freely and screw around on it without feeling like I'm headed into the drink. I definitely miss the speed of the narrower boats and will definitely head that direction as I improve as a paddler (and lose some lbs.) but this works to me right now.

I've had a half dozen yaks of SIK and SOT types, and paddled many others (shop kayaks). I paddled a Prijon Yukon Tour for years until I moved back to Cali.

When I moved to Santa Cruz I got two Dagger Caymans for cheap and used those for fishing & island trips. Picked up a little longboard-type surf yak as well.
Finally upgraded to a tarpon 140 in 2007 or so after test paddling about 20 other kayaks.
I might be retiring that for a newer yak next year if the funds line up, but I keep seeing specs for new boats that just don't excite me much.

I'm an old-school paddler and so really like the core strengthening traditional paddling gives.

I started out on a tandem to tool around in with the wife.  Then she gave the OK for another kayak, so I found a Hobie Outback (I have a shoulder that gives me problems on occassion).  Great platform to crab/fish from but I envied the speed of the Hobie Revo13.

Went to Berryessa Salmon Slam, got to demo a bunch of kayaks and fell in love with the Hobie AI (who doesn't, right?).  After that, I was obsessed and figured I better just go big or I'd always be wanting.  Found a good deal on a used AI and I've been a happy camper ever since.   

I first started fishing from my kayak in 2006.  At the time I just used the best beater boat I had which was a WS pungo 120.  It worked great for bass and trout fishing, and I still use it if I fish mountain lakes in the winter. After a taste of kayak fishing on the ocean on a borrowed SOT I bought an old prowler 15.  The prowler 15 was a great boat to fish from and I regret selling it. I then moved on to the Cuda 14 which was one of the first lawn chair style fishing kayak. I wanted a comfortable kayak since I knew I would be spending a ton of time in the water that year, as I had resolved to the Angler of the Year title. I now peddle a Hobie revo 13 which is a badass fish killing machine, and easier to cartop than the Cuda.  I plan to trade in the Cuda and get one of the Viking fishing kayaks.

Good post. First kayak I tried was Prowler T13 my maiden voyage with BUSHY. Loved it. But I found a cheap WS Ride 135. Awesome kayak for stability. Slow paddle but easy to control. Sell it a year after and got T13 from Yakhopper. Awesome kayak its all around. I like it cause of the rod pod too. I exclusively fish Bean Hollow back then it can be a tricky landing. I think I've owned 6 kayaks. 5 T13 1 WS, now i only have 1 T13. After peddling hobie courtesy of Herb Superb. Now I am eyeing on Revo 13

Got my first kayak a year ago. An older xfactor on Craigslist with a ff for $500. It's heavy and slow but I have never come close to flipping and stay completely dry 99% of the time.

I think I would eventually like to get a lighter boat for lakes/rivers since I'm only 5'7 150 pounds and the xfactor is quite a tank!