Keep the Sport or Outback - or buy a Revolution?

Hi! First time post for me here on the forums, so please bear with me. I've searched through the archives to locate the info I'm trying to locate to no avail.

My wife and I currently own a Sport (hers) and an Outback (mine), which we like for different reasons. The Sport is light and very maneuverable for her, but gets a bit iffy when she takes it into big waves and high wind. I tend to make the Sport sit too low in the water and it leaks through the rudder cord holes when I use it. The Outback can handle my weight a lot better, as well as higher wind and waves, but it doesn't maneuver as tightly as the Sport does for her. We've tried sailing both of them with the inflatable ama kit and optional sail:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4IavLedBnc[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07f_AHImDIY[/youtube]

As much as we enjoyed the Sport and Outback, we've been bitten by the sailing bug in a big way and are going to buy a Tandem Island so we can do some serious sailing together and intend to keep a small kayak for her to use on days where we want to do different things. To keep the smaller kayak with us, we thought about sliding it under the aka's while under sail - like in this video:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81sNCothHXo[/youtube]

Thus, our dilemma: should we keep the Sport? Or the Outback? Or should we get rid of both and replace them with a Revolution instead? I haven't been able to find any specs about the various heights of the hulls projecting from the water, so I don't know if the Revolution would sit a little lower than the Outback. And Hobie claims that the Revolution is more maneuverable than the Outback, which would suit my wife when she goes creeping up the shore to look for critters while I go sailing.

Any suggestions or observations? Thank you in advance!

_________________
Mitch

2010 Tandem Island
2010 Revolution
Chesapeake Bay and Eastern Shore

My sailing blog
Our sailing videos

I'm guessing that nobody has responded to this post because it's a difficult one to have an opinion on. Most of what you seem to be talking about seems like decisions that are very personal for you, and not generic, that everyone can answer.

I'll see if I can help a little bit. The Revolution is a good boat in bigger waves, and should be better then the Sport in those conditions, but I'm not sure that it's much better then the Outback. I'm also not sure how much more maneuverable the Revolution is over the Outback. The Revolution is a tiny bit narrower, and a tiny bit longer, so in my mind, the Revolution, and Outback are probably the most similar boats in the Hobie lineup. If the Sport is lightweight and easy for your wife to use, then the Revolution isn't going to solve that problem either.

I can't answer on behalf of your own preferences and use, but if I were in your position, I would wait until you receive the Tandem Island before swapping other boats. This will also allow you to see if it makes sense to ride with one boat between the main hull and the ama.

Hope that helps a little bit.

_________________

Thanks for the reply - that does help some! Since the initial posting of a few days ago, we've decided that the Sport will be eliminated from the mix and the Outback will need to be compared against the Revo.

_________________
Mitch

2010 Tandem Island
2010 Revolution
Chesapeake Bay and Eastern Shore

My sailing blog
Our sailing videos

Great! I have never owned the Outback, but if you have questions about the Revolution, I'd be glad to help with those.

_________________

Unless there is some Outback feature that you specifically want (trays for fishing, etc.), the Revolution is the more versatile boat. It is faster, quieter in the water, better in wind and chop, and paddles better. Cockpit size is about the same in both boats.

The Outback may have a slightly smaller turn radius, but for either boat, the optional large rudder makes a huge improvement in slow speed maneuverability and is a must IMO for optimal handling and/or any sailing. The Outback lists a 50 lb greater weight capacity but in reality, the difference is moot. This is a small point, but the Revo has a slightly shallower draft -- possibly an advantage if your wife is spending much time in shallow water.

You are going to go so much faster in the Tandem Island!!

_________________
2010 Hibiscus Adventure Island

We've already got the bigger rudders on them and were impressed by the performance improvement that they offered on both yaks. The shallower draft of the Revo is good to know, as she likes getting in where the water is really shallow.

I think it will likely come down to actually testing the TI with both the Outback and Revo, and see which one she likes better. I predict the Revo will be the winner.

_________________
Mitch

2010 Tandem Island
2010 Revolution
Chesapeake Bay and Eastern Shore

My sailing blog
Our sailing videos

That I don't doubt! We're both really looking forward to the TI.

_________________
Mitch

2010 Tandem Island
2010 Revolution
Chesapeake Bay and Eastern Shore

My sailing blog
Our sailing videos