i11s ocean fishing outing

took advantage of good ocean conditions Sunday (NW3'/13s + SW1.5'/6s, wind 7-9mph) to go for my first i11s ocean bottom fishing outing, which turned into more of an ocean tour after an 8am 'powerboat hatch' turned Simpson Reef into a parking lot.

couple of boat details- seat in low position and I had the skeg installed plus the 'sailing rudder' from my Oasis. Skeg is great for paddling (note this early in the video), it also reduces wind push on the aft of the boat but slows steering response. Larger rudder helps but you cannot make quick turns with the skeg in. I have more testing to do before I decide the best configuration. Almost had to abort coming out of the bay when one of the springs that keep the drive locked in broke but I was able to use a bungee to hold it in the locked position so continued the outing.

launched 5:40am in light rain, headed to Simpson Reef (2miles) and fished off the end for a while, lots of bites but it was one of those days when they weren't sticking, must have missed 8 or 10 before I put a 2# black in the boat and when all the PBs showed up decided to head for Baltimore Rock (2.5miles) , more bites just in from there and put a black rock-tank in the boat, just under 4 pounds...PB radio chatter about some Biggs Orcas in the area hunting fur bags, I had noticed less than normal seal/sea lions around which makes sense now, saw a black dorsal in the distance but didn't get close to any of them...back to Sunset Bay just after 11am so 5.5hours on the water.

The boat was very stable and behaved the way I would expect an 11' board/kayak to in the mixed swell conditions, I was definitely not standing up and was more careful moving around on the deck. I could hit 5mph into the swells but above 4mph and I would get spray in the face, so that didn't make much sense....3mph all day.

https://youtu.be/nYwhXRQ7JsU

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

Thanks for the video.
It never looks as rough, the water, by camera, as much as when your on the water.
So what do you think? Would you rather fish out of your Oasis? What made you purchase the i11s over say a Revolution 11?

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Mark
Tandem Island- 2013
2 - Sports - 2014

the gopro wide angle plays tricks, like when I am slow trolling near Simpson Reef, it still looks far off but I was actually almost there.

forecast was spot on for the swells and wind, IMO. cheers, roger

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

hey Mark-

I started with a 2012 PA12, added my 2012 Oasis the next year and once it was rigged up, they were very similar in capabilities. When the i11s was introduced, it got my attention:

1- different transport options- one fold and it fits in a small SUV (quick to inflate also), packed in the case goes camping anytime I might want it along
2- very light, I can launch places that are difficult with the Oasis (or any of the rigid Hobie's) by carrying the inflated hull down to the water
3- I like the wide board design, sides are not needed, they just catch the wind.
4- I thought the VantageCTi seat might work on my Oasis, it does. Plus I got a brand new drive to go with a pair of V2 drives.

so I plan to use both kayaks regularly for different locations and conditions. the Oasis is my 'SUV', I'm not taking crab traps or my Labrador Retriever on the i11s...cheers, roger

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

Nice video!

Did you feel comfortable taking wave/swell broadside? From the clip it looks like you took a few on the side, and the boat just rolled over them w/o issue.

yeah no worries, I wasn't required to pay any attention to my orientation with the swells, just be careful when moving around on the boat (like going from the seat to kneeling on the front deck, and vice versa...)...

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

I've added a modified/chopped Sailing rudder to my i11s......thanks to RoadRunner for this mod. I chopped off the bottom part of the Large rudder to make it the same length as the standard size rudder. I also rounded the edges a bit so the major difference is the width. This works awesome for keeping the I11s on course in ocean & freshwater conditions while minimizing the drag that any deployed rudder creates. I don't see the need for the extra length that the sailing rudder adds as the i11s isn't factory compatible with the sail kit. But that extra width makes the i11s track extremely well with noticeably less tiller input.

oh, & regarding swell/wind wave actions effect on the i11s......I can really feel the difference between this inflatable & a regular hard polyethylene kayak. The inflatable chambers really dampen & smooth out the ride. Definitely getting sprayed in the face while heading into the wind. But I'm also feeling a lot less wind drag due to the zero profile of the 'hull'.

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2016 Hobie i11s
2017 Hobie Revo 13

Well took it out today in some chop, no ocean swells but felt perfectly stable rolling over the chop sideways/backways/every which way. Even caught a keeper fluke!

Short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_R62RDWWpw