Revolution 13 or Adventure?? Which is faster? pro's/ con's?

I'm new to the mirage, have driven one once for a few minutes, really liked it, and have heard nothing but great comments about them.

Looking at these two models, speed would be my top priority.

Not sure what the differences are between these two.

One is longer & slimer, same weight, so I would assume quicker.

Please let me know.

P.S. Its snowing up here, so can't got out and try them, and have found some that are on sale now.

I've owned both, and despite the fact that they are both made by the same manufacturer, they are vastly different boats.

If speed is your priority, go with the Adventure. It's a much faster boat. Both boats are very stable by kayak standards, but the Adventure has, what I like to call, a much more "lively feel". When you get going on the Adventure, and you crank the steering hard one way or the other, the boat will lean in like a motorboat. Not in a tippy way, just an aggressive sport boat type of way. The Revolution, we used to jokingly refer to as our barge. Don't let that nickname fool you. The Revolution is extremely maneuverable and very fun to use, but it's also very stable, and in that way, barge like. It stays level with the water no matter what you do. The Adventure will allow you to lean it a bit to one side or the other, in a very controlled manner. It's not going to tip unless you really really yank on it, but again, it just feels more lively.

If you want speed, get the Turbo fins. They're a nice upgrade that will allow you to go faster with less pedal strokes. My Adventure was actually an Adventure Island, and that big sailing rudder helped to make it turn just about as sharp as the shorter Revolution. (the sailing rudder is a very inexpensive upgrade)

Beyond that, the hull design of the Revolution is designed to go up and over waves, while the Adventure will cut through them. When sailing the Adventure, as the Adventure Island, this means that you get wet. But because of the length of the boat, when you're in kayak mode, even larger waves that crash over the bow, as it cuts through them, usually stay out of the seating area. You will notice that the larger waves coming from the side can crash over the Adventure a little bit easier than the Revolution. That's not a scary thing as both boats will stay upright easily, it's just that one boat is slightly more likely to give you a wet butt in rough waters.

I've been out in both boats in very rough water, as much as 6 foot waves, and had a blast. My wife preferred the rock solid stability of the Revolution. I preferred the speed, and lively feel of the Adventure. You can't go wrong with either.

Feel free to ask me any questions if you have any. We really enjoyed both boats.

(By the way... I'm a Toronto Guy too)

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I have the Revo 13 with turbo fins. I don`t know about the Adventure, but I use the sail to slow me down.

What augaug says! If you want speed, the Adventure with Turbofins is your boat. Great kayak, very quiet and smooth. The straight Adventure is about 10# than the AI version and slightly faster as a kayak.

The speed you get out of it will depend somewhat on how you tune and adjust the Mirage Drive and fins. You can find details using the search feature on the forum and reviewing the FAQ section.

The Adventure is the faster boat. It is also a lower and wetter boat than the Revo. If you think you may eventually buy the Hobie Sail kit, the Adventure is the superior sailboat with the addition of the dagger board.

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I have been looking for a report like this for some time Thanks ,but can anyone tell me what an Adventure is like to Paddle as far as speed goes comparing it with say the average sea kayak. Regards Choke

x3 on what augaug said - your best bet is to demo both and use your own sensations and perceptions as the feedback to guide you to your ultimate decision.

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2019 Hobie Outback | 2018 Hobie Compass | 2017 Hobie Revolution 13
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Paddle or Pedal? Paddling an Adventure can not be compared to a sea kayak. It's really an apples and oranges thing. I've owned a Dagger Magellan, a CD Storm and a Prijon Kodiak. All could paddle circles around an Adventure, but I sold them after buying my Hobie. I never used them after that!

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RE: All could paddle circles around them, I thought a Mirage was faster??

And if they faster, what made you never use them again, why do you like the mirage??

The keel on a Mirage Drive kayak is rounded, to allow the rudder to be able to turn the boat. If you compare Hobie's similar mirage drive, and paddle kayaks, you'll notice that the similar designs on the top side, differ in that the keel is much more pronounced on the paddle only kayaks.

So the real question about how an Adventure is to paddle, might matter less when you own one. You CAN paddle the Adventure, it does a fine job, but you need to keep the rudder down if you want the directional stability of a typical 16 foot kayak.

Having said that, when you put the turbo fins in, the Adventure turns into a higher performance kayak. I've routinely kept pace with sleek, fiberglass kayaks which are much narrower, and lighter than the Adventure, but you'll need to use the Mirage Drive system to do so.

Basically, if you have a Mirage Drive kayak, you're going to use the pedals 95% of the time. The boat is designed for that. It's not a 50/50 proposition, where you say, maybe today I'll paddle, but tomorrow I'll pedal. The boat's performance is far greater with the pedals in.

You can save a lot of money if you want a kayak that paddles better than an Adventure, but having said that, I vastly prefer the mirage drive to a paddle kayak. Performance, stability, and versatility of the Mirage Drive system, make for a better kayak in my opinion.

Now if you want to spend some time paddling around for fun. The kayak is fine for that, you'll enjoy yourself. You'll just lose speed, and have to concentrate on smooth and accurate paddle strokes to move in a straight line. Paddling form matters on the Adventure because the boat isn't going to correct your incorrect movements. It will rotate just a little with every incorrect paddle movement.

I've paddled a couple of kilometers (just over a mile, maybe a mile and a half) over a lake with lots of reeds. There was just too much vegetation to use the mirage drive, and I was never sure where the lake would become too shallow. It worked fine. But probably the best way to describe it, was that it was like dropping a Volkswagen engine in a Porsche. Works fine, nobody would complain if they had to use it that way, but when you're used to the Porsche, you wonder why anybody would want to drive the VW.

Hope that helps. (sorry it's so wordy)

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Thanks for all that info I am planning a long down river (flat water) trip and would want to paddle some of the time and would need to rest my legs sometimes

I also agree with augaug about everything he said. Just want to add a thing about paddle vs pedal. There is not only a difference in speed. There is also a big difference in physical effort/mile. In other words, your distance range.

Good to keep in mind when crossing big open waters, if your Mirage Drive breaks, you have to recalculate time at sea. There is no problem pedaling against relatively hard wind (and in choppy conditions) but it turns to a completely different challenge if you have to use the paddle.

thomas

Yeah! What he said. Great point!

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