newbie - scaring myself OUT of buying an AI. Help!

I've had my TI sitting on the cradles with a milk crate at each end for several years now with no problem. Mark Miller suggested this when I first got it and works well.
I average taking it out about 3-4 time a week, walking it over the the bay on the same cradles, then bringing it back to store on my patio. I've never dealt with a better company than Hobie!

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I bought my TI last August and am absolutely in love with it. I've posted some problems I ran into with the akas coming out. The reason they came out is the reason for many of the other posts on problems - because these boats are so highly capable, many of us do things with our Hobies that we would NEVER do with other kayaks (if you can even call it that). My issues came about from taking the Hobie offshore diving in 2 ft seas.
Another thing I would say - for almost every issue out there, someone has come up with a simple fix (which is where this forum shines). Also, for my issue, my Hobie dealer gladly and without question replaced my part under warranty and I was out sailing in no time.

To get a more balanced sense, look at some of the posts and videos of people taking their AIs and TIs out on day trips, fishing adventures, and long overnight excursions. People even sleep overnight on them.

There are some hardening tips posted here that I would recommend heeding if you are going to push the capabilities of your boat. But that would be true of just about any recreational equipment.

I can't speak for the other posters here, but I'm certainly not a paid spokesperson for Hobie. They just made a sailing kayak that is 100% fun, largely reliable, and engineered to be simple to operate and highly capable. I doubt very seriously you will regret your purchase.

Oh - one last thing - my TI is sitting on my front porch (much to my wife's dismay) in central west Georgia (USA), and I've had no problems with the hull deforming. Like any plastic boat, pressure and weight points need to be distributed, especially when it's hot.

Enjoy!

I wouldn't let any of these issues scare you away from these great boats. We had a fantastic time on the boats this weekend. Pedaled across the bay early in light/no wind to look for blue crab for a few hours and then sailed when the seabreeze came up to 15+ to watch a Flying Scot regatta. Perfect day!

I have a 2007. The rudder is no good above 10 knots, it lifts and you can only go down wind. My 25 cent solution was to bolt it down at launch. Sheared a plastic pin after that. Now i use a 3/8" steel bolt as a pin. Yes, I know the pin is supposed to be a failure point, I don't care, (at all). The chances of the rear end ripping off the back of my AI are as low as my belief it the tooth fairy.

I've snapped the padeye that holds the sheet block at the stern, (used the one at the bow to repair), I ripped a hole in the clear part of the sail, (repaired with sail tape), I've dragged it up concrete ramps with the Mirage drive still in, (still works fine). I've filled an ama (or aka - whatever the hell it's called) with 30 lbs of water due to a leak at the point where the aka, (or ama, or whatever the hell it's called, attaches to the ama, (or aka or whatever the hell it's called).

I have pissed on/(censored) on/torched/grounded/beached/dropped/slammed/and smashed my into and onto every solid structure known to man.

It still works just fine.

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2007 AI - starting to fall apart

Ditto my 2008, and I'm about to sell it after all these years for only $500 less than I payed for it.
(The mast collar did come unstuck in the first year but I just Epoxied it back on without squealing to my Dealer, otherwise nothing.)

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Fair Skies, Max.

I love my Island! It's a 2011 I bought used 2 years ago. I Use it 3 to 4 times a week on all the different lakes around Omaha. I have sailed it down the Missouri River, and run it stripped in narrow feeder streams. Its tough, its reliabale, and its the most fun boat I have ever owner, and I used to race Catamarans on the MS Gulf Coast.
Pull the trigger, buy it. You too will love it.

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Crazy Joe
Captain of the LIC. Landlocked Island Club, Omaha Ne.

2016 Tandem Island on a Trailex Aluminum trailer being towed by a
Triumph Scrambler Motorcycle..