advice on which hobie island i should buy.

live in South Florida and am looking to buy a used Hobie Island.

Available choices right now on craigslist, etc. are:

1. 2014 island with tramps and trailer- $3,500 asking price. Owner says doesn't have time for me to try it out. Can look and then make decision. I looked at it and am concerned because inside the hull there was some water- maybe 3-4 cups of water. He said it is normal for the Island kayak. I am not sure especially since he also told me recently replaced one of the mirage drive fins because it broke. I am wondering if maybe he cracked the hull- I didn't see any cracks but I am not an expert at this.

2. 2016 Island with tramps. $5,300- not sure if I can try it out.

3. 2018 Island with tramps and trailer- $6,777 asking price. I think the owner said he will let me try it out.

I haven't sailed in over 45 years. Became interested in the Island because looking for a tandem kayak for my husband and I. I have a Revolution 13 and love its speed. From the different posts on this forum, it appears that the Island goes even faster, even if used solely as a kayak. I am leaning towards the 2014 mainly because it is so much less expensive and I want to make sure my husband and I will use it often before we put down a bigger chunk of change. Will also have to buy an extra floating dock piece because my plan is to store and launch the island on our floating dock. The float dock is attached to a wooden dock. We are across the street from the intercoastal. (Want to store the thing on our floating dock so it makes it easier for us to use).

Would greatly appreciate your thoughts- both on the islands as well as the storage and launching.

Thank you,

Michele

The pre-2015 Adventure Island used in stand-alone kayak mode was indeed Hobie's fastest pedal kayak. The 2015+ have a larger, heavier hull and are not as fast under pure pedal power as the earlier models. If you want boat to use as a stand-alone kayak for speed, I'd look for a pre-2015 model.

A person that is serious about selling a boat should be willing to at least go with you and put it in the water to your satisfaction. Otherwise you have no recourse if you buy a boat and it turns out to be damaged in some manner. I do understand that many sellers do not have time to accommodate every buyer request about "trying it out." The boats are popular and there seem to be more buyers than sellers. Just be careful whatever you do and really give the boat a good looking over.