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PostPosted: Fri Oct 20, 2017 9:15 am 
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Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 9:08 am
Posts: 4
Can any provide any information on the performance of using the sail kit with the i9? I'm considering getting one but the only review I could find on the performance of an i9 with sail was not good. And if really isn't good, I don't want to invest $400+ on equipment I will never use. Any real world/usage opinions would be GREATLY appreciated...


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PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 12:58 pm 
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Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 9:08 am
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...my expectations are not high; i know it's not gonna be swift sailing like a real boat or even a hard shell, i just want to know if it's going to be a FAIL. the review i read was off the austin kayak store site on one man's experience using an i9 with the sail, and it read like a total fail. but that's only 1 person's experience and opinion and i need more before i make a purchase. if i had the i12 there would be no hesitation but i got the i9...

i do have turbo fins and an oversize rudder (because the combo is a vast improvement over stock)...it would just be nice to have a little of the sailing experience available as an water sport option (as i use the i9 primarily for kayaking and kayak fishing). but like you said, there are few posts about the i9, and near nothing about sailing an i9. perhaps there is a real reason for that?


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PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 11:13 pm 
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Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2005 10:46 pm
Posts: 3017
Location: Escondido
The i-9 is my favorite inflatable, and sailing it, IMO, is fun and relatively easy. The inflatables tend to have more weather helm than the plastic Hobies, but you can mitigate most of that with your large rudder and raking your sail forward. In light wind it's not an issue anyway. On a broad reach or running, you can slip an extra batton in the foot seam to form a "boombat" that will give the sail better shape. I'll try to post a picture of it next week.

Here's a brief sailing review from a few years back:

"The boat is so small, the Hobie sail finally looks proportional! Sailing is a blast! The wind picked up and was gusting to about 20 MPH. The boat never felt unstable -- the sail just heeled over by itself (hull flex) to dump wind. The boat got up to 4.4 MPH without any help from the fins. The ride was much drier than with the standard boats. Even with the mast raked forward and the large sailing rudder there was a significant weather helm with high wind -- at times hard to control. The boat tracked surprisingly well beating into the wind with Turbofins serving as daggerboards."

Daft really enjoys his sail and I think you will find it not only fin, but hybrid propulsion (pedaling and sailiing) will scoot you around pretty well! 8)


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 4:08 pm 
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Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 9:08 am
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Thank you for your opinion; it's enough for me to decide that I will get a sail kit for my i9...


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