Hi, all! I'm new to this forum, but something of an "old salt" in paddle and sail activities in central FL where I live. I'm considering the purchase of a Hobie Adventure Island sailing kayak. I'm intrigued by its versatility as described by the owners here - a single craft that all in one glorious day could be paddled, pedaled, sailed, and fished from! I'm trying to find a way to actually try one out and get the first-hand experience (speed, stability, maneuverability, etc.). To that end I am thinking about making the drive to Tampa one of these days to do a day-rental of one from The Tackle Shack. (Did anyone else do this before buying, BTW?)
Assuming I like the AI, the remaining thing I have to work out is how to store and transport it. I currently own a trailer outfitted with a cradle to carry a Seitech dolly (I use it to transport a Precision Sailcraft Megabyte, a racing dinghy similar to a Laser).
http://www.castlecraft.com/seitech_dolly.htmTherefore, I'm wondering if I could just buy another Seitech dolly, modify it to carry the AI, and then simply use my existing trailer to transport and deploy either the Megabyte or the AI as the occasion calls for it. A dolly is a lot less expensive than a second trailer! So my question is: Has anyone else used a Seitech dolly to store or transport an AI, fully assembled with the amas attached? Would the dolly need to be modified (e.g., with the Hobie AI-specific cradles) to give the AI the support it needs? I tried asking Hobie support this question, and they responded with a somewhat noncommittal, "Trailering and storing an Island fully assembled should be no problem as long as the main hull and the amas are fully supported.". This leads me to believe that they may not have firsthand experience with using a Seitech dolly on an AI, so I'm posting the same question to the forum in hopes of finding someone who does.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I appreciate any advice folks can offer.
-- Blaik