100 Boats In 100 Days: Day 37

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Day 37 - Seda 'Ikkuma 15'

I was joined by my 15 year old tandem rolling buddy Otto and his dad Larry to guide a group of singles club folks around the bay. We were expecting a group of about 38 people but apparently there was a social gathering the night before at which many folks "over indulged" and were unable to crawl out of bed this morning. The twelve people that did arrive were a fun group and consolation to me getting to the dock at 6:00 AM in order to have all the needed boats (all 38 of them) laid out and ready to go before the big group was supposed to arrive. Our fault for not getting payment upfront I guess. Otto is going to be working for us this summer and I'm sure will be a great addition to the team. Today's trip was a sort of training run for him and he did a great job. Larry (Otto's dad and driver until next fall) did most of the steering up front leaving Otto and I free to sort out any problems with the rest of the group. The smaller group size gave me time to coach Otto on some of the finer points of route planning on the bay with groups. The singles club was going to be having a reception on one of the paddle wheelers parked behind the Bahia Resort so we stopped there and took a group photo from the water.

The Ikuma 15 was a great choice for this trip being very stable and comfortable to paddle. It's maneuverability allowed me to work around the boats in the group to mingle a bit. The boat's surprising speed (for a 15 foot boat) was useful for zipping around to shuffle in any guest that wandered a bit too far into the boating lanes. The Ikkuma 15 is a great day touring boat that will work well for a wide range of body sizes. Like the 17 foot version, the Ikkuma 15 tracks very well and can still carve nice turns when on edge.

Ikkuma 15 Review

Manufacturer = Seda
Brand = Seda
Model = Ikkuma 15
Type = Touring
Material = Fiberglass
Length = 15'-0"
Width = 22"
Weight = 44 lbs.

Location = Mission Bay - Singles club tour
Time = 9:00 AM
Distance = About 3.5 miles
Duration = 2:00 hours
Avg. Speed = N/A
Conditions = Sunny and nice

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What's this all about

I was inspired by a Southern California paddler, Mark Sanders, who last year managed to paddle one hundred days in one calendar year. Paddling an average of almost two days a week is quite a feet for the average person that has to maneuver around work and family schedules to find the time to paddle, and I was impressed. Late last year as Mark’s paddle reports number 94, 95, 96… came in on the CKF club e-mail list I got to thinking that because I live so close to the water and as a instructor/guide at Aqua Adventures I have access to an entire fleet of kayaks, canoes, and other paddle craft, there is no excuse for me to not paddle almost every day. So, on January first of this year I set out to paddle something every day. Not necessarily always a kayak, because of the nature of our fleet we have open canoes, surf skis, and paddle boards available too. I figured it’d be good to mix it up on a different craft now and then to broaden my skill level in those areas, and just to get a little variety. To keep myself honest I set a minimum time limit of one hour to be sure that I couldn’t just dip a blade and call it a day. By mid March I had only missed five days in the year and was on track to finish my first hundred days within a month.

As I paddled up to our dock one morning before our Southwest Kayak Symposium I eyed the huge fleet of boats and boards that we have pondering what an enormous chore it is to keep all of those boats floating, much less in top operating condition. Then a thought struck me that I could paddle a different boat every day for almost a hundred days just from what we have on the dock. A quick count from water level gave me an estimate of about 85 boats in our fleet of rental/demo equipment. Add a half dozen more demo boats in the store we already have about 90 boats that a person could paddle. After thinking about it for a bit my plan was hatched to try to do just that. – Paddle 100 boats in 100 days -- To add to the challenge I want to rule out any duplicate models of boats we have, meaning that I will be paddling 100 completely different boats (brand, model, material, etc.) during the 100 day challenge.

With so many boats in our fleet it’s a constant challenge to familiarize myself with the specs and performance of each boat. With experience one can predict what a boat will be like by looking at it but nothing compares to putting your butt in the seat and giving it a go. Throughout this endeavor I will be taking note of my experiences in each boat and sharing that info on this blog, kind of a mini review. Before anyone pays too much attention to my reviews they should remember that this is FAR from a scientific study. I won’t be paddling the same course in the same conditions to allow for a truly head to head comparison of each boat. More importantly, because not every boat is designed to fit me (height, weight, strength, experience, etc.) not every boat will perform as it might for a person that is the appropriate size and skill level. The truth remains that nothing, absolutely nothing, can take the place of paddling a boat for yourself. So, take my reviews for what they are (my personal experience and opinion) and use that to gain just a little more info about these boats, then get out on the water and give them a try for yourself. If you have tried out a boat I mention in this endeavor please feel free to share your experience with me via this blog.

100 Boats In 100 Days

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Day 37 - Seda 'Ikkuma 15'

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What's this all about

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