Thursday, October 08, 2009

Backbone

I've been out in my inflatables a lot these past months! If you've been reading Kayak Yak, you've seen photos of the inflatable kayaks in our little fleet of boats. They're from Advanced Elements, and you can check them out online at http://advancedelements.com/

These kayaks are sold locally through Pacifica Paddlesports in Brentwood Bay and Sidney, BC. I bought the Dragonfly from West Marine (who call it a Skedaddle), and have been raving about it ever since. The new version of this versatile little rec boat is called the Lagoon -- check it out! The only thing this kayak lacks is a full-length keel, so some users have been known to put a broomstick inside the hull, under the floor.
The Lagoon's big brother boats do have an option for a keel, though. It's called a Backbone. It's a take-apart bar with two shovel-shaped ends that fits comfortably inside the hull and under the floor. As I've mentioned before, there are different lengths for Backbones made to fit the Lagoon2, the AdvancedFrame, the Expedition, and the AdvancedFrame Convertible.
The recent gift from Lee of a Backbone has really been welcome. I've tried it a couple of times now, and have realized something important about Advanced Elements kayaks -- I'm pretty darned small and light compared to their designs. When these boats are listed as carrying up to, say, 250 pounds, that means that a husky fisherman, tackle box, cooler and a depth finder or somedamnsuch. A 160-pound paddler really needs some heavy gear inside the Expedition, and should only benefit from adding a few gear bags or water bottles.
Installing the Backbone inside my Expedition means that the kayak feels more rigid. It doesn't ripple as much, front to back, during its supple ride across the top of little waves. As well, I sit at least an inch or more higher than without the Backbone. There are some reviews on the discussion forum at http://advancedelements.com/ that praise the feeling of sitting higher. I didn't like that feeling any more than riding without the Backbone. But now I understand why some paddlers like sitting higher: they're used to fishing out of sit-on-top kayaks.
I'm not. I'm used to sitting inside a hardshell kayak. With my blue Old Town Adventure kayak, I even got Bernie to take out the seat and put in a Necky foam seat that glued directly to the inside of the hull. But I don't mind this ride, sitting higher with the Backbone. It's not as if it can be felt under the inflatable floor. What I can feel is the Expedition around me as a more rigid frame. It's easier to press against the footrest bar, and that makes paddling a full-body experience instead of just flailing with my arms. That's terrific!
The extra weight of the Backbone isn't a big problem for me. When I want a very light, portable boat, I use the little 8'4" Dragonfly anyway. But where a 13-foot kayak is the right choice, it's worth bringing along the Backbone. It's less work and more fun to paddle with it, and the Expedition glides better.
What makes these inflatables work for me is not just that I can carry them on the bus or stuff them into a car trunk -- though the portable quality is a big plus. What works for me is that paddling these inflatables feels like what I'm looking for most of the time when paddling any kind of kayak. These aren't stiff toy dinghies or pool toys. And as our paddle group keeps saying, "Whatever gets you on the water."

3 comments:

  1. With respect to your thoughts on kayaks' carrying capacities, my son Blake thinks we should use kayaks that suit our physical sizes - thus, given your size, Paula, perhaps a 10'5" Advanced Frame (with BackBone, of course) would be better than the 13' Expedition, which is designed to carry up to 450 lbs. I know one of your Victoria pals has the 10'5" set-up, and it would be interesting to hear your comments on how you like it. Don Bruchet at Ecomarine here on the Mainland also is a stickler for putting people into the appropriate-sized 'yak: he wants me to pick up one of his 18' Deltas because of my unsylph-like frame. I still enjoy my Skedaddle, however, and use it as my "traveling" kayak - it just came back from three weeks on lakes and rivers between here and SoCal and the Salton Sea. Even that little one is rated to hold up to 250 lbs (whew!- I made the cut).

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  2. Hi,

    My name is Paula too LOL, but love my AdvanceElements Convert. It is awesome. I have taken it out on the ocean and lakes. I love it...Yes it is a heavy but performs well even in open ocean. I have taken it on trips to the Broken Islands, it handled well infact I think it is more stable then a hard kayak. I have had it a couple of years and it is awesome.

    Only problem is I had lost my seats...not sure where to order them from locally. I will have to find local suppliers.

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  3. Hi to another Paula!
    If you're looking to buy seats for your Convertible, the best place is ordering them directly from advancedelements.com -- there are good reports from satisfied customers on their website's community forum. You might be able to ask Peter at Pacifica Paddlesports in Brentwood Bay to order the seats for you.
    Another option is ordering the inflatable lumbar seat used in the Expedition, which you can do through airkayaks.com I found the seats on the page http://airkayaks.com/accessories.html
    Good luck!
    We'll have to paddle together this summer sometime.

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