Re: Sea Island Sport

Posted by George K on Dec 5, 2007

Matt,

I had absolutely no use for sit-on-top kayaks until I built the Sea Island. Don't get me wrong, I still loath the rotomolded sot's but absolutely love the SIS. I built the BETA version for CLC and thoroughly enjoyed the build. It really is amazing what Nick Schade can do with plywood and the CLC kit is equally impressive. Everything fits together darned near perfectly, all the holes are pre-drilled and they even match up! There are registration holes for aligning hatch sills, bulkheads and the scupper and templates to tell you where the hatches and hatch stiffeners go. I honestly think you can build the boat without a tape measure. I've built 6 different CLC designs and this was a very enjoyable build from start to finish.

Now about handling: I still can't believe what a pleasure this thing is to paddle. Stable enough for me to stand up paddle, but I don't know if you could stand up fish. It tracks well, very little weathercocking, if any, and has excellent speed for a fairly wide kayak. The only complaint I've ever had from anybody who has paddled it is that it tracks too well. This can be overcome by leaned turns. And the Sea Air seat is adjustable three ways and is very comfortable for long paddles.

Okay, sounds like an infomercial for the thing but it really is an amazing SOT. And honest, Mr. Harris doesn't pay me to review his boats!

Hope this helps.

George K

In Response to: Sea Island Sport by Matt B on Dec 5, 2007

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