hobie cat foot pedals

I stopped in at a local outdoor shop and looked at some of the new hobie cat kayaks. They have a foot pedal propulsion system that is a new gizmo to me.

A system of gears and pulleys transfers a back and forth pedal motion into two fin shaped occilating blades mounted below the hull. The whole system is about 20" long and mounted through a hole in the deck, it could be removed and replaced with a plug or mast step as desired. It was a slick little piece of engineering.

Is anyone familiar with this system? How much thrust can it develop compared to a standard paddle? The fin surface area and range of motion seemed awfully small compared to a regular paddle blade.

I saw a demo where two experianced paddlers were in a tandem hooked stern to stern with a Hobie peddle boat. They were doing a tug o war and the Hobie was dragging the tandem backwards. For info on the drive sysyem go to kayakfishingstuff.

The pedal drive system is called the Mirage Drive system, I think.
I hope to get one of those this year sometime. I first saw them being used around Maui...I saw a couple of kayaks cruising by at a pretty good clip, and then realized THEY WEREN'T PADDLING!! Cool!

A member of our fishing club has one of these, and I tried it out last year on a local reservoir. Works GREAT! What I like is that you can fish or troll by pedaling, using your hands free to work the rods (s). Should also work nice for the river!

i just bought two hobies, with the mirage drive, an outback, and a revolution. only had them on the water once so far, but plan to go again this weekend. the peddle system is great, hands free opertion, can fish and peddle at the same time. my reasoning for going with the peddles was that my leg muscles are bigger than my arms so i figured i would not fatigue as easily. this seemed to bear itself out. the one day we did get out was windy, 25 to 30 knots, but i was able to propell myself with very little effort. the only draw back is the water depth required to operate the mirage drive, (peddles). my guess is probably 18" of water ,plus or minus. the peddels can be locked in an upright position close to the hull, and you can use a paddle to propell yourself in shallow water.

I've also read that you can navigate shallower water by pedalling in shallower strokes, rather than the full pedalling motion.

Normally the only time I'd be in water that shallow (on purpose) would be during take-off or landing the boat. Or maybe in certain spots on the river. And like you said, the paddle is a great back-up.

If you go to the Hobie web site they have video of the mirage drive in action and the tug O war as well..It's what sold me on my outback.

I've been fishing out of a Hobie Outback for a few years. I love 'em. I've tried shorter/narrower kayaks and didn't feel stable (and didn't have room for my stuff like a net, ice chest, anchor, spare rod, etc).

See if a local shop offers test rides. They're a lot of fun. When price comparing vs. other kayaks remember to factor in things that Hobie includes that are options on some other models: gel pad seat, anchor kit, wheels, rod holders, anchor, etc.

They're not cheap but they're worth the cost in my book. I looked at the Revolution model but didn't see a good spot to add fly rod holders (the moulded-in holders are for spin rods).

I have a non peddle Hobie Quest with a rudder. My Quest is stable, pretty fast, and the layout is great. I had a OK Prowler 13 that was a good boat but my Quest is better.

I've been using the Hobie Outcase with the Mirage peddle system for about four years and it without a doubt the best personal watercraft I've ever used. It is super easy to pedal the kayak throught the water, extremely quiet and easy to steer. I can easily pass over logs etc. that are ~6inches or so beneath the surface. I'm extremely happy with my Hobbie ouback and would highly recommend it to anyone wanting a stable, quiet fishing craft, especailly for ponds and small lakes.

It's so quiet that I have actually glided up on sleeping ducks and turtles close enough to touch them.

If you do decide to get it, either get the kit with the wheels or you can make your own for about 20 bucks.

Jim Smith

Thwack,

Use A Piece Of Scedule 10, 1 1/4", Pvc Pipe With A Slot Cut In It For A Flyrod Holder On The Molded In Rod Holders. The 1 1/4" Pipe Will Slide Right Into The Rod Holder, And Most Fly Rod Handles Will Fit Inside The Pipe. Slot The Pipe So That The Reel Will Slide About 6" Past The End Of The Pipe. Casting And Spinning Rods Will Also Fit Into This Configuration. Have My Revo Rigged Like This And It Works Fine.