3 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

I wish.  Every body of water I fish contains long runs that can exceed 30 miles.  Then there’s the weather and big bodies of water.  I can’t imagine getting caught 15 miles off shore on lake St Clair and have a storm roll in.  Or being 10+ miles up or down river in the Rappahonock or Potomac rivers in a storm.  Often we have to make those long runs to find fish.  

That's the biggest drawback of a kayak. When it comes to tournament fishing, that's why it's important to be able to load and unload quickly at the dock so you can drive to another ramp. If there are enough ramps on the lack you can usually hit a spot, load up, and drive to another spot. But it's not great when your fishing spot is 5-6 miles away from the nearest ramp and it turns out to be a dud that day.

 

I'd never fish miles off shore on my kayak. Too many risks. But if you're on a boat and not paying attention to the weather it's just as risky out there.

 

I got hit with a popup storm one time and I took shelter under someone's covered boat dock.

15 minutes ago, Kayak Koz said:

I'd never fish miles off shore on my kayak. Too many risks.

 

I was just going to say.  There can't be too many yaks willing or able to reach that distance on a big body of water.  And if there are, they aren't very smart.

 

The part about loading up a yak, driving to another portion, and re-launching adds a consideration dimension to those tourneys.  I have to imagine it consumes valuable fishing time.

16 hours ago, gim said:

Cost of ownership is also highly dependent on the type of boat too. Heavier glass boats suck up a lot more fuel. They have bigger motors and are heavier, often requiring tandem axle trailers. And since the value is higher, insurance is too.

 

Yeah, I think I'm on the lucky side of the equation here.  I'm still in my first year so can't speak to total costs yet but I've been fishing it since April and haven't gone through 6 gallons of gas yet so...  

8 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

 

Yeah, I think I'm on the lucky side of the equation here.  I'm still in my first year so can't speak to total costs yet but I've been fishing it since April and haven't gone through 6 gallons of gas yet so...  

 

The amount of fuel I use in my boat each season is pretty minimal by comparison to usage in the truck hauling it around.  It's too bad fuel savings from a 4-stroke outboard can't be the same in a truck.  lol

1 hour ago, gim said:

The part about loading up a yak, driving to another portion, and re-launching adds a consideration dimension to those tourneys.  I have to imagine it consumes valuable fishing time.

 

So does motoring to another part of the lake in a boat. We've seen the Elite guys launch and make 60-90 minute runs to a spot and then they have to be back to the dock for weigh in.

 

The beauty of kayak tournaments is that depending upon the lake we can have dozens and dozens of ramps to choose from. We also don't have to be at the dock at lines out. In a boating tournament you get one ramp and that's it.

 

If I jump to another ramp I'm not pulling anything out of the kayak. I'll pop the motor out as well as my livescope pole and lay my rods down on the deck. When I get to the new ramp I set the motor back in and I'll set my rods back in their holders while I'm motoring to my next spot. I could leave the rods tied in their holders, but I'm always afraid of that rogue, low hanging tree branch.

 

That being said, the speed of boats is a huge advantage over kayaks. But there are ways we can make up for that on some lakes with our kayaks.

2 hours ago, gim said:

 

The amount of fuel I use in my boat each season is pretty minimal by comparison to usage in the truck hauling it around.  It's too bad fuel savings from a 4-stroke outboard can't be the same in a truck.  lol

 

Or imagine what a truck would be if it was a 2-stroke!