Cobra Kayaks

*** New Feature ***
Click on any thumbnail to open pic in your browser.. (way better than hosting)

So there I was down at the harbor this weekend doing the usual laps around the marina on the mountain bike. Didn’t see Joe out there anywhere and figured him to be out at sea on his kayak as his car was in the lot with racks attached so I just kept pedaling. Took a break over by the Sheriff’s station and when 7:45am had rolled around and the Catalina Express had put out for Catalina Island I figured I’d head back to Mother’s Beach and help him hoist his tub back on the car. Sure enough he’s pulling around the bend as I arrive and as I pull up to the parking area I notice a vehicle backing into an open spot.

Turns out to be the Cobra Factory truck and it’s loaded up with yaks. I hit the facilities and dispense of the morning coffee and water (too much information) and then meander over to the Cobra rig to see what’s going on.

First boat that gets pulled is what I would term a “Yak of a different color” and immediately has sparked my interest. Kind of an olive color with a nice black speckled finish. So I’m looking it over and then I’m greeted by none other than Ric “Rickshaw” Hawthorne of Cobra Kayaks. I’d never met Ric but knew of him from postings on various message boards relating to kayaks. He’s been in the industry for some time now and has recently made a transition from another manufacturer’s employ to accept a position as the Director of Marketing, Promotions and Advertising for Cobra. Really nice guy with a wealth of information regarding the boats.

I’m still in awe of this first boat the crew has unloaded and think hey, I have to go get Joe, get his boat on the car and drag him over here to see this thing. I headed over to the parking lot where Joe had already begun the teardown and cleanup ritual and started jawing at him about Cobra being on site. Joe stated that he too had noticed the truck and had every intention of “checking things out” before heading for home. So we finished up the wipe down and strapped his Navigator to the car and walked back over to the staging area where the kayaks were being displayed.

The boat we were obsessing over turned out to be the re-designed (Ric’s doing) Cobra Navigator-XF. Same basic specs but with a few changes to the molds. The tank well has a preformed circular depression to accommodate a bait tank, the foot wells now have a channel along the inside edge which promotes self draining into the existing scupper holes, and the front rails are much flatter as well as those just behind the seat well. This retooling made it possible to incorporate, get this, 8 flush mount rod holders! This thing is gorgeous. Same boat as Joe’s, but with a little pizzaz….

Joe and I are pointing, touching, feeling, checking out every inch of this thing so Ric walks over and asks us if we have any questions. A very casual conversation ensues and Joe and I get a quick education on the design changes and learn quite a bit about the production process. Something I’ve always wondered about.

(Pictured)
Ric "Rickshaw" Hawthorne with his mutant Navigator-XF

I’m not sure how it happened exactly but before I know it Ric has a PFD and paddle whipped out and we’re walking this baby down to the water for a demo paddle. As fate would have it I just happened to have the camera on this particular morning and Joe was kind enough to stick around and shoot some pics of the launch and landing. I told him I was going to head over to “I” dock and see if our co-worker Jeff Bogert had made it down this morning as he has a nice Bayliner he likes to spend time with. So I launch and head out around the bend. The XF is very stable and after a little adjustment period for my technique I’m cruisin’ down the channel. The XF tracks pretty well even though it’s platform is a little wide compared to say the Tourer model, and I had no problems at all getting it up to speed.

I’m moving along at a pretty good pace. Had to maneuver around a Hobie with a line out by the island bridge (which was actually fun) and met a gal who was fishing the marina. Kept going and turned into Jeff’s slip aisle and headed down to the end. Jeff’s on the deck and notices a yak coming down the waterway and says to himself “Hey, that guys looks familiar”. He’s wiping down “Backlash” and generally enjoying the day. He’s checking out the Navigator at this point and just like everyone else notices the full array of rod holders. It’s pretty eye catching.

Couldn’t stay long as I knew the regular kayak fishermen would be back at Mother’s before long and though I could have cruised the harbor all day in that boat I was obligated to bring it back so Ric could show it off to the Pros. (Ric, bring 2 next time) Besides, Ric had my mountain bike as collateral.

More fun back at the landing. There was some sailing instruction going on so I had to pay attention getting back in. Great fun for me as I don’t get to go out all the time. Got past that little bit of traffic and started to pick up speed. The idea was to get at least half of the boat up on the beach. Nice soft landing with Joe there to snap off a couple of more pics.

Hauled the Navigator back up to the staging area and thanked Ric for the demo and taking the time to talk to us about its redesign and Cobra Kayaks in general. Kudos to Cobra for bringing this guy onboard and for making opportunities like this available to us all. If I ever have a place to store one of these I’ll definitely be picking one up.

Full photo album of my (and Joe’s) photos from the morning can be found here.

You can also checkout the corporate website at…..

Cobra Kayaks

All in all a great morning down by the sea.. the usual pedaling with a great little side excursion in the water. I envy all kayak owners…

-Scott