The Ocean Kayak Big Game

Yes Jim, I'm sure it would look great with you in the seat.

So I haven't yet had a chance to test drive the BG.  The one in the picture is the derby prize and I didn't want to mess with it.  I got my own BG last Friday.  I took a newbie out on Saturday morning so I put him in it as it's more stable than my Prowler.  Needless to say, I completely forgot about testing it myself.   D'oh!  We'll see if I can get on it one evening this week.

-Allen

I'm curious.... Anyone else on this site try the OK BG Prowler yet?  I ended up purchasing it after trying out several kayaks and wanting the stability over the speed.  Actually it was a great manly internal struggle because I loved the speed of the Prowler 13 but it felt a bit tipsy and given my newness to kayaking I could not help but feel more secure in the Big Game.

After having it for several months I still really enjoy the stable and dry ride, however I seem to have this little voice in my head telling me it is going too slow on the water and is too heavy.  I will likely be keeping because I believe the wife would leave me if I told her I was selling it and buying a different one after 6 months!

Just wondered about other folks thoughts.

it is going too slow on the water and is too heavy.

I have yet to paddle this yak but that was the one thing I thought seemed a little detrimental to the design of this kayak. 70 lbs. bare is quite heavy. I've found over time that weight is pretty important to me. I mean, if you have a yak that's a hydrofoil on the water it wouldn't be that big of a deal to have to lug a heavier yak around. But if that yak was a bathtub in the water then it would really get to me. Right now I have the Outback and paddling that thing is a bathtub. When I paddle for a day and have to lug it to the car it's a pain in the a**. But after pedaling it is not too much of a chore. I also had the chance to paddle a Malibu Xfactor for a day and thought it  was almost a perfect balance of performance and weight.
Z

Z -

Thank you for the feedback.  I got a reply at La Jolla site and at least one guy there says it is obviously slower than the P15 but he did not relate to a sheet of plywood saying he could keep up with others when paddling.  That's my big drawback I don't have the experience paddling with others yet.

I don't really mind lugging the yak.  Most places I fishing it's a short carry or hand trailer to the shore and even after a day of fishing I can load it up.  Of course I am just loading it into the bed of my pickup so I'm not overheading it.

I'm sure time will tell and based on what most people talk about and how I feel I'm sure I'll "need" another yak in a year or two.  Than I can compare all I want!

The BG is a kayak where paddle selection is going to make a big difference as you have to work harder to get it going and to keep it going.  Let me relate a story.  I was paddling at Silver Lake last year with the girlfriend.  She likes to paddle the P15 so I was in the BG.  She also like to use the light, stiff fiberglass paddle and the other one I had grabbed was a cheapo paddle.  I couldn't keep pace with her without working really hard.  We switched paddles and I was then able to pace her better.

I don't know what paddle you use, but a paddle upgrade is cheaper than a kayak upgrade.

-Allen

Thank you Polepole.  I applied your earlier advice (when purchasing I requested info on paddle selection) and went with a Werner Shuna 230.  It seems to work well for me, but again I don't have much of a comparison.  I'll have to try that experiment someday also.

The Shuna is a good paddle.  You're no doubt getting about as much as you can from your paddle.

-Allen