Hobie Oasis tandem in solo mode

I tried out my Hobie Oasis this past weekend in solo mode, and I thought I would pass along a couple of comments.

I filled up an old 5 gallon plastic gas can with water and put it up in the front - it fit almost like it was designed for it. I put the plastic drive plug in, and strapped down the 2nd Mirage drive up there. The bow was touching the water all the way to the front, so that amount of ballast was just about perfect. (For reference, I weigh about 210 lbs.)

The Oasis pedaled just as well solo as double, and also paddled fine. Come the end of the day, I was easily able to outdistance my buddy in his Tarpon 140. The extra ballast weight was not a liability. I really liked having the front cockpit area free for storage. My buddy's yak has a huge rear deck, while my rear deck barely has room for a milk crate. But with an empty front cockpit, my front "deck well" is every bit as large as his rear well, and more accessible, since it is front of me. I was able to "crab walk" on the rails over the top of the pedals to access anything up front. The water was calm, so in worse conditions pulling the drive may be advisable to get up front, but that is relatively easy.

Loading the Oasis by myself is easy, too. I rest the stern on some padding a few feet behind my car, with the yak at a right angle to the car, and then pick up the bow and swing it around and put it up on the car rack. I then pick up the stern and shove the yak forward. No problem at all. I put my yak on the rack bottom side down.  It slides on the bottom much better than on the gunwales. Hobie says to carry on a rack upside down, but I put two "rails" made of 1" PVC covered with polyethelene pipe insulation and 6' long under the yak. They fit in the bottom grooves and lift & support (just like a Playtex bra  ) the yak so it doesn't touch the rack. I figure this distributes the weight well enough to keep deformation from being a problem. Time will tell, I guess

Great review.  You should not have any issues transporting your oasis the right way up.  Just don't
 store it that way.

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thanks ndogg.

I've been storing the Oasis on its side since I got it, but I am getting the garage cleaned out and will soon have the sawhorses in there and the yak upside down on them.

Hi, thanks for the review. Makes me even more excited (if that's possible) to get mine! Could I ask what kind of vehicle you are loading it like that on to? Trying to figure out the most economical yet effective way to load and unload a 2 person kayak on an suv by myself.

Thanks!

 

So far, I have carried it on my Subaru wagon, and in the bed of my F150 with the tailgate down. I put it on the bars of the standard Subaru roof rack. The one trick I have - after I get the yak up on the rack, I put 6ft lengths of 1" PVC covered with pipe insulation between the rack and the yak. The pipe runs down the bottom grooves. This way, I can carry it right side up and dispense with the roll over maneuvers.

I just use the standard loading method - stern on the ground, lift the bow on the rack, lift the stern and push. The one problem is that the bow wants to slide to the low side of the rack. I have to be careful about parking on a level (side-to-side) location, and be careful to lift and push straight. I bought a new Ranger to replace the F150, and a ladder rack to go with it. I have yet to put the Oasis on it, but don't anticipate it being a lot harder. I will have to get it 18" higher, but the weight is not a problem, the general awkwardness of long length is the problem. The ladder rack has sides, so the bow won't be able to slide off to the side - that will be one plus to the Ranger over the Subaru.