At 12:08 AM 10/8/00 -0700, Doug Lloyd wrote: > >I think kayaking can be done on the cheap, if you want it badly enough. >You just got to shop carefully. A used plastic boat, second hand paddles >from an outfitters end of season sale, etc, all can cut overall >investment signifigantly. I've even seen wet suit farmer johns in the > >I bet there are lurkers on this list who haven't the money for a fancy >new boat and all the latest paraphernalia. I say, get going, go cheap, >but do go soon. Do buy new flares, however. I agree wholeheartedly, and frankly, this is the time of year to do it. I also don't have a lot of money, and frankly tend to be a bit of a bottom feeder when it comes to kayaks and gear. The only reason I spent all the money I did on my new Nimbus Telkwa last spring was that two or three things had come together to leave me with a little extra cash, and I figured I'd better spend it on something important, rather than waste the money on something like a new computer. But I was looking over the web page from the dealer where I got the boat, and there are boats for sale there, right now, that are half the price they were this spring! Used boats, demo boats, rental boats -- the new stuff is still pretty high, although that is discounted, too. And, this time of year, people will be selling boats rather than having to store them through the winter. And, if you're really on the cheap and are a tool type person, think about building your own boat. Stitch and glue boats can be brought in around $500 (US), and will turn some heads. Skin on frame boats can be made for half that. I may build one for the fun of it this winter, and just to listen to my wife gripe about what I want with yet another boat. While it's possible to spend a ton of money on gear, and some of that gear may be a necessity, it's possible to overdo it on the extra gear and (dare I say it?) safety equipment. You have to do a little logical thinking about safety equipment and what it's used for, and how it could be used. For instance, there are people on this list that never put a paddle to water without their VHF radio running. That's well and good for where they are. For me, a VHF would be a useless waste of money. I mostly paddle inland waters, and no one carries VHF, or even has one on. A distress call on Marine VHF in 90% of the places I paddled this year would be sent into dead air. There'd be no one to respond. Some of the stuff is worth it -- but, for someone trying to do this on a budget, get the bottom-line basics, and add on as time and money become available. Shop used stuff, swap meets. Make some stuff. Keep an eye open for bargains. I've said before -- while the cost can be a little daunting up front, when you stop and think about it, this sport really isn't that expensive compared to some things you could do. This spring, on a kayaking trip while I was mulling the cost of buying a new boat, two friends and I ran into a guy with a brand new bass boat. The cost was $18,000 -- enough to buy all three of our kayaks three times over. He maybe will use it two dozen times a year. Each of our kayaks has had many times the use over the year. On a cost per hour basis, this really is a pretty cheap activity. -- Wes *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sun Oct 08 2000 - 12:36:06 PDT
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