# Hobie Mirage Drive



## SkunkApe (Dec 9, 2006)

This won't be my last post re: yaks..so.....
Does anyone ever a problem navigating skinny water w/ the Hobie Mirage Drive. Bottoming out??


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## fingersandclaws (Oct 17, 2005)

I have the Hobie Revolution (and I'm sure RR will chime in as he has one), but in skinny water, i.e. less than 1 foot, you need to take out the drive (10 second operation tops). You can then paddle like any other yak. 

When launching or landing, I always take my drive out as I don't want to damage the fins, and since it only takes a couple seconds, not a big deal at all. Test drive one if you can.

BTW, the newer drives with the plastic sprockets were not tuned correctly. You need to loosen the cable tensioning nuts in order to get the full effect with the least amount of resistance.


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## Mullet Wrangler (Jul 4, 2003)

SkunkApe said:


> This won't be my last post re: yaks..so.....
> Does anyone ever a problem navigating skinny water w/ the Hobie Mirage Drive. Bottoming out??


I don't have peddle power, but my buddy does.

Bottom out? Not much. Slowed down by heavy grass? Yes, definitely.


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## Railroader (Apr 13, 2005)

SkunkApe said:


> This won't be my last post re: yaks..so.....
> Does anyone ever a problem navigating skinny water w/ the Hobie Mirage Drive. Bottoming out??



Mirage Drive presents NO problem...check THIS out. Works in grass, too. 

http://www.pierandsurf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38847


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## cygnus-x1 (Oct 12, 2005)

As a future "Mirage" owner this is an interesting thread. When you say "take the drive out" is this a disengagement from within the Yak or do you have to get out and remove it? If it can be done in 10 seconds it sounds like it can be done while in the Yak.


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## fishbait (Nov 11, 2005)

cygnus-x1 said:


> As a future "Mirage" owner this is an interesting thread. When you say "take the drive out" is this a disengagement from within the Yak or do you have to get out and remove it? If it can be done in 10 seconds it sounds like it can be done while in the Yak.


Yep, it's done from inside the yak.


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## Railroader (Apr 13, 2005)

cygnus-x1 said:


> As a future "Mirage" owner this is an interesting thread. When you say "take the drive out" is this a disengagement from within the Yak or do you have to get out and remove it? If it can be done in 10 seconds it sounds like it can be done while in the Yak.



The drive secures with two "Cam Bolts". No tools, and nothing to lose, or keep up with..

Also, 10 seconds is about accurate for an install/removal time. 

No reason to remove the drive during a trip until the final take out of the day.

For shallow ops paddling, or beaching, just push one peddle all the way foward, and hook the supplied bungee on the other. The fins fold flat against the bottom, and only stick down 3/4" below the hull. It's a complete non-issue.

A Hobie Mirage 'yak will do ANYTHING any of the others will do, but you can't PEDDLE any of them....


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## fingersandclaws (Oct 17, 2005)

So that's what that bungee is for!!!! Doh!!!!! Thanks RR.


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## SkunkApe (Dec 9, 2006)

*Waves*

So when lauching off the beach, i.e. yakking baits out or going after whatever in the surf line, how's the Hobie handle? I know it's not a surf yak, so what's the limit of swell/breaker's you'd consider safe?? I know how to read the water, i.e gettting the rips out where the waves are least peaked, but if you do get a wall of whitewater coming at you, are you toast, or can you point the bow into the whitewater and expect to make it through it. I've surfed alot and a duckdive is all it takes, but the yak ain't a surfboard Thanks for the responses!!

Matt


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## terpfan (May 30, 2002)

i'm buying a hobie in next few week, anyone tried the outfitter??? i need to get one for me and my wife.


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## Railroader (Apr 13, 2005)

Tandem 'yaks are generally considered to be "Divorce Causers"...There's no way to casually go out and enjoy the day, due to instability issues with two bodies leaning, moving, etc. Trying to fish two folks from a tandem would be a circus sideshow...:--| 

The common consensus is to buy two 'yaks and be done with it. I've never seen a post or write up ANYWHERE espressing how much two people enjoyed their tandem. 

Skunk-Ape...

I've never surf launched my Revolution, and I don't believe it'd be very good for the job. I've done 2' chop and the occaisional cargo ship wake, and never felt unsafe, but it's too big a boat to be surfin', in my opinion, mainly due to maneuverability issues...

That's why I bought the Malibu Mini-X.


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## fingersandclaws (Oct 17, 2005)

Terp,

Yeah, man, I was thinking the same thing so I could go out with my wife or kid. After careful consideration, I felt that taking the wife/kid would hinder both our experiences. If I wanted to fish longer or do other things, the kid might want to go home or the wife might want to go shopping 

I actually took my wife and kid out on Father's Day. I rented then a tandem SIK at the local lake, tied a line from my stern to their bow, and pulled then along. Kinda interesting, as I felt like I was going just as fast with them as without . . . it just took a little longer to get up to speed. Anyways, think hard about it, b/c the outfitter is one $$$$ yak and it would suck if you were dissappointed.


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## Mullet Wrangler (Jul 4, 2003)

Railroader said:


> Tandem 'yaks are generally considered to be "Divorce Causers"...There's no way to casually go out and enjoy the day, due to instability issues with two bodies leaning, moving, etc. Trying to fish two folks from a tandem would be a circus sideshow...:--|
> 
> The common consensus is to buy two 'yaks and be done with it. I've never seen a post or write up ANYWHERE espressing how much two people enjoyed their tandem.


I guess I'm bucking the trend then. My wife doesn't fish, but I like taking my sons out with me on my tandem. The only issue I have is they end up catching more fish than me because I still do most of the paddling while he wets the lines. But that's OK with me.


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## Railroader (Apr 13, 2005)

Mullet Wrangler said:


> I guess I'm bucking the trend then. My wife doesn't fish, but I like taking my sons out with me on my tandem. The only issue I have is they end up catching more fish than me because I still do most of the paddling while he wets the lines. But that's OK with me.


Chalk up ONE for the tandem... 

Bet it won't be long till the Son wants his own, though...


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## ccc6588 (Jun 20, 2003)

The more I use my Hobie Outback, the more I appreciate the beauty of the Mirage Drive. I don't mind paddling, but if your primary goal is fishing, the mirage drive is the way to go.

Trust me on this folk. It is well worth the extra bucks you pay. 

The mirage drive cannot be used for water less than 2 feet. So what?

This only affects me when I do my initial launch and when I land. When you launch, you have the mirage drive on the front part of the yak (stern or near where the drive gets mounted). You simply grab the paddle and get to an area above 2 feet and mount your peddle in about 10 seconds during launch. This is no exaggeration. When you land, you push your peddle (left or right will do) this gets the fins flush and parallel on the yak and not perpendicular. Then you simply land. I often land backwards and use my paddle for that and also for additional support. You have to be careful not to fall because you have been sitting on a yak all day and don't have a good sense of balance or don't realize that your leg muscles got some good workout.

The fins or flippers or whatever you want to call it is durable. I've hit bottom many times with no damage whatsoever. The hummingbird fishing buddy (wrist watch) fish/depth finder mostly cured that problem.

Using the mirage drive is truly is like riding a bike. You can peddle hard or peddle slow with about the same amount of effort.

The mirage drive has extended my range in a shorter amount of time. I could venture more areas as a result without the fear of determining whether the current is with me or against me. Regardless, you should always know the tide and whether the current is with you or against you when you get into yak fishing. You should also know the weather forcast and the tide. To give you the advantage of the Hobie, I was fishing Tuesday and it appeared that there might be a thunderstorm. From where I was in the past, I would have headed back to shore. But, with the Hobie and against current, I knew I would have no problems at all making it faster and easier. So I stayed and thankfully, no storm occurred only great fishing.

I do a lot of drift fishing, and many times peddle against the current to drift the hot spots over and over. With the paddle, I don't think I would have even thought about going against the swift currents.

Although you can't truly be hands free fishing given the wind and the current and having to steer to position yourself, it sure beats using a paddle to do the same thing. The paddle will get you wet every time unless you are some sort of an expert paddler. 

The bottom line is, I know I caught more fish because of the mirage drive and had my line in the water longer. 

It is also an ideal trolling yak. While you are cruising, you can have a lure out. I was doing this one day while heading back shore when I ran into a school of stripers.

I love my Hobie and the Mirage drive and it was worth every penny more than what I would have paid for a Wilderness Tarpon or any other conventional yak I was also considering.

It has made me look forward to yak fishing and I have gotten into better shape as a result. Man, I got sexy legs now.


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