INSIDE OUT
LOOK MA, NO HANDS! PHOTO: VINCE PAQUOT
THE MIRAGE REVOLUTION 13
By Hobie Kayaks
I’m dreaming about penguins and hippos. And kayaking. When I awake, I wonder if the visions were an unconscious attempt to make sense of the uniquely equipped boat I had strapped to my roof rack the previous evening—Hobie’s Mirage Revolution 13. The popular do-it-all model in the Mirage sit-on-top line, the Revolu- tion 13 can be propelled with either paddle or pedals thanks to Hobie’s ingenious MirageDrive. Taking engineering cues from the graceful underwater flight of penguins, the MirageDrive’s flexible hydrofoil fins scissor the water with each leisurely push of the pedals, propelling the kayak at cruising speeds matching those of a sprinting paddler. Using your legs has other advantages as well: think less effort, Jillian Michaels quads, and leaving your hands free to photograph, cast or snack. It’s also a great option for paddlers who suffer from upper
60 | ADVENTURE KAYAK
body or back strain—switch from paddle to pedals to use an entirely different muscle group while giving your back a break.
Being a pedal boat neophyte, I worried about maneuvering while pedaling and steering with the small hand lever that controls the Revolution’s rudder. The lake still looked distinctly Antarctic (remember the lon-
Hobie Mirage Revolution 13
Length: 13 ft 5 in Width: 28.5 in Weight: 82.8 lbs Max Capacity: 350 lbs Price: $1,999
www.hobiekayaks.com
gest winter ever?), and I hoped to steer my polyethylene penguin well clear of the ice shelves. I needn’t have fretted. While the hand-operat- ed rudder and Hobie’s lean-back-and-put-your-feet-up pedal position went against every grain of my paddler’s intuition, it’s an undeniably comfortable, efficient and even addictive way to chew the miles. At 83 pounds fully rigged, the Revolution is something of a hippo to maneuver on land (ask a friend to help carry or, better yet, get Hobie’s handy kayak cart), but on the water the MirageDrive literally
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