The Sunday kayak-y post,,,,

Self  Confession here, getting in type so I can see it and work with it.

My biggest issue with Lizzy Nordkapp is that damned Ocean cockpit.   16×22 opening that requires a bit of contortion, even with my narrow ass, to get into.   She has always felt tippy to me, but no more so than say Duh!kee, and Duh!kee HAS dumped my ass in the drink, yet I never wrote her off.  The reason she (Duh!k) sits so much now is 1) her age: she needs reskinned and 2) I’ve picked up better boats since December of 2018 when she was built and 3) my skills have evolved. The reason Lizzy Nordkapp sits so much is that cockpit: it makes me paranoid that I won’t be able to escape if things go sideways and upside down.

Selling Lizzy has proven to be a trial.  I’ve had her listed twice now and each time, the offers were more ludicrous than the one prior.  I get LOTS of ‘oh, thats a beautiful boat’ comments, but when  it comes to buyers, its always “As old as that is, I’ll offer (my asking price minus 75% or more) but not a dime more”,,,   And its not like I am asking for any thing outlandish.   $100 over my initial purchase and only because I have fixed the spiderwebs in her hull and re-gelled it, and added a cockpit cover (which is $100 in and of itself.)  

So, I have the option of transporting her to my sisters in SC where, maybe, hopefully, she fetches what I am asking (or more,)  

OR

I destroy her intrinsic value and make her usable by me.  

What do I need to do to get to that ‘usable by me’ state?   

different style cockpit   Something closer to a keyhole type so my long ass legs and narrow ass don’t have to practice Houdini moves, in or out.

Hatches.  Do away with those dinky VCP hatches, open them up and make some dual hatch covers like BJ has (and my prior long boat, Ghost,  who had the same type.) I don’t have leaky hatches on BJ, and,,, AND, I can get my gear in them, where with whats on LIzzy, I can’t.

She’s fiberglass (Doilan and Resin, which is the Brit equivalent of  Ballistic Nylon) I have means, and ‘fixing’ would be cheaper than trying to find a replacement.

Am I trying to jump through hoops to justify cutting up a perfectly good boat that has some value somewhere in the world (though I have yet to find to WHOM,,,)

Maybe. She is a twitchy boat, and every review on this particular breed says that she is not going to babysit you in ANY way and demands constant attention like a jealous lover or something, and that makes me think I should leave well enough alone and part ways (with cash to me of course) (side note, one guy I read on a regular basis was always a hardcore Nordy guy, who recently switched to P&H and doesn’t regret it at all, and wonders why it took him so long. He says now that he is in something else he can see all of the design flaws that he kept excusing away,,,,)

But she is a boat I have on hand, is 17’+ in length and has the ability to haul all of my gear (volume says so) and I do know she is one hell of a fast boat.

And there it is,,, Do I use her as my winter project and hope for something (destroying her value since she won’t be original anymore) OR, do I just make the choice to transport her elsewhere and hope to get my money back in selling her. These are the thoughts that pass across my mind every damned time I walk out the door (she is in the cradles on the porch so I can’t help but see her.) Or do I just list her with “OBO” and hope I get something out of her,,,,

Obvioulsy, I am in no rush. I won’t be transporting her to SC until I have Buff in a state I call reliable (getting there, only a couple more tweaks needed: also called new tires.) And I haven’t started cutting on her: I haven’t even drawn any lines to see what I think would work (nor have a bought the tint for gel coat to match her deck. If I do this, it will look right even if not BE right.)

Not really asking for opinion, but if you feel like chiming in, feel free. FYI, she is over thirty years old, and there have been millions of kayaks made and sold since she came out of her molds. Her value is ‘relative’ only to older kayakers IMO,,,, (and that is part of why I keep the debate alive in my head.)

((on another note, when I have listed Lizzy, I was offered more for her skirt, cockpit cover and Chimp Pump individually,,,, IF I modify her, those won’t be re-used and I could sell them,,, ))