My Date With The Predator 13

 I'm the kind of person that doesn't just jump on the band wagon every time something new comes out on the market. I refuse to buy the newest coolest phone or whatever gadget that hits the market just to show it off to people who really don't care anyway. I still play a Playstation 2 and I drive a ten year old truck because I like it not because I can't afford a new one.  It really does take me a while to warm up to new products whether it be a truck, electronics or in this case a kayak. The Predator is no different, not a bad thing it's just the way it is.
 I will say this though, I liked the lines of the Predator 13 from the first time I saw it.

  I only had this boat for a weekend but that worked out perfectly because I was wanting to do some night fishing the first night and then do a slow float the next day. Once I got my load figured out and got on the water it became apparent to me really quick that this is a BIG kayak. This thing is wide and super stable, because of that there is a trade off for some speed. Because of it's stability I was standing up and fishing almost immediately. 

 Now this is definitely not an open water boat nor was it intended to be. So if you're looking for something to fish what I would call "big water" you may want to consider something like the Big Game or a Trident.  

 Between the elevated seat and being able to stand when I wanted I was fairly comfortable all night.  I caught a few fish but more importantly I was able to spend all night on the water without feeling like I needed to be in traction the next day. 

 The next day wasn't so fun, I knew it was supposed to rain but geez it came down in buckets. The fishing was slow( I only caught one dink). The upside though was the combination of the EXO FLOOR and the one way scuppers I never once worried about standing water in the cockpit which was nice. I think the one way scupper valves are slick enough that all kayaks should have them.

 I didn't write a long exhaustive review on this kayak pointing out all of its features because there are several out there including a few good videos of it. I saw no need to repeat what someone else had already done. Since that first weekend I've fished from the Predator 13 a few more times including a tournament weekend and it's really started to grow on me. So is it worthy of the buzz? I think so as long as you know what you are looking for.

 Now if I can just get a date with her little sister…..