Hi. I bought my beloved Viking Reload from you. Over a year of hard use and I love it still. The hatches are waterproof, not water resistant. I have videos of my reload in action in Ventura County, just south of Tom's Shop. Never leaked a drop into the hull or the 3 storage circle thingies. Click on my name to get my channel and then click on videos. I obviously use the kayak in the ocean with 100% success. The molded in handles (very important) and the scupper holes are used to tie down the kayak when car topping. The tackle pod is beyond great and will spoil you. The light weight will spoil you. The great paddling performance will spoil you. Every time I am around other boaters/kayakers they comment on how nice the kayak is, especially when it is next to one of the other brand kayaks that weigh 100 or more... This is more of a sports car than a cargo van. It is sexy looking and reasonably fast. I want a freshwater kayak and a speedy recreation boat now. I tried a Feelfree Mokken 12.5 V2. The kayak is only 12' long but weighs 85 pounds. After paddling my Viking, I find it hard to paddle the low performance Mokken. After using the tackle pod, I simply cannot function with the small and cheap and yucky sonar pod the Mokken gives you. I will say the frame seat is comfy though, and the wheel in the keel is cool. I have only used the Mokken 2 times, and it is retired. It is now a guest or friend kayak. I do not paddle such a low performance boat, or one that heavy. So now I am looking at freshwater kayaks and the only kayak I really want is the Viking GT. It only weighs 55 pounds. Also, it uses the same tackle pod. I plan on keeping 1 tackle pod open for storage and the other tackle pod for my sonar/gps. I will pick between the Reload and the GT, and then pick the tackle pod I want. Very cool modular design. I also am looking at buying the Oxygen Surf Ski from Viking. It gives 2 huge advantages over all other skis. It costs $1200 as compared to any other skis which start at $3700, and rapidly go up from there. Also, it is made from rotomolded plastic and has a rudder specifically designed for rough freshwater use. The other lighter more expensive skis can only be used in deep water as they are fragile. The Oxygen can bash through shallow rivers and rocks and trees and whatever. There is a review of the Oxygen where the guy says the Oxygen is actually best on a river and that he had just done a 16 mile trip on the river with great ease and that he did it quickly. Viking makes high-quality high-performance boats at reasonable prices. I recommend them highly as a person who uses one in the Pacific Ocean. Look at my videos and see for yourself. Hey Tom, hope things are good for you at the shop. Nice to see you again even if only on a RUclips video. Is your Kraken rebuilt yet? Having that restored and in use would be awesome.
Hi. I bought my beloved Viking Reload from you. Over a year of hard use and I love it still.
The hatches are waterproof, not water resistant. I have videos of my reload in action in Ventura County, just south of Tom's Shop. Never leaked a drop into the hull or the 3 storage circle thingies. Click on my name to get my channel and then click on videos. I obviously use the kayak in the ocean with 100% success. The molded in handles (very important) and the scupper holes are used to tie down the kayak when car topping. The tackle pod is beyond great and will spoil you. The light weight will spoil you. The great paddling performance will spoil you. Every time I am around other boaters/kayakers they comment on how nice the kayak is, especially when it is next to one of the other brand kayaks that weigh 100 or more... This is more of a sports car than a cargo van. It is sexy looking and reasonably fast.
I want a freshwater kayak and a speedy recreation boat now. I tried a Feelfree Mokken 12.5 V2. The kayak is only 12' long but weighs 85 pounds. After paddling my Viking, I find it hard to paddle the low performance Mokken. After using the tackle pod, I simply cannot function with the small and cheap and yucky sonar pod the Mokken gives you. I will say the frame seat is comfy though, and the wheel in the keel is cool. I have only used the Mokken 2 times, and it is retired. It is now a guest or friend kayak. I do not paddle such a low performance boat, or one that heavy. So now I am looking at freshwater kayaks and the only kayak I really want is the Viking GT. It only weighs 55 pounds. Also, it uses the same tackle pod. I plan on keeping 1 tackle pod open for storage and the other tackle pod for my sonar/gps. I will pick between the Reload and the GT, and then pick the tackle pod I want. Very cool modular design. I also am looking at buying the Oxygen Surf Ski from Viking. It gives 2 huge advantages over all other skis. It costs $1200 as compared to any other skis which start at $3700, and rapidly go up from there. Also, it is made from rotomolded plastic and has a rudder specifically designed for rough freshwater use. The other lighter more expensive skis can only be used in deep water as they are fragile. The Oxygen can bash through shallow rivers and rocks and trees and whatever. There is a review of the Oxygen where the guy says the Oxygen is actually best on a river and that he had just done a 16 mile trip on the river with great ease and that he did it quickly. Viking makes high-quality high-performance boats at reasonable prices. I recommend them highly as a person who uses one in the Pacific Ocean. Look at my videos and see for yourself.
Hey Tom, hope things are good for you at the shop. Nice to see you again even if only on a RUclips video. Is your Kraken rebuilt yet? Having that restored and in use would be awesome.