Ocean Malibu Two

Well we finally managed to get on the water and compare the two kayaks. Sadly we did not get to actually fish from the Ocean Malibu two, but we did put it through its paces and tested it as best we could carrying out movements as if we were fishing from it. After the men in white coats attended the location, seeing if we were OK we got on with some great testing, and we also had a good laugh and I got very wet, pushing the Ocean Malibu to its limits and beyond.

First off we did some surf launching tests on the North coast of Cornwall. The surf was about 2 – 3 foot high and very messy. Loaded with one adult and two children the Kayak withstood everything that could be required of it and punched through the waves well. The kayak did turn over once while being surfed back into shore. The cause of this was a paddle being dunked with the paddlers leaning at the same time while riding a wave. This would happen to most kayaks so nothing wrong here. While surfing it was more manoeuvrable than my RTM Disco + allowing you to turn it and keep it on the wave, this factor became more apparent later.

We then headed off to calmer waters and spent about 2 – 3 hours flat water testing. The Ocean Malibu two was almost as fast as the RTM Disco when singled crewed, I was surprised at this to be very honest. It tracked well, not as well as the Disco though but it turned much more easily than the Disco (I guess you would expect that if it did not track as well). The glide on the Malibu two was equally as good as the disco, but the Malibu was effected a lot more by the wind than the Disco. When both Kayaks were stationary, side by side the Malibu two was effected a lot more, I would guesstimate about 15 – 20% more.

I decided it was time to get wet and check the primary and secondary stability of the Malibu two. Well it took a lot of effort to get it rolling, but once at the point of no return I was gone, no second chances with this one! Great primary stability but moderate to poor secondary. I could stand on the Malibu two without many problems, which I cannot do on my Disco. The disco has great secondary roll though and you have a chance to get it back. Moving on deck is not easy in the Disco if you have a sea running, in fact even on flat calm seas. The Malibu two was steady as a rock. I could get to every point on that Kayak without worrying about getting wet it was very, very stable. Getting back in was also very easy. It required a bit of energy to right it, but once it was floating the right way up it was very easy to get in. There are many entry points along the sides and over the low cut rear if you are really tired.

In conclusion I was very impressed with this Kayak. The long water line makes it perform very well and it is a stable platform for fishing from, you do get a bit of hull slap. You can also take the whole family on the Ocean Malibu two without a snag. If I had my time again to buy a first Kayak it would be the Ocean Malibu two, a great versatile and safe Kayak