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How to Perform a Self Rescue
If you fall out of your boat, don’t panic. Stay with the boat.
You should be wearing a life jacket which will keep you afloat.
There are many ways to get back up on the boat.
If the boat is upside-down, it will need to be turned over. To do
this, reach across the bottom of the boat and grab the scup-
per hole or Hobie Mirage Drive and pull the boat upright.
Position yourself so your head is near the cockpit area of the
boat and you are facing the boat. You will want to be between
the seat and the footwell areas of the boat.
Reach across the boat to the far edge with one hand. Place
the other hand on the near-side rail, then kick with your feet,
pulling yourself up and onto the boat, so your belly is across
the center line of the boat. (Your belly should end up between
the footwells and the seat.)
Next, roll over onto your backside toward the seat, which
should place your backside in the seat. Sit up, swing your
feet into the footwells and you’re ready to go.
The key to this method is to keep your center of gravity low
and near the centerline of the boat. Your body and head
should stay close to the boat.
CAUTION: While righting the Hobie Mirage or climbing back
aboard, stay clear of the pedals, pedal shafts, sails and
adjustment straps. Avoid being hit by them or getting them
hooked on your life jacket.
Pedaling
First adjust the pedals to accommodate your size as shown
a few pages back. Adjustments can be made for a variety of
leg lengths. Adjust the pedal positions equally. Sit with one
pedal all the way forward so your knee stays slightly bent
when your leg is fully extended. Then simply pedal back
and forth to propel the boat forward. For pedaling in shal-
low water, partial strokes with one pedal forward and one aft
allow for retraction of the sails in shallow water. When there
is adequate water for clearance of the fins, full strokes can be
used. For additional speed you can paddle as well as pedal.
Before beaching or launching, push one pedal completely
forward to retract the Hobie Mirage Drive fins up against
the hull and kick up the rudder by flipping the lever on the
right side of the boat to the forward (rudder up) position. To
take off from the beach, push out to deeper water or paddle
out before putting the rudder down and pedaling the Mirage
Drive.
If launching from a rocky or wavy shore and to avoid damage
to your Mirage Drive, paddle into deeper water before install-
ing it. (Be sure to tether the Mirage Drive to your kayak when
it is not installed.) You may also prefer to remove the drive
before beaching.
If your kayak turns over with the kayak sail up, it can be very
difficult to turn the kayak over by rolling just the kayak. Make
sure that the mainsheet is loose so that the sail is free to
move around.