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Posted by Ted on 14:02:52 16/12/02

In Reply to: Re: I think some of the newer designs on the market are much better fishing platforms. posted by Eagle Eye

John,

Johnson Outdoors Inc. Owns Ocean Kayak, Old Town, Necky, Leisure Life, Minnkota, Scuba Pro and a few others. They are a publicly traded company, which means they are required by the SEC to make available to the public, quarterly and annual reports. The Ocean Kayak web page has a link directly to Johnson's website where this information can be found. Or you can use other web resources along with thier ticker symbol (Nasdaq: JOUT) to research the company.

Since the Prowler has been announced and there is uncertainty as to where it is in it's development, this public information might give clues as to future developments. I read the company financials, press releases and understand that Johnson operates much differently than Tim Niemier, Warren & Glenys Aitken or Sean Caples. Also, I find no comfort when I look at what Johnson has released into the product line. Did I mention that I own a Scupper Pro TW? I've fished both from a Cabo and a Scrambler XT as well. I prefer that Johnson bring the Prowler to market as the new designs will help push other companies to introduce newer models.

I could be totally wrong about my conclusions. The Prowler could come out first thing in the spring, but why the drastic change on the website info? The only thing I could see them change on the deck was that jump seat.

I am probably more pragmatic than most when it comes to this stuff. I owned a health and fitness realted business for 12 years. I had 40 employees on the payroll each month. Part of my business was selecting equipment that had to be used by my customer base and some of that equipment had to be upgraded every couple of years. I had to understand safety in biomechanics as well as customer appeal. I've run triathlon, the LA marathon; I ski, snowboard and still go to the skate park with my son. I have been around boating my whole life as my father is a sailing nut. I am not some spaz when I sit in the cockpit of a kayak. I actually think the Scupper Pro TW is stable for those who are athletic in background and those who are not challenged in the balance department.

Where I tend to differ from many people is that I specifically look at kayaks as fishing platforms for a primary use. I run into more fisherman looking at kayaking, than kayakers looking into fishing. Those companies that develop kayaks for fishing as a primary use will command a greater share of the market.

As far as better paltforms for fishing than the Scupper Pro TW, I'll put that post up later under a separate heading. There are alot of new people getting into kayakfishing and I think that reviewing a kayak without taking a detailed approach is a dis-service to those who come to these message boards. If you go to www.paddling.net, most of the reviews are from people who have never been in any other kayak than the one they are reviewing. Those reviews lack the important comparision information. When I got into kayak fishing it was drilled into me by all the oldtimers to get into as many different kayaks as possible before buying. That's what I am doing and I am just posting my findings. Specifically, many people made up a bunch of stories about the tandem I eventually purchased. My research on the kayak found all those statements to be unfounded. My ownership and use of the kayak is also proving my research to have been correct. The goal in this is for companies to make better fishing paltforms, because fishing is what we do. We should not settle for complacent company's products just because their older products are good.

-Ted



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