Monthly Archives: April 2011

SEA EAGLE BOATER RESCUES HIS LITTLE DOG FROM A BIG, BIG LAKE — Lake Ontario Adventure

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David Anderson and his miniature schnauzer, Jack, in his Sea Eagle 330 sport kayak on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario.

It’s one of those funny stories the family laughs about around the dinner table but a tragedy was averted when a small dog started swimming after his master in a very large lake.

David Anderson lives near Toronto, Canada, and is an avid Sea Eagle boater. “I go out boating pretty much every weekend,” David told us, “especially since I live very close to Lake Ontario.”  The smallest of the Great Lakes, Lake Ontario is BIG — 7,540 square miles — almost as big as the state of New Jersey. It’s an outstanding area for boating and fishing, but can be big trouble for a little dog that tops out at about 15 lbs.

David and his dad set out for a pleasant paddle in their Sea Eagle 330. Little did they know theyd soon be on a rescue mission!

Last summer, David and his dad inflated David’s Sea Eagle 330 and went out for a paddle while David’s mom, Elizabeth, stayed on shore.

Elizabeth tells the story. “My husband and David launched the 330 while I held David’s miniature schnauzer, Jack, on a leash on shore. Suddenly, Jack broke away and started swimming out toward the kayak. I was yelling, of course, and my son and his dad turned the kayak around and came back and rescued the dog. It all turned out very well. We all love the kayak, including the dog.”

David told us, “Any time I leave Jack, he freaks out. He went off his nut, got away from his leash, and swam out to follow me. We were able to pick him up and brought him back to shore safely.”

Dog on board

There’s an even happier ending: David now takes Jack with him in his Sea Eagle. “He was very nervous at first but now is quite comfortable on board. And I like having him on the boat with me.”

David’s not alone in combining his love of boating and dogs. One of the most frequently asked questions Sea Eagle buyers ask is, “Can I put my dog in a Sea Eagle?” And our answer is, “Yes. All Sea Eagle boats are tough enough to accommodate your pet.” See this and more FAQ’s on the Sea Eagle website, www.SeaEagle.com.

Swan rescue, too

David seems to have a knack for rescuing animals in trouble while boating. He tells us that while boating on the Credit River  in his Sea Eagle 330, “I saw a fisherman on the shore doing something with a swan. He signaled me and I paddled over. The swan had a rope wrapped around his wing.”

Swans  are big birds that can weigh up to 33 lbs. and can have a wingspan of nearly 10 feet. They can also be decidedly unfriendly, particularly when one is trying to remove a rope they’re tangled in. “I held him by his little pink feet while the fisherman cut the rope away,” says David. The swan paddled away — shaken but free.

Boat racing & cardiovascular exercise

David and his family have a rich boating history. “My whole family was involved in boat racing,” he tell us. “We raced kayaks and canoes in regattas throughout the Canadian provinces.” David says there are regatta plaques and trophies all around the family home.

These days, boating’s part of David’s fitness training program that includes weightlifting and bodybuilding. “I’ve been involved in sports all my life — karate, hockey, football, soccer, and lacrosse,” he tells us. “Kayaking in the Sea Eagle provides a cardiovascular component.”

When not working out, David’s working in marketing for CBS Outdoor Media. And he’s making plans for some outdoor adventures of his own – a kayaking and camping trip to Algonquin Park, Central Ontario’s famous provincial park that features over 2,400 lakes and almost 750 miles of rivers and streams.

Packs small, “cooks” through waves

When we asked David what he might tell someone who’s thinking about a Sea Eagle, he had some very practical advice. “I was looking at hard-hull kayaks, but for an apartment dweller like me, the Sea Eagle’s perfect. It rolls up small and stores easily in my back room.”

David & Jack, happy after their adventure in Lake Ontario.

What about performance? “It cooks through the waves,” he said. “I’d tell people who’re interested to purchase one for the convenience alone. It’s light and very durable. It can carry up to 500 lbs., can go anywhere including rough waters. I endorse it 100%.”

Our guess is that Jack the miniature schnauzer does, too.

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“WE HAVE OUR OWN SEA EAGLE NAVY!” — 6 couples, 6 Sea Eagle Sport Runabouts

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The Holiday Cove Yacht Club is what Sharon calls “Our own Sea Eagle Navy!”

“Dear Sea Eagle,

It was great talking to you today about our Sea Eagle…The pictures are of our Holiday Cove Yacht Club, Duane & myself, & Our fellow HCYC trip to the Manatee…Life is good…we are so grateful for the life that Sea Eagle has opened up for us.
Thank You, Sharon & Duane

Sharon and Duane Slottje spend their summers in upstate New York and winters in Florida. And when they’re down south they’re part of what they call, “Our own Sea Eagle Navy!”

Holiday Cove Flag

They have a great spot for their RV at Holiday Cove at Bradenton, Florida.  “We’re just a mile from the Gulf of Mexico,” says Sharon. “There’s a canal behind the park that gives us easy access to the Intercoastal Waterway.” She adds, “We didn’t get a drop of oil with last year’s oil spill in the gulf. We were very lucky.”

 

The Slottjes tow their 33-foot fifth wheel RV to Florida behind their pickup truck. “It takes about 22 or 23 hours,” says Sharon. The Sea Eagle’s easy to transport,” she adds. “We just fold it up and put it in the back seat of our truck. And we put the outboard motor in the back of the truck by the fifth wheel hookup.”

 

Holiday Cove Yacht Club
When they pull in the park around noon the third day, they’re among friends – other Sea Eagle owners who make up the Holiday Cove Yacht Club. “There are five or six couples in our park who own Sea Eagles,” Sharon tells us. “One from Alaska, from Virginia, Ohio, and all over. We’ve created our own Sea Eagle Navy!”

 

It all started with one couple. “They had a Sea Eagle and we thought it looked like a lot of fun so we got one,” says Sharon. “It just spread from there and other couples bought Sea Eagles, too. Last summer, through emails with everyone, we had the flag designed and printed up.” Now the whole Sea Eagle flotilla sports “Holiday Cove Yacht Club” flags.
It’s quite a sight to see half a dozen couples in identical Sea Eagles making their way as a group down the Intercostal Waterway. “We get a lot of questions and comments,” says Sharon. “We went up the Manatee River and pulled up on shore. So many people came up and said ‘Wow, this is so cool, where did you get these boats?’ We tell people our Sea Eagle gives us a way to go different places. We go all over as a group, shelling, to waterside restaurants, hanging out at different beaches. Sometimes we’ll just hook onto each other, put an anchor down, and hang out. We go on great adventures.”

 

“Our group loves to boat to the Mar Vista Restaurant on the Intercoastal Waterway,” says Sharon. We’ll do a little exploring into different canals. Then we go to Beer Can Island at the end of Long Boat Key and have picnic lunches or just hang out with our coolers. We go shelling and just have a wonderful time.”

 

Like a bat out of you-know-where
The Slottjes chose the Sea Eagle Sport Runabout. “It’s perfect for 4 people. When our kids come down they can go out with us. We take neighbors and friends with us, too.” Sharon adds that it planes easily with a 20HP outboard motor. “We’ve hit some three and four foot swells and I have no fear. It’s very stable. I feel very safe.” But is it ‘the sports car of the sea’ that Sea Eagle claims it is? “It goes like a bat out of you-know-where,” said Duane.

 

 

 

 

 

The Slottje family zooms out for a day of adventure in their Sea Eagle. The WHEELS fold down for on-land transport.

 

 

 

 

 

“What are the wheels for?”
“People ask us ‘What are the wheels for?’,” says Sharon. “We have a bike rack on the back of our truck and hook the boat to the rack with the wheels down.” Then they can drive it the 300 yards or so down to the launch without any effort at all. Sharon puts “wheels up” and they’re off on their next adventure.

Son, Josh, rigs up the Sea Eagle behind Dad’s truck using a bike rack and Sea Eagle‘s Dolly Wheels

Duane and Sharon have adult kids, and grandkids, too. “Our whole family just has so much fun when they came down here to visit,” says Sharon. “They have a ball. Jeremy gets to go fishing with his dad, our grandkids get to go and look for shells.”

 

“We have to pinch ourselves”
Sharon summed it all up. “We don’t have any problems with the Sea Eagle. We are just so happy with it. It’s opened an avenue for us for adventure. We do a lot of kayaking and biking but this is just so much fun. Our Navy group is great. I just can wait to take our Sea Eagle on New York State’s Finger Lakes when we get back home!”

 

Son, Jeremy, and his wife, Meghan, relax and enjoy an outing in the Sea Eagle with Duane and Sharon

Summers in the Northeast, winters in the Florida, great fun on the water with family and friends. “We have to pinch ourselves to think we have this kind of life.”