One of the most requested products we've been harassed about over the past few years is a heavy duty track compatible with Hobie Passport models. There's a couple of reasons why we've received so many requests for this, the most obvious of which is that the Passport is one of Hobie's best value kayaks that is perfectlyl suited to a lot of kayak fishing scenarios. A lot of people own them so there's little wonder we get such inquires.
The other reason would be that the tracks are made out of relatively thin plastic that can soften and expand in hotter conditions, with several reports from users that experienced accessories popping out of the track because of it. We've also heard owners mention that some track-mounted accessories are tricky to fit into them because of their curved shape and shallow profile.
These are not widely reported problems and are not issues that most users would be likely to experience if they're not using their kayak in hotter climates, or aren't hooking into fish that won't give second chances. They are real issues for some Passport owners, however, so we decided to address this with a purpose-built aluminium heavy-duty track set that replaces the factory stock versions. We've built a prototype and have pushed them through to production.
Specifically, we're using 6061 aluminium, which is widely valued for its exceptional balance of mechanical strength, corrosion resistance and light weight. We use the same material in the rest of the Titan tracks we make and its worked out well for our customers so far, so we have no reason to move away from that. We know for sure that no fish will be pulling rod holder mounts out of these tracks - it would take a Megladon to do that and we're reliably informed these things no longer exist!
Hot climates won't present any structural issues either, so even if you're fishing for gargantuan fish in far north Queensland or Lake Mead during the peak of summer mid afternoon you won't have any concerns about losing your gear overboard.
We've also made these tracks a little deeper to improve compatibility with accessories that were otherwise difficult to insert into and move around in the tracks. We built these with 8mm depth so we're pretty confident pretty much any gear you want to fit to the tracks will fit without any trouble. The track is also wider internally, which assists in maneuvering T-bolts inside the curved track.
After machining the tracks we're adding a rounded bevel to the edges to remove sharp edges and we're also adding texture to the surface for enhanced grip. And before we pack them up and make them available for purchase we'll be anodizing them in bad-ass black!
We're nearing the end of the production cycle for the Passport Titan tracks and they will be available for purchase real-soon-now™.