With fishing kayaks getting bigger and heavier, the race is on to build carts and trailers up to the task of getting these plastic yachts to the water. Malone and Sylvan have been neck and neck in cooking up sporty and solid options for kayak transport.
On display at the Malone booth at 2016 Outdoor Retailer show, the new MegaSport Trailer attracted a crowd of gawkers. The full-size trailer rides on beefy tires and cool rims. The Mega Sport is capable of carrying over 1000 pounds gear.
But it is the long list of attachments and gadgets that make the MegaSport a crowd favorite. First, the trailer can be rigged with a two-level stacker to carry four kayaks on a solid platform. The trailer can be rigged with any of Malone’s many accoutriments such as a gear locker and base mounts. It comes with a track that will hold a half-dozen gear crates. A large gear cage will hold the whole families PFDs and water shoes to dry in the wind. There is a space that will secure a large cooler or gear box.
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My favorite gadget is the lighting system they’ve cooked up. The MegaSport can be outfitted with a mounted or magnetic LED Light that is wired to run through the trailer lights so I can see my gear and safely secure kayaks in the dark. I even got to check out the new Sherpa configuration of the MegaSport. Using the same, heavy duty base trailer, the Sherpa has an eight-foot bed that can be filled with dirt and releases to dump its contents. Or, the bed can be rigged with bike and gear holders. The Sherpa has the same kayak tree that will hold another layer of kayaks and gear.
Once at the water, Malone has two new beefy carts to get my mega boat to the beach. First the Kayak Hauler with solid plastic tires will go across rough terrain without losing air and still supporting the kayak. The Beach Hauler uses low-pressure pneumatic tires that easily roll over soft sand. The tires are large to go anywhere, but the frame stays low-profile. Extra heavy-duty tubing is up to the task of carting big boats up to 200 pounds. It is great to see more options for rolling kayaks to the water.
One of the most innovative trailers comes from Sylvan Sport. They made a big splash in the business a few years ago with gear trailers that can double as a camping shell. I have been a fan of their kayak trailers since they hit the water. The trailer features horizontal bars that can hold two kayaks horizontally or three stacked vertically. The coolest feature of the GO Easy is the large gear cavern under the kayak racks that can be configured a half dozen ways depending on need. Best of all, the 250-pound trailer is easy to fold-up and store in the garage.
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