Things are changing in the kayak fishing world. A sport that began with anglers hopping in small, human-powered boats with a rod, paddle and the simple goal of catching a fish has now expanded to include tournaments, tech and even rigging competitions.
Chad Hoover, founder of Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF) tournament series, has garnered over 130,000 subscribers on YouTube and made himself a name in the kayak fishing world. On February 5, 2025, Hoover took to the platform to examine whether or not all the new changes in kayak fishing technology are symptomatic of a dying sport and asked– is all of this innovation pricing out beginners?
Are high-tech boats pricing out good old-fashioned kayak anglers?
Hoover got his start in kayak fishing nearly 30 years ago, back when there were no electric trolling motors, no beefy fish finders with multiple display screens and certainly no GoPros mounted to catch footage from several angles. Back when, as many anglers argue, the soul of kayak fishing was intact with a simple plastic kayak, paddle, a rod and a mission.
“At this point just buy a boat,” people joked in internet comments when fellow pro angler Drew Gregory shared updates to his rig. It’s a common quip and a suggestion that Hoover likens to vegans commenting on hunting pages.
With new gadgets continually bringing the technology typically reserved for bass boats to the realm of the kayak angler, some anglers are starting to wonder: is kayak fishing pricing out beginners?
“What people don’t truly understand or even think about intuitively is that as there becomes more and more higher-priced, more advanced offerings there is a trickle-down effect from the parts and the pieces,” Hoover explained in his video.
Hoover theorized that the fishing kayaks at the highest price point help improve the quality of all kayaks offered across the board. The price of the new, top-of-the line kayaks absorbs the price of technology and product testing, leading to better quality kayaks and access to that improved technology, even in less expensive models. Hoover also argued that the least expensive fishing kayaks currently available are comparable in price to the entry-level fishing kayaks that were on the market 30 years ago, but the current least-expensive models exist at a much higher quality. Hoover explained that this increased quality even at the least-expensive models is only possible because the cost of innovation in kayak fishing has been absorbed by those more expensive products.
“People say ‘oh, it’s just a bunch of plastic why is it so expensive?’” Hoover explained, “You have to absorb the cost of the tooling, the engineering, the manufacturing into the price of the boats and then you have to have the margin for having dealers be involved.”
The roots of kayak fishing might be a simple kayak, paddle and rod; what’s the future of kayak fishing?
Kayak fishing may have come a long way from its simple roots, but Hoover argues that this isn’t at all a bad thing; there is no right or wrong way to kayak fish when it comes to technology and innovation.
“Fishing kayaks have not gotten so expensive that the average person can’t go fishing. And I also think the argument that ‘oh, I just want a paddle and a rod and that’s what kayak fishing’s supposed to be’… kayak fishing is whatever the person doing it wants it to be,” shared Hoover.
As for trends in the community, Hoover shared he believes the future is bright, stating that he predicts that a lot of people who bought a cheap fishing kayak during COVID and fell in love with the sport will likely turn to the used boat market for upgrades in the near future.
“I don’t think kayak fishing is dead and I don’t think kayak fishing is dying. But I’m also no longer concerned about growing the sport, I want to promote the best possible opportunities for the folks that are already in it,” added Hoover.
