Owner: Dana Gaines

Boat: Eighteen-foot Kevlar and fiberglass Stellar S18S Surf Ski kayak.

Name: “I don't have a name for it. Surf Ski doesn't even have any model names.”

Home Port: A boat rack in Gaines’s garage in Edgartown.

Well-Traveled
Gaines has kayaked completely around the Island – twice. “I had done most sections but never all in one day. It really isn’t tiring to go at a cruising pace.”

The Best Part
“Its downwind capabilities. You can literally ride a wave for one hundred yards or so. That’s just a lot of fun, in the right conditions.” It’s also got a hatch for camping, like you typically find on sea kayaks. “I’ve done a few trips to the Cape and Elizabeth Islands. Most Surf Skis are purely racing. This one’s more utilitarian.”

The Second Best Part
It weighs only twenty-eight pounds.

Best Route
“That is a tough one. I would say...along the north shore, because you can get good following seas from Menemsha to West Chop. That's just a blast.”

Accessories
“A wing paddle made of carbon. It’s very light. Real racing boats are all carbon. Second to the paddle, the seat pad is the most important thing.”

You have a sticker that says OMMFG. What’s that about?

“That’s actually a motivational thing. It’s ‘One more mile for Glicker.’ Joe Glickman is a kayaker who’s fighting cancer...what everybody does is they do their workouts, and then they put one more mile on.”