Oak Orchard Canoe Kayak Experts

Reviews 3

MI

Michael Hennessy

Do not go to this store. I purchased a 2500 dollar fishing kayak from them. Two years down the road, the scupper plugs broke, causing the kayak to be unuseable. The company that makes the kayak has a LIFETIME warranty on their hull. I took the kayak in, as instructed by the owners staff. I was told I would have to deal with the owner. When the owner came out, he inspected the kayak, and then stated "what do you want me to do about it?" I informed him that ocean kayak has a life time warranty. He stated that he didnt know what they had, and that I would have to wait for the rep to come around again. When I asked when the rep was coming he stated "I dont know, but its usually in the fall" This was in JULY. He eventually started yelling at me, telling me that it wasnt his problem that my kayak broke, and that he didnt even know I was coming (thats irrelevant, but whatever) I informed him that I was instructed to bring in the kayak at this time, during this day, by his staff. He asked if I got a name from the person who answered the phone, and I said no, it was a thirty second conversation, I didnt realize I would come up against this hostility. He stated "Well, I dont know anything about it, i have people who mow my lawn answer my phone." I stated "Well, maybe you shouldnt have people who mow the lawn answer the phone." He then yelled at me, poking me in the chest "Dont tell me how to run my business!" He tried to blame the issue on me improperly storing the kayak- apparently if you store a kayak in such a way that it COMPLETELY FILLS WITH WATER, the water will freeze and it will break the scupper plugs. Only one thing wrong with this theory- For one, it was JULY- not a lot of ice in july. So- he stated we would need to leave the kayak there, because if we wanted a warranty replacement he would have to have the rep look at it, and that he didnt know when the rep would be coming. I informed him I would be calling Ocean Kayak the very second it opened the following day. I took many pictures of the boat, because I didnt trust him not to mess with it in an effort to make me lose my warranty. He took pictures at this time as well. I called, and they were extremely appologetic. They stated that in order to procede with the warranty replacement, they would need pictures of the boat. I then waited TWO WEEKS for the guy to send the pictures of the boat to the company. When my warranty replacement finally came in, it wasnt an upgraded model like mine, which meant many of the fittings and extras were not on it, and not installed. I asked if they were going to install them. The owner stated they would not. My friend and I spent about two hours pulling fittings off my old boat- hatches, hooks, rod holders, etc. I was instructed by the owner to cut a wire for my rudder to get it off. Surprise! It was not the proper way, and my three hundred dollar rudder is not worthless. In the end, I still dont have all my fittings on the kayak. I ended up having to purchase special tools to get the items on and the kayak cut properly. All because he didnt want to do any work to get me a warranty boat, which cost him exactly zero dollars.

JO

Joe Crabshack

DO NOT SUPPORT THIS BUSINESS. THEY ARE RUDE, INSULTING AND ALL AROUND POOR. HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE. TAKE YOUR MONEY ELSEWHERE. Long story short, they may call themselves canoe and kayak experts, but the only thing they are proficient in is poor customer service. We were not greeted or welcomed and treated like we should be the experts while loading the kayaks we wanted to rent. The owner came out and told his employee that we had to take shorter kayaks to fit better on my trailer. He looked at us and hollered that "HIS KAYAKS ARENT GETTING LOADED LIKE THAT"... like its our fault the poor employee was giving us the longer ones. Their biggest thing was to make sure we got the equipment back to them on time, so they could go home. Then, when trying to pay for the rental, the guy at the desk made us wait while he took a 15 minute phone call trying to locate someone elses shipment online. Really!!? Get the guys number and call him back!!!!! Time is ticking! Oh, and the owner came in while the guy was on the phone and told US to keep his dog in the office. We dont work there, worry about your own dang dog. Maybe I should send a bill for dog sitting. They never gave us any pointers or instruction on how to properly use their equipment or keep us safe either. So anyway, determined not to let it ruin our day, we went kayaking. When we returned (on time) with the equipment, another employee started to help us unload. At which time the owners wife walks by and gives us attitude and a lecture about the mud in the floor of the kayak..... Wait..... You run a kayak rental place. Kayaks get muddy taking them in and out of the water. (You dont need to be an expert to know this). I asked if they thought we should have a hose in my truck to wash them out? Maybe I should have taken them home first? But then they wouldnt have been able to close on time and charge me a late fee. She said that next time they will charge us to clean them out. I told her that there will be no next time. They didnt have a hose available for us to clean them out ourselves either, they just want to charge you more. And besides, I should charge THEM for having to clean out the birds nest and broken robin eggs and yolks all over the bottom of them when we picked them up. Pretty nasty for being so concerned about cleanliness..... Anyway, this place is WAY over priced and will ruin your day if you go there... Tell everybody you know, save your hard earned cash for a different business. STAY AWAY FROM OAK ORCHARD CANOE AND KAYAK..... the "experts".....

M.

M. Darling

I recently purchased an Eddyline Sky 10 from OOC. I made 2 visits—the first was to try different kayaks and talk about how to transport the kayak on my car. Todd spent about 2 1/2 hours with me, and kept bringing out kayaks for me to try. He was full of comments, suggestions, and helpful information, and, oh, did I mention patience? He could not have been more attentive and I left with much to ponder. After a week of researching kayaks and roof rack options (both online and reading the printed information sent home with me by OOC), I had made my decision on which kayak to buy, but I still had questions about the roof rack choices, as well as paddles and life vests. I returned to OOC, and this time Mark was the one to help me out. He made recommendations about safety and ease of the roof rack choices, so I went with his suggestions. Having now transported my kayak 3 times, I have found that I can easily load and unload it on my car by myself. (That was important to me since I live alone and have to load it on my own.) Mark was in high demand that day—it seemed like he was the go-to person for all the staff, and he was frequently answering questions for other customers both on the phone and in person. But at no time did I feel neglected. He got another staff member to help me with choosing a paddle and life vest. BTW, their carbon shaft paddles seem to be reasonably priced compared to others I saw online. I give OOC 5 stars for my experience. They didn’t hesitate to spend as much time with me as i needed to make my choices. I never felt hurried. They were truly attentive to all my needs. I love my boat and I love how easy it is for me to get it to the water!