The Ultimate Cover is the best storage and transport protection available for your kayak, surf ski, or outrigger canoe.
The Ultimate Cover is more robust and durable than our stretch-fit Original Bag Lady covers and has a full-length marine zipper closure that makes installation and removal easy and fast, even when you’re solo. It takes less than 60 seconds for one person to put an Ultimate Cover on a boat.
Like all of our covers, the Ultimate Cover is custom sewn for your specific sea kayak, surf ski, or outrigger canoe to ensure a great fit. These covers fully enclose your boat and are designed for long-term indoor and outdoor storage, as well as transportation at highway speeds.
Features that set the Ultimate Cover apart from the competition for durability, rugged construction, and convenience include:
- Sunbrella Marine fabric, the best marine-grade, water- and UV-resistant fabric available
- A full-length, YKK #10 molded marine zipper
- Fully bound edges
- Double- and triple-reinforced seams
- Reinforced bow tie-down points with welded stainless steel D-rings
- Three reinforced webbing carry handles (bow, center, and stern)
- Optional reinforced, mesh-lined drains
- Optional quilted polyester padding
When ordering, be sure to tell us if your boat has any non-standard features or options, like an add-on over-stern rudder, wave deflectors, deck compasses, RAM or other high-profile mounts, etc. If you’re not sure, feel free to email or call us!
Should I get a padded cover?
We generally don't recommend getting a padded cover. If you have a very fragile boat or keep your boat in a club or public storage area, padding can offer a bit of extra protection from the unavoidable bumps and scuffs. However, padding is also another place for grit and sand to accumulate and can take longer to dry than an unpadded cover.
We can tell you that we only have padding in one of our own Ultimate Covers - our most fragile, lightweight ICF K1 that is stored indoors.
If you decide that you do want padding, we use a quality, quilted polyester with a smooth, soft polyester facing over 1/4" polyester batting.
What is the difference between an Ultimate Cover and an Original Bag Lady cover?
Our Ultimate Covers are custom-fit from non-stretch, marine-grade Sunbrella fabric and have a full-length zipper so the boat can go directly in and out of the cover. When they’re on the boat, there is about an inch of slack fabric around the circumference of the boat.
Our Original Bag Lady covers are made from a stretch-fit premium polyester or marine-grade WeatherMax 3D. The front half of the cover slips over the bow like a sock and the back half zips up to enclose the boat. There is little to no slack fabric around the circumference of the boat.
Both styles of cover fully enclose your kayak/surf ski/outrigger canoe and are made from breathable fabric. The Ultimate Cover is more durable, better for long-term outdoor storage, and easier to put on; the Original Bag Lady covers are more economical (in premium polyester), lighter, and offer a driving-glove-like fit.
Should I get drains?
We offer optional reinforced mesh drains sewn into the bottom of the Ultimate Cover. Depending on the length of the boat and whether it has an under-stern rudder, we install two or three drains on a cover.
The Sunbrella fabric is very water resistant, but not waterproof. Additionally, the #10 molded marine zipper is not waterproof. As a result, some water will get into the cover in heavy precipitation.
If you store your boat upside down so the zipper is on the bottom, you don't need the drains - any water that manages to get through the fabric will exit through the zipper. This is how we recommend storing and transporting your boats, both to avoid the need for drains in the cover and to avoid water accumulating in the cockpit or bucket.
If you store or transport your boat right-side up and where precipitation falls on it, we recommend adding the drains so that any water that enters the cover through the zipper or fabric can easily exit. Residual moisture will evaporate through the breathable Sunbrella material without causing any harm to the boat or the cover.
Should I order the optional carry handles?
Some customers carry their boats by wrapping their arms around the bow and stern and don't want webbing handles added to the cover. Other customers prefer to carry the boat by a handle and appreciate having a webbing carry handle added to the cover.
If your boat already has a stern carry handle built in, you can always access it by unzipping the stern of the cover when you're carrying the boat. We don't think a stern carry handle is needed on those boats.
Personally, we add the bow carry handle to our heavier sea kayaks, but leave them off of our lighter surf skis and racing kayaks.
Which type of cover would we choose for our own kayaks, surf skis, and outrigger canoes?
We’ve replaced all of our Original Bag Lady covers for our kayaks, surf skis, and outrigger canoes with Ultimate Covers. We created the Ultimate Cover because Jeremy was tired of wrestling the front 11 feet of his 21-foot surf skis into its Original Bag Lady kayak cover after long training paddles and wanted a full-zip, non-stretch option that was faster and easier to put on.
My kayak, surf ski, or outrigger canoe isn't listed in the Manufacturer or Model drop down. What do I do?
Don't worry! We make all of our patterns from measurements and don't need your boat in the shop to make a perfect cover.
Just contact us by email at hello@redleafdesigns.com or by phone at +1 (906) 451-4539 and we can send you a measurement packet that walks you through the measurements we need, step-by-step.
Can I get an Ultimate Cover for my open canoe?
We don’t offer full-zip Ultimate Covers for canoes due to the large circumference of most canoe designs. However, we do offer the Canoe Coat, a durable long-term outdoor storage cover made from the same custom-fit, marine-grade Sunbrella fabric and featuring quick on-and-off buckle straps. It’s the highest level of storage protection and the most durable, UV-resistant cover you can get for your canoe, but is not suitable for transportation on a vehicle.
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