That Bobber Feel
I think everyone understands the ‘fixin’ ta fall over’ stability that you’re concerned about. Once you learn to scull and brace that becomes a non-issue. The other kind of stability has more to do with overall volume than just width. If you’re sitting high in the water and your boat responds to every ripple… that’s not good. It’s the difference between paddling a boat and being a part of the boat. Avoid too much boat.
hull shape
Only a gunsel would paddle a kayak with a flat bottom. They have high initial stability and almost no secondary stability. That is the realm of short, beamy beginner boats that are so popular.
A kayak made to go somewhere and shed waves will have a rounded or vee shaped hull in cross section.
a challenge
You know if you buy the perfect boat for your experience level right now, in the next year or two it’ll likely be boring. If I were to buy a production boat again I’d want a design that at least would let me grow into it, challenge my skills so they can grow.
Bill H.
One thing to keep in mind -
– Last Updated: Dec-24-15 12:45 PM EST –
I found that when I first went to a real sea kayak the fit that seemed tight at first seemed just right after a week or so.