I'm not a very diplomatic writer so, I'm just going to tell you straight up. I think you should seriously reconsider the Rendevous for what you are saying you will use it for. In your original post you said: "I paddle on flatwater of an estuary, coastal river in what for me are frequently windy (and sometimes gusty) conditions. There is a long “fetch,” generally from the prevailing west, which allows the wind to build up."
As has been suggested here, the Rendevous is going to be a sail in those conditions. And, nowhere in Wenonah's writeup or specs is it implied that it's a good boat empty in the wind.
My advice would be to start over. Start a thread asking what kind of boats would be good for your intended use. You should also specify your size, typical gear load, and your price point.
Sounds like a pretty good deal on it I was laboring under the false assumption that you were seeking this boat out, and perhaps even buying it new. Heck, if it’s cheap enough for landfill, I’m sure you’ll love it (I know I would) regardless of how it handles the wind.
secondary stability, s myth? Celia, you wrote that secondary stability might be a myth. Will you clarify? I feel it is very real. (BTW, not looking to flame, merely to learn).
Just from some old debates here Some have weighed in on discussions about this saying that there is no such thing as secondary stability, but that there is only stability and that what we call secondary is just another point in the curve. I think that’s it anyway - I can’t say I’ve ever focused well enough to follow the thread when it goes down that path. I wanted to keep that out of the debate here.
If stability curves could be published the talk would be more meaningful.
Some boats have horrid “initial stability”, great “secondary stability” and awful “final stability” when the rail is on the water.
What the actual measurements of those three flung around phrases are different for every canoe (in this instance) so I agree the stabiliity talk is kind of meaningles.
Plus the curve changes with weight in the boat.
Sea Kayak magazines present this sort of data. There isnt a canoe guide that does. What is meaningless is weight limit too.
Different stabilities? My Pearson 32 didn’t have much initial stability. Step on board and she’d bob a bit. But the boat was large enough so that didn’t much matter.
She did, however (this being key to sailing), have a great deal of “secondary” stability – in the form of almost 2 tons of lead in the keel, below the waterline. Capsizing her was hard work.