dear Mr. Orton - re the Fuego
First, thank you for occasional & thoughtful posts.
Second, thank you for restoking the fires at North Shore Kayaks!
As of two weeks ago, I became the proud/delighted third owner of a North Shore Fuego built in 1997. Excellent workmanship & beautiful condition w. many fine design details like the adjustable skeg slider, large rectangular hatch, flat aftdeck made for rolling, etc. Though a novice, I pay attention to hull design, and I very much like the amount of rocker and the centered position of the widest part of the beam.
Only seven hours in the boat this weekend and it exceeded all my (humbly novice) expectations as far as secondary stability, easy of turning, tracking etc. First try at edging buried the deck edge 3" water and held it for 25 seconds. And the adjustable skeg is supersweet.
Doesn’t know what weathercocking means (in 30 mph wind.) No knucklebanging, not once w. the low rounded foredeck. The cockpit at 16x26 inches is comfy like the Pintail’s ocean cockpit yet just a little bit easier to enter and exit.Have no doubt it will go like the wind as we get better acquainted.
Light and so much easier to carry than a kayak of nearly 16 feet would seem to be! Quite the looker, too, red over white with black rigging 
It’s a wonderful seakayak for the small person. It has opened up a whole new range of kayak outings for me.
Please Mr. Orton, if you can, convince North Shore to bring back the Fuego in 2008. There are lots of women paddlers into the sport since 10-12 years ago who want and need a true small seayak.
(also lots of male paddlers who crave the same, too, we are not all supersized Americans LOL).
I read about the Fuego’s successor, the Mistral, but this seems, from its hull shape and dimensions, to be a tamer version of the Fuego. That is a bit unfair as I haven’t paddled it…but then how could I
Please Mr. Orton, please bring back the Fire!
Thank you for your consideration, and happiest of holidays to you, sir!
Deborah
the friendlyfire