> I don't mean this as a put down of the excellent points that
> Paul made in his response. I just think that one awfully important point
> is missing: the individual's personal reaction to the boat, to the way it
> paddles, to how he or she feels in the boat, and to how he or she feels
> they look in the boat --- an important subjective element, as well.

Thanks Jack.

This point is basic. So basic, in fact, that I completely overlooked mentioning it. Here I sit with egg on my face for failing to list it. Good thing I like omelettes.

The nice thing about this board is that when someone gives an opinion that is incomplete there are dozens of others willing to jump in to complete the thought. I wouldn't buy a car without a test drive (unless I hit the lottery and had so much cash I could afford to buy a Rolls Royce -- the way I dress, I'd never be allowed to test drive one of those.)

There is one joy to building your own boats, though. If it doesn't fit right, by the time you finish building it you have the skills to either modify it, or to build a new one with different attributes.

Paul Jacobson

> But none of my regular
> paddling buddies or I would possibly consider making the investment
> necessary to purchase a composite boat, for example, without going to one
> or more of the national or regional paddling shows and working all
> potential boat options hard on open water before making a choice. Maybe
> it's the marginal relative cost of plans and materials or the cost of a
> kit that draws people to choose a specific boat through reading about
> boats or relying on the opinions of others, but, as a moderately
> experienced paddler, I can't understand or appreciate the logic here.
> Basically, ya' gotta paddle a boat to know if it's right for you.

> When Chris Kulczycki told me that a significant proportion of his kits and
> plans were sold to people with no paddling experience whatsoever, I was
> really amazed. Now, having spoken with some of these folks in preparation
> for the Chesapeake Paddler Association's "newbies'" workshop
> later this month, I can appreciate this fact a lot better. (There are a
> lot of folks paddling S&G boats with virtually no training in even the
> basics of sea paddling.) But I still have a lot of trouble with the idea
> of choosing a boat soley from a thorough search of the paddling media ---
> and, again, I don't mean this as a put down of the excellent points that
> Paul made in his response. I just think that one awfully important point
> is missing: the individual's personal reaction to the boat, to the way it
> paddles, to how he or she feels in the boat, and to how he or she feels
> they look in the boat --- an important subjective element, as well.

> The opportunities to paddle prototype boats are there, but, obviously,
> they will be relatively more available for some than for others. But
> options are still there. If at all possible, add paddling the chosen model
> to your personal checklist on a first boat decision, and definitely get
> some formal or informal training in sea kayaking if you're also a
> first-time paddler.

> Jack Martin