> Finally, my personal ranting: Part of being a boatbuilder is dealing with
> all the little problems that come up during the construction process. Part
> of the satisfaction of a finished boat is the successful resolution of
> these problems.

I agree 100% You do pull out a few hairs while building, but when you're standing there, half-bald, looking at a beautiful, completed boat; man, there is no feeling like it!

> There is no better opportunity to put a custom seat in a
> boat than when you are building it. With a few sketches and some trial and
> error fitting, most kit builders ought to be able to come up with a seat
> installation that fits them better than any commercial seat. It's a lot
> easier to do it with a kit than it is to replace the set in a brand new
> fiberglass boat.

I agree with the others that the Thermarest pad on the floor of the Pygmy is not ideal, but the only commercial boat I've ever seen that had a seat that fit my butt and legs was a Mariner, and I'm sure there are a lot of people out there that don't fit that seat.

When it comes down to it, we're all builders, and we've been given leeway with a little bit of creativity (and a little bit of creativity is a dangerous thing!) and we can come up with some pretty innovative solutions. We just have to remember that for the most part, our time is free, and no matter how time-consuming the solution to our particular problems is, we can often come up with something that perfectly fits our needs. However, commercial businesses do not have this time luxury.

Shawn