The boats are not bullet-proof. Sharp pointy things can puncture the skin easily although my father has gotten stuck on a submerge tree stump with no more effect than dimpled dacron. They are pretty rugged for other kinds of forces.

But, breaking surf, I don't know. The boat may be able to handle it, but it would be scary. Since the boat is held together by a bunch of small, glued points you need to have a lot of confidence in all those points. Forces should be well distributed, but since all the forces come together where the ribs, stringers and Kevlar crosses, if one of those intersections fail, you may get a domino effect.

> Have you any comments about the durability of such construction? I
> understand that such a light covering is probably not very resistant to
> abrasion, but I'm primarily concerned with catastrophic failure in
> waves/surf. I live in the S.F. Bay region, and though this wouldn't be a
> primary surf boat, I wouldn't want to get caught and destroyed by
> inclement weather.

> Comments? Are there ways to boost the boats strength without compromising
> the light construction?

> Nathan