After more than a year my stripper is basically done. I took it out for the first time on Sunday on my favorite paddling waters, off Everett (WA). The boat is a John Winters design, the Q600, designed for QCC boats, which makes them from fiberglass. I had read a lot of Winters' articles about what makes for a fast boat, and knowing that he has done some sprint competition boats, I decided to take a flyer and try a 'performance' design of his. What I wanted was a fast boat for mostly day use, and I got it. I bought the plans directly from Winters. THey differ from most commercially available plans in that you get no construction details. You get one sheet with the stations drawn full size (adjusted for quarter inch strip thickness) and a couple of pages of technical numbers, one of which, the LCB (longitudinal center of bouyancy) you need for locating the seat. Other than that, you are on your own.

At only 21 inches wide, with a roundish bottom, it does not have enormous initial stability. Compared to my Mariner Max, (a truly wonderful boat) it seems faster but without the comforting secondary stability. Although it is a shorter boat than the Max it has a foot more waterline length and is not as agile, in part because I am not willing to lean as aggressively. Not being sure of what handling quirks it might have I put in a retractable skeg. It definitely nails the boat to the water when deployed. I have not tried it in nasty condituions yet though.

After a few hours in the boat I decided to move the seat forward an inch or so, which means some minor surgery as the seat brakets are glued to the bottom. That is almost done. Then I need to bolt some strap eyes to the rear deck and I am done.

I am guessing that the weight is in the high 40s. It weighs noticibely less than my Max. I have a few extra pounds in my fiberglass seat, which I love. The seat comes out by undoing two wing nuts and can be used on the beach.

This is my first boat with bulkheads and hatches, and I must admit that not inflating air bags is nice. I also admit I enjoyed all the admiring comments at the launch ramp. A kayak guide abandoned his group for a few minutes and came over to talk boats, until he remembered with a guilty start that he had people to attend to.

My next project will be either a plywood kayak (the Seguin) or a reletively 'sporty' rowing boat, whose plans I got from John Welsford, a New Zealand designer whose work I like. It offers cruising speeds comparable to a kayak with more capacity (take a friend) and comfort for a long day on the Sound.

Ralph Merriman