: what is sold in different large commercial venues reflects what will sell
: not necessarily indicate any inherent faults in designs elsewhere. There
: are strip and s&g recreational designs for your needs out there, keep
: looking. The confusion about the popularity of particular designs comes
: when a particular aspect of one design (keyhole kayak coaming) is put onto
: another design (stable,short wide recreatioanal canoe/kayak) thereby
: implying that short,stable sea kayaks are becoming more popular, mostly it
: reflects marketing driving design rather than customers driving design.
: One ensures the boat is used, the other ensures another boat is purchased.

I tend to agree with you, and yet...

Small double paddle canoe/yaks like the Keewee are so popular because
they are small and easy for a lot of impulse paddlers to get into paddling.

They wouldn't be selling if people weren't having fun in them.

Many strip builders are doing versions of Henry Rushton's Wee Lassie (cira 1893) just
because it is such a cool little boat. Few of us have seen such small double paddle
canoes and the tendency is to think of them as toys. I thought it was just a novelty too.
Then I paddled this boat 20 pound boat with a 30 pound pack and my 200 pound behind
in the St. Regis Canoe Wilderness for a week and had an absolue blast!

:The confusion about the popularity of particular designs comes
: when a particular aspect of one design (keyhole kayak coaming) is put onto
: another design (stable,short wide recreatioanal canoe/kayak)

Actually, as I stated in my eariler post on the history of double paddle canoes,
small decked canoes, with keyhole cockpits were around long before anyone was
building recreational sea kayaks inspired by native kayaks.

We all start somewhere. Many of us grew up around boats and can't remember
what boat we first paddled. (God forgive me!) I paddled aluminum canoes and
tupperware white water boats into the late 80's.

The difficulty for novices is to sort out all this PROFESSIONAL PADDLER MARKETING
horse hockey and get what they need.

I think you can't go wrong if you go to the boat that pulls your heart to it. If you spend too much time
thinking about what it's for, or listening to what someone is trying to sell you, you can get into trouble.

Having fun is the bottom line, in whatever boat you float.

Rob